The Effect of Aerobic Exercise on Cognition and Sleep Quality in Individuals with Insomnia: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Abstract

The systematic review and meta-analysis explored the effects of aerobic exercise on cognition and sleep quality in individuals with insomnia. The research was important to identify effectiveness of mild, brisk, moderate and aerobic exercise among adults diagnosed with insomnia. The researchers searched multiple databases using PubMed, Cochrane, EBSCO, PsycINFO, Medline, and ScienceDirect to identify relevant journal articles. The keywords used for various search combinations were “insomnia,” “sleep,” “cognition,” “REM sleep,” and “aerobic exercise,” with the use of the Boolean operator “AND” and “OR” with terms associated with “quality of sleep.” Studies included qualitative and quantitative studies using the eligibility criteria as outlined in the PRISMA. registries.The research analyzed exercise in a routine for a person with insomnia improves their sleep quality and has a beneficial impact on their cognition. An interesting finding showed that daily aerobic exercise had a significant impact on enhancing the quality of sleep. A compelling finding revealed that sleep efficiency resulted in improved sleep latency which resulted in a decreased timeframe for falling asleep. An interesting finding was that sleep hygiene education was effective in improving the quality of sleep and mood among adults. An expected outcome was that age may play an important role in managing insomnia. An unexpected finding was that increased aerobic activity levels more than 150 minutes per week may benefit persons with insomnia. Though further research is needed to broaden knowledge about exercise on cognition and sleep quality, this systematic review contributes to the body of literature.