Exercise and Vibration Boost Brain and Muscle Health in Postmenopausal Women

Postmenopausal women often experience declines in neurocognitive function and changes in myokine profiles, which are muscle-derived signaling molecules crucial for metabolic and brain health. These changes contribute to age-related cognitive impairment and sarcopenia, impacting overall quality of life. There is a significant need to identify effective, non-pharmacological interventions that can mitigate these declines, and this study specifically addresses how structured aerobic exercise and whole-body vibration impact both myokine levels and neurocognitive indices simultaneously in this population.

After 16 weeks, both intervention groups showed significant improvements compared to the control group. The aerobic exercise group exhibited a 28% increase in BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor) levels and a 35% increase in irisin levels (p<0.001), both crucial for neurogenesis and metabolic regulation. The whole-body vibration group demonstrated a 22% increase in FGF21 (fibroblast growth factor 21), a myokine involved in energy metabolism, and a 15% improvement in executive function scores (p<0.01). Overall, the aerobic exercise group showed a 43% improvement in composite neurocognitive scores, significantly outperforming both the vibration group (25% improvement) and the control group (p<0.001). The control group showed no statistically significant changes in any measured myokines or neurocognitive indices over the study duration.