the role of traditional local culture-based exercise games in preventing cognitive function decline and increased levels of depression in the elderly

Elderly individuals are prone to physical, degenerative, and mental health issues due to aging, increasing their risk of cognitive decline and depression. cognitive impairment may progress to dementia if not addressed. one preventive effort involves promoting physical activity through culturally-based traditional exercise, which can enhance enjoyment and motivation among the elderly. this study aimed to examine the effectiveness of traditional local culture-based exercise in preventing cognitive decline and reducing depression in the elderly. a quasi-experimental design with pre-test and post-test control groups was used. the study involved 40 elderly participants from the teratai elderly gymnastics group in nogotirto village, sleman, yogyakarta, indonesia. instruments used were the mini-mental state examination (mmse) to assess cognitive function and the geriatric depression scale (gds) to measure depression. participants received interventions through instructional videos and traditional songs during the exercises. results showed that the intervention group (kr-i), which performed traditional culture-based gymnastics, experienced significant improvements in cognitive function (mmse: p = 0.003655) and reductions in depression levels (gds: p = 0.032573). the control group (kr-k), which engaged in daily activities while singing traditional songs, also showed improvements, but these were not statistically significant. in conclusion, traditional local culture-based gymnastics is effective in enhancing cognitive function and reducing depression in the elderly, and can be recommended as a preventive strategy against cognitive decline and mental health issues.