Effects Of Tai Chi Exercise On Executive Function And Fluid Intelligence In Healthy Elderly

In the era of global ageing,China’s ageing growth ranks first in the world,and the cognitive health of the elderly is becoming more and more important.Fluid intelligence and executive function are important components of cognition.With the increase of age,the function will gradually weaken in old age,the milder will cause mild cognitive impairment,and the severer will even have severe cognitive deficits,such as the elderly Dementia,etc.,so the cognitive aging caused by aging has gradually become a public issue,ensuring that the cognitive health of the elderly is receiving more and more attention.Studies have shown that regular physical activity is one of the key factors for a healthy lifestyle.Moderate physical exercise can slow down or even offset cognitive aging caused by advanced age.As a traditional Chinese physical and mental exercise method,Tai Chi is very suitable for the elderly to exercise and is widely loved by the elderly.It has also been shown in a number of studies to have a positive impact on executive function and fluid intelligence.However,the existing effects of Tai Chi exercise on the elderly are mostly in overall cognitive ability,and their specific effects on executive function and fluid intelligence are few and not very clear.Therefore,two sub-researches have been conducted in this studyh.In Study 1,218 elderly people were selected.On the basis of clarifying the specific structure of the elderly’s executive function,the effects of Tai Chi exercise on the fluid intelligence and executive function of the elderly were compared through a horizontal study.Study 2 explored the impact of Tai Chi exercise duration on the executive function and fluid intelligence of the elderly.Therefore,after one year of Tai Chi intervention in a part of the study participants,the effect of Tai Chi exercise on the executive function and fluid intelligence of the elderly was explored.The main research conclusions are as follows:(1)Structure of elderly executive functions.The executive functions of the elderly are still divided into three components of refresh,conversion,and inhibition,and the three components are related to each other to a moderate degree.(2)Tai Chi exercises are good for delaying the elderly’s executive function and fluid intelligence decline.Compared with ordinary exercise and non-exercise groups,performing Tai Chi can slow down the refresh rate of the refreshing components of fluid intelligence and executive function of the elderly;on the other hand,the longer the time of practicing Tai Chi,the better the elderly’s executive function inhibition function.(3)Long-term exercise of Tai Chi has a positive effect on the executive functions and fluid intelligence of the elderly.For the elderly who have no experience in Tai Chi exercise,a certain period of time can improve the fluid intelligence of the elderly,as well as the conversion and suppression of executive functions.For the elderly who have long-term Tai Chi exercise,Tai Chi exercise can Maintain fluid intelligence and executive function in a steady state.Compared with experienced seniors,inexperienced seniors have a more obvious function of inhibiting components of fluid intelligence and executive function when performing Tai Chi exercises.It can be inferred that the speed of Tai Chi exercise’s effect on executive function and fluid intelligence increases with the length of the exercise from the initial training period to the maximum value and then gradually maintains a stable level.