No significant association between self-reported physical activity and brain volumes in women and men from five European cohorts
Abstract Various studies have reported an association between physical activity and grey matter volumes. Some studies have suggested that this relationship may be moderated by sex, yet the direction is still under debate. Focusing on hippocampus and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC), we tested...
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Nature Portfolio
2025-05-01
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-98601-z |
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| author | Naiara Demnitz William F. C. Baaré Julia Binnewies Andreas M. Brandmaier Anders M. Fjell Anne T. Gates Rogier Kievit Michael Kjaer Kathrine Skak Madsen Lars Nyberg Sara Pudas Hartwig R. Siebner Sana Suri Øystein Sørensen Kristine Beate Walhovd Klaus P. Ebmeier Carl-Johan Boraxbekk |
| author_facet | Naiara Demnitz William F. C. Baaré Julia Binnewies Andreas M. Brandmaier Anders M. Fjell Anne T. Gates Rogier Kievit Michael Kjaer Kathrine Skak Madsen Lars Nyberg Sara Pudas Hartwig R. Siebner Sana Suri Øystein Sørensen Kristine Beate Walhovd Klaus P. Ebmeier Carl-Johan Boraxbekk |
| author_sort | Naiara Demnitz |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Various studies have reported an association between physical activity and grey matter volumes. Some studies have suggested that this relationship may be moderated by sex, yet the direction is still under debate. Focusing on hippocampus and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC), we tested whether the association between regional grey matter volumes and self-reported physical activity differs between women and men. We examined this interaction in five European cohorts from the Lifebrain consortium (n = 1809; age range: 18–88 years). Effect sizes were first determined by linear models run separately for each cohort, then pooled across datasets in a random-effects meta-analysis. Contrary to our hypotheses, there was no evidence of a relationship between physical activity and hippocampal or dlPFC volumes, nor was there a moderation by sex. Our null findings raise the question of whether self-report questionnaires of physical activity, which commonly feature in big datasets, are sufficiently sensitive to capture a—presumably modest—association between physical activity levels and grey matter outcomes. We conclude that the reliance on self-report questionnaires of physical activity is sub-optimal for brain-behaviour analyses. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-c6a78ed4574a4fcb9d32abd9efe995c3 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj-art-c6a78ed4574a4fcb9d32abd9efe995c32025-08-20T03:16:50ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-05-011511910.1038/s41598-025-98601-zNo significant association between self-reported physical activity and brain volumes in women and men from five European cohortsNaiara Demnitz0William F. C. Baaré1Julia Binnewies2Andreas M. Brandmaier3Anders M. Fjell4Anne T. Gates5Rogier Kievit6Michael Kjaer7Kathrine Skak Madsen8Lars Nyberg9Sara Pudas10Hartwig R. Siebner11Sana Suri12Øystein Sørensen13Kristine Beate Walhovd14Klaus P. Ebmeier15Carl-Johan Boraxbekk16Danish Research Centre for Magnetic Resonance, Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Copenhagen University Hospital - Amager and HvidovreDanish Research Centre for Magnetic Resonance, Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Copenhagen University Hospital - Amager and HvidovreDepartment of Psychiatry, Amsterdam Neuroscience, Mood, Anxiety, Psychosis, Sleep & Stress Program, Amsterdam UMC Location Vrije Universiteit AmsterdamDepartment of Psychology, MSB Medical School BerlinCenter for Lifespan Changes in Brain and Cognition, Department of Psychology, University of OsloInstitute of Sports Medicine Copenhagen (ISMC), Copenhagen University Hospital - BispebjergCognitive Neuroscience Department, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Behavior, Radboud University Medical CenterInstitute of Sports Medicine Copenhagen (ISMC), Copenhagen University Hospital - BispebjergDanish Research Centre for Magnetic Resonance, Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Copenhagen University Hospital - Amager and HvidovreDepartment of Diagnostics and Intervention, Diagnostic Radiology, Umeå UniversityDepartment of Medical and Translational Biology, Umeå UniversityDanish Research Centre for Magnetic Resonance, Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Copenhagen University Hospital - Amager and HvidovreDepartment of Psychiatry and Welcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, University of OxfordCenter for Lifespan Changes in Brain and Cognition, Department of Psychology, University of OsloCenter for Lifespan Changes in Brain and Cognition, Department of Psychology, University of OsloDepartment of Psychiatry and Welcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, University of OxfordInstitute of Sports Medicine Copenhagen (ISMC), Copenhagen University Hospital - BispebjergAbstract Various studies have reported an association between physical activity and grey matter volumes. Some studies have suggested that this relationship may be moderated by sex, yet the direction is still under debate. Focusing on hippocampus and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC), we tested whether the association between regional grey matter volumes and self-reported physical activity differs between women and men. We examined this interaction in five European cohorts from the Lifebrain consortium (n = 1809; age range: 18–88 years). Effect sizes were first determined by linear models run separately for each cohort, then pooled across datasets in a random-effects meta-analysis. Contrary to our hypotheses, there was no evidence of a relationship between physical activity and hippocampal or dlPFC volumes, nor was there a moderation by sex. Our null findings raise the question of whether self-report questionnaires of physical activity, which commonly feature in big datasets, are sufficiently sensitive to capture a—presumably modest—association between physical activity levels and grey matter outcomes. We conclude that the reliance on self-report questionnaires of physical activity is sub-optimal for brain-behaviour analyses.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-98601-zHippocampusMeta-analysisSex differencesLifestyleExercise |
| spellingShingle | Naiara Demnitz William F. C. Baaré Julia Binnewies Andreas M. Brandmaier Anders M. Fjell Anne T. Gates Rogier Kievit Michael Kjaer Kathrine Skak Madsen Lars Nyberg Sara Pudas Hartwig R. Siebner Sana Suri Øystein Sørensen Kristine Beate Walhovd Klaus P. Ebmeier Carl-Johan Boraxbekk No significant association between self-reported physical activity and brain volumes in women and men from five European cohorts Scientific Reports Hippocampus Meta-analysis Sex differences Lifestyle Exercise |
| title | No significant association between self-reported physical activity and brain volumes in women and men from five European cohorts |
| title_full | No significant association between self-reported physical activity and brain volumes in women and men from five European cohorts |
| title_fullStr | No significant association between self-reported physical activity and brain volumes in women and men from five European cohorts |
| title_full_unstemmed | No significant association between self-reported physical activity and brain volumes in women and men from five European cohorts |
| title_short | No significant association between self-reported physical activity and brain volumes in women and men from five European cohorts |
| title_sort | no significant association between self reported physical activity and brain volumes in women and men from five european cohorts |
| topic | Hippocampus Meta-analysis Sex differences Lifestyle Exercise |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-98601-z |
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