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Effects of aerobic exercise on mild cognitive impairment: a controlled trial
Baker LD, Frank LL, Foster-Schubert K, Green PS, Wilkinson CW, McTiernan A, Plymate SR, Fishel MA et al.. Archives of neurology, 2010-01-01
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Objectives To examine the effects of aerobic exercise on cognition and other biomarkers associated with Alzheimer disease pathology for older adults with mild cognitive impairment, and assess the role of sex as a predictor of response. Results Six months of high-intensity aerobic exercise had sex-specific effects on cognition, glucose metabolism, and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and trophic activity despite comparable gains in cardiorespiratory fitness and body fat reduction. Moreover, our results suggest that a sex bias in cognitive response may relate to sex-based differences in glucometabolic and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis responses to aerobic exercise.
Key findings
- Objectives To examine the effects of aerobic exercise on cognition and other biomarkers associated with Alzheimer disease pathology for older adults with mild cognitive impairment, and assess the role of sex as a predictor of response.
- Results Six months of high-intensity aerobic exercise had sex-specific effects on cognition, glucose metabolism, and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and trophic activity despite comparable gains in cardiorespiratory fitness and body fat reduction.
- Moreover, our results suggest that a sex bias in cognitive response may relate to sex-based differences in glucometabolic and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis responses to aerobic exercise.
Why it matters
In this controlled trial, older adults with mild cognitive impairment did six months of high-intensity aerobic exercise. Men and women gained similar fitness and lost similar body fat, yet the exercise had "sex-specific effects" on thinking, blood-sugar handling, stress-hormone (HPA axis) activity and growth-factor ("trophic") activity. The authors suggest the difference in thinking between men and women "may relate to" differences in blood-sugar and stress-hormone responses. The record we hold does not say which sex improved, by how much, or what the comparison group did, and it did not measure whether anyone developed Alzheimer's disease.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthHigh
How this study scored 77/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a randomised controlled trial. Scored zero for sample size and effect reported because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Archives of neurology) |
| Journal's citation record | 3 / 4 | Archives of Neurology: journal h-index 353 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 11 / 12 | A randomised controlled trial (from PubMed type “Randomized Controlled Trial”) |
| Strength of evidence | 5 / 5 | Rated “high” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 2010 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (pubmed indexes it as a clinical or observational study) |
| Randomised / blinded | 1 / 2 | Randomised (as stated in the record) |
| Times cited | 7 / 7 | Cited 1,166 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 5 / 5 | 64.8 citations a year over 18 year(s) since 2010 |
| Impact for its field and year | 6 / 6 | Cited 50.2× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 4 / 6 | Cited by 46 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 3 / 4 | Cited 153 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 4 / 4 | Last-listed author Suzanne Craft: h-index 103 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 3 / 3 | University of Washington: institution h-index 3,540 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 5 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 20065132) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 77 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
- DOI: 10.1001/archneurol.2009.307
- PubMed: 20065132
- Original source →
- Free full text: PubMed Central →
Full text: free to read — PubMed Central lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 10 Oct 2026).
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record's author list ends in “et al.”, so not every author is named. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Baker, L. D., Frank, L. L., Foster-Schubert, K., Green, P. S., Wilkinson, C. W., McTiernan, A., et al. (2010). Effects of aerobic exercise on mild cognitive impairment: a controlled trial. Archives of neurology. https://doi.org/10.1001/archneurol.2009.307
Vancouver
Baker LD, Frank LL, Foster-Schubert K, Green PS, Wilkinson CW, McTiernan A, et al. Effects of aerobic exercise on mild cognitive impairment: a controlled trial. Archives of neurology. 2010. doi:10.1001/archneurol.2009.307. PMID: 20065132.
BibTeX
@article{baker2010-20065132,
author = {Baker, L. D. and Frank, L. L. and Foster-Schubert, K. and Green, P. S. and Wilkinson, C. W. and McTiernan, A. and Plymate, SR. and Fishel, M. A. and others},
title = {{Effects of aerobic exercise on mild cognitive impairment: a controlled trial}},
journal = {Archives of neurology},
year = {2010},
doi = {10.1001/archneurol.2009.307},
pmid = {20065132},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1001/archneurol.2009.307}
}
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