High-intensity interval exercise (HIIE) can benefit word learning in young adults, however this is yet to be investigated in older adults and the neural mechanisms responsible have not been directly examined. Twenty-six older adults participated in this study and engaged in stretching or HIIE prior to performing an in-scanner (fMRI) associative new word learning task. Results showed increased activation after HIIE, in the left middle temporal gyrus, and right inferior occipital gyrus in addition to better word recognition accuracy, suggesting benefits of HIIE on word learning that may be attributed to increased activation in key language and visual processing areas.
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