Kira L Argenio, Sophia E Day, Emily M D'Agostino, Cody Neshteruk, Brooke E Wagner, Kevin J Konty
Increasing disparities in obesity and severe obesity prevalence among public elementary and middle school students in New York City, school years 2011-12 through 2019-20
PloS one
determine whether experience corps ec social service program would improve agevulnerable executive functions increase activity brain regions highrisk group increased cognitive physical activity eight communitydwelling older female volunteers nine matched waitlist controls recruited serve ongoing ec baltimore program three elementary schools employed functional magnetic resonance imaging fmri preintervention postintervention examine whether ec volunteers improved executive function showed increased activity prefrontal cortex relative controls fmri volunteers trained placed volunteers 15 hwk 6 months academic year assist teachers kindergarten third grade promote childrens literacy academic achievement participants african american low education low income low minimental state examination scores 24 indicative elevated risk cognitive impairment volunteers exhibited interventionspecific increases brain activity left prefrontal cortex anterior cingulate cortex 6month interval relative matched controls neural gains matched behavioral improvements executive inhibitory ability using fmri demonstrated interventionspecific shortterm gains executive function activity prefrontal cortical regions older adults elevated risk cognitive impairment pilot results provide proof concept usedependent brain plasticity later life interventions designed promote health function everyday activity may enhance plasticity key regions support executive function