Effects of Long-term Walking and Taichi Exercise on Emotional Face Recognition and Memory in the Elderly

Objective:To determine the effects of long-term walking and Taichi exercises on emotional face recognition and memory, and analyze the relationship between polarity of emotional face and the effects of walking/Taichi exercise on emotional face recognition and memory in the elderly.Method:Sixty three subjects were divided into four groups:young sedentary control group (n=16) , old sedentary control group (n=15) , old walking exercise group (n=16) , and old Taichi exercise group (n=15) .“Study-test” model was used to investigate the effects of exercises on emotional face recognition and memory.Results:1) The correct rate in the old sedentary control group was lower than that in the young sedentary control group (P<0.001) ;the correct rate in the old walking exercise group and the old Taichi exercise group was higher than in the old sedentary control group respectively (P<0.05, P<0.01) , respectively.2) The latency of recognizing the emotional face in the old sedentary control group, the old walking exercise group, the old Taichi exercise group was significantly higher than in the young sedentary control group (P<0.01, P<0.01, P<0.05) , respectively.3) The correct rate of retrieving the emotional faces in the old sedentary control group was significantly lower than in the young sedentary control group (P<0.01) , the correct rate of recognizing the emotional faces in the old walking group was significantly higher than in the old sedentary control group (P<0.05) .The correct rate in the old walking group was significantly higher than in the old Taichi group (P<0.05) .4) The latency of retrieving the emotional faces in the old sedentary control group, the old walking group, and the old Taichi group was significantly higher than in the young sedentary control group, respectively.Conclusions:There is a decline for the elderly to recognize and memorize the emotional (negative/neutral) faces.Long-term walking/Taichi exercise can improve the emotional face recognition in the elderly;long term walking exercise improve the emotional face memory in the elderly.Emotion polarity may have similar influence on emotional face recognition/memory in the elderly as in the young.