UCL Discovery
UCL home » Library Services » Electronic resources » UCL Discovery

Fractal complexity of daily physical activity and cognitive function in a midlife cohort

Blodgett, Joanna M; Ahmadi, Matthew; Stamatakis, Emmanuel; Rockwood, Kenneth; Hamer, Mark; (2023) Fractal complexity of daily physical activity and cognitive function in a midlife cohort. Scientific Reports , 13 (1) , Article 20340. 10.1038/s41598-023-47200-x. Green open access

[thumbnail of s41598-023-47200-x.pdf]
Preview
PDF
s41598-023-47200-x.pdf - Published Version

Download (1MB) | Preview

Abstract

High stability of fluctuation in physiological patterns across fixed time periods suggest healthy fractal complexity, while greater randomness in fluctuation patterns may indicate underlying disease processes. The importance of fractal stability in mid-life remains unexplored. We quantified fractal regulation patterns in 24-h accelerometer data and examined associations with cognitive function in midlife. Data from 5097 individuals (aged 46) from the 1970 British Cohort Study were analyzed. Participants wore thigh-mounted accelerometers for seven days and completed cognitive tests (verbal fluency, memory, processing speed; derived composite z-score). Detrended fluctuation analysis (DFA) was used to examine temporal correlations of acceleration magnitude across 25 time scales (range: 1 min-10 h). Linear regression examined associations between DFA scaling exponents (DFAe) and each standardised cognitive outcome. DFAe was normally distributed (mean ± SD: 0.90 ± 0.06; range: 0.72-1.25). In males, a 0.10 increase in DFAe was associated with a 0.30 (95% Confidence Interval: 0.14, 0.47) increase in composite cognitive z-score in unadjusted models; associations were strongest for verbal fluency (0.10 [0.04, 0.16]). Associations remained in fully-adjusted models for verbal fluency only (0.06 [0.00, 0.12]). There was no association between DFA and cognition in females. Greater fractal stability in men was associated with better cognitive function. This could indicate mechanisms through which fractal complexity may scale up to and contribute to cognitive clinical endpoints.

Type: Article
Title: Fractal complexity of daily physical activity and cognitive function in a midlife cohort
Location: England
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-47200-x
Publisher version: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-47200-x
Language: English
Additional information: © 2023 Springer Nature Limited. This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences > Div of Surgery and Interventional Sci
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences > Div of Surgery and Interventional Sci > Department of Targeted Intervention
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10181996
Downloads since deposit
12Downloads
Download activity - last month
Download activity - last 12 months
Downloads by country - last 12 months

Archive Staff Only

View Item View Item