Exercise training improves cardiorespiratory fitness and cognitive function in individuals with substance use disorders: a pilot study

Excerpt

Addiction to chemical substances (cocaine, crack, marijuana, alcohol, heroin, inhalants, LSD, ecstasy, and prescriptive drugs) is a public health problem all over the world [1]. Drug addiction is defined by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders of the American Psychiatric Association (DSM-V 2013) as substance use disorder (SUD). Individuals with SUD are characterized by impulsive behavior (i.e., action initiated without consideration to the costs, results, or consequences) of substance consumption with impairments in cognitive control related to the use, withdrawal symptoms, tolerance and craving [2, 3]. In addition, a severe deterioration of physical health is also described in chronic SUD, including cardiovascular and motor function [4]. Moreover, impaired cognition, such as in decision making and inhibitory control in SUD has been linked to prefrontal cortex dysfunction, which favors impulsive behavior [2, 3]. Therefore, interventions that may improve prefrontal cortex function are desired to help the treatment of SUD since it may be associated to higher inhibition of impulsive behavior in self-administration of the substances in individuals willing to stop consumption. …