Here's a fitness benefit

[CF-OC_gal]

Someday we'll appreciate what we are doing a lot more !

Exercise helps reduce Alzheimer's risk: study

16/01/2006 5:55:58 PM

Older people who exercised three or more times a week showed a lower risk of developing Alzheimer's and other types of dementia, a new study suggests.

CBC News

Light activity such as walking for 15 minutes seemed to help delay onset of dementia among healthy people over age 65, the researchers report in Tuesday's issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.
Those who were the frailest at the start of the study showed the most benefit, meaning people really should "use it after you start to lose it," to slow age-related problems in thinking, said Dr. Eric Larson, the study's lead author and director of Group Health Cooperative's Center for Health Studies in Seattle.
The researchers followed 1,740 people ages 65 and older who showed no signs of dementia on tests of mental function performed at the start of the study in 1994.
The participants' reported on their health every two years for six years.
No signs of dementia were found in 1,185 people, 77 per cent of whom said they exercised three or more times a week.
Among the 158 people with signs of dementia, 67 per cent said they did not exercise regularly. The others died or did not participate in the entire study.
Since participants weren't followed until death, the study's authors can't tell if exercise helped to prevent dementia.
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Trials in which participants are randomly assigned to increase their exercise level or maintain their regular routine are needed to show if some types of physical activity help more than others, said scientists who wrote editorials on the research.
Study participants did activities such as walking, hiking and aerobics.
It's thought exercise might improve vascular function in the brain or reduce levels of amyloid, a sticky protein that clogs the brain in Alzheimer's patients.
It's also possible other lifestyle factors such as social engagement help to prevent cognitive decline, said a journal editorial.
Results of earlier studies on the exercise and dementia were mixed, but those studies included people who may have already developed Alzheimer's without showing clear signs, making it harder for investigators to assess if exercise makes a difference.

http://news.sympatico.msn.cbc.ca/Sci...etect=&abc=abc

[Sethius]

well thats all well and good but... unfortunately my grandad must have been one of the unfortunate ones who exercised and got it... but hey... whats the biggest advantage of being senile?!

you can hide your own easter eggs.