Regular exercise can keep dementia at bay – adding more hours reduces the brain’s aging process

( Natural News ) Dementia is one of the most common problems older adults encounter, but no matter how common it is, it can be preventable. One of the best ways to keep dementia at bay is to exercise regularly, according to a study published in the journal JAMA Network Open . This is good news for those who are trying to stay fit but aren’t exactly marathon runners or athletes. Researchers at Boston University looked at data from an ongoing heart health study in the U.S. to analyze the effects of exercise on dementia risk. They discovered people who do more physical activity tend to have a slower brain aging process and have a lower chance of developing dementia later in life. Moreover, every additional hour could remove another year off someone’s brain age. Therefore, someone doing three hours of exercise every week could, over time, maintain a brain three years younger than the average for their age. The researchers also found that doing any exercise, even if it is as light as walking, could be enough to build up and provide benefits — as long as it is done regularly. Low-intensity exercises that could get the heart, lungs, and muscles working harder are all beneficial. “Every additional hour of light-intensity physical activity was associated with higher brain volumes, even among individuals not meeting current physical activity guidelines,” explained Dr. Nicole Spartano, one of the researchers of the study. While it was not clear how much exercise should be done for optimal protection against dementia, the researchers suggested doing at least 250 minutes of physical activity every week. The researchers said that these findings are consistent with the notion that potential benefits of exercise on brain aging may build up at a lower, more achievable level of intensity. […]

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