Compromising on snoozing time? Getting less than 6 hrs of sleep daily can cut down cognitive benefits of exercise, says study

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

They analysed how different combinations of sleep and physical activity habits might affect people's cognitive function over time. The team found that people who were more physically active but had short sleeps — less than six hours on average — had faster cognitive decline overall, meaning that after 10 years their cognitive function was equivalent to peers who did less physical activity. «Our study suggests that getting sufficient sleep may be required for us to get the full cognitive benefits of physical activity,» said study lead author Mikaela Bloomberg from UCL Institute of Epidemiology & Health Care. «It shows how important it is to consider sleep and physical activity together when thinking about cognitive health,» Bloomberg said.

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Previous studies examining how sleep and physical activity might combine to affect cognitive function have primarily been cross-sectional — only focusing on a snapshot in time. The latest study found, in line with previous research, that sleeping between six and eight hours per night and higher levels of physical activity were linked to better cognitive function. Those who were more physically active also had better cognitive function regardless of how long they slept at the start of the study, the researchers said. This changed over the 10-year period, with more physically active short sleepers (less than six hours) experiencing more rapid cognitive decline, they said.

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According to the researchers, this rapid decline was true for those in their 50s and 60s in this group,