No pharmaceutical drug can come CLOSE to these effects
from the OmniVista Health Learning News Desk
According to three new clinical trials, exercise may be the best medicine there is for combatting dementia and Alzheimer’s.
All three studies found that engaging in physical activity led to significant improvements in several key areas of cognition: mood, memory, and the ability to think clearly.
The first study was conducted at Wake Forest School of Medicine. It consisted of 65 sedentary people, age 55-89 who had pre-diabetes and weren’t exercising regularly at the outset of the study.
The participants were randomly split into two groups. The first performed low-impact stretching exercises for 6 months. The second engaged in 45 minutes of high intensity aerobics 4 times a week during the 6 month period.
Nearly all of the participants stuck to their exercise programs. And regardless of which group they were in, they all showed improved fitness and blood sugar levels at the end of the study.
But on MRI scans, the aerobic exercise group also showed marked improvements in blood flow to key areas of the brain. Blood flow to the brain typically decreases with age in everyone (not just those with Alzheimer’s). But this study showed exercise can actually reverse that age-related effect. It also reversed one of the specific hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease.
The second clinical trial consisted of 200 Danish people between ages 50 and 90 who already had Alzheimer’s. They were randomly assigned to either an aerobic exercise program, or a control group (which performed no extra exercise).
Researchers found that those who exercised the most had fewer problems with mood swings, anxiety, irritability, and depression. Participants in the exercise group also experienced improvements in mental speed and attention.
The third study didn’t focus specifically on dementia, but did look at another form of cognitive impairment. It involved 71 people age 56-96 who had suffered from a stroke, which diminished their memory, as well as their ability to think.
Not surprisingly, the 35 people who engaged in regular aerobics classes significantly improved memory and selective attention, compared to those who didn’t exercise at all.
When it comes to your protecting your brain and cognitive function, the bottom line here is move it or lose it.
Source: