Exercise each day..keep Alzheimers at bay !

Dr. Eric Larson, director of the Center for Health Studies at Group Health Cooperative, in the latest study carried out by him along with some colleagues may well have established the simplest way to prevent the till-now uncurable and much dreaded disease called alzheimer's disease which impairs memory and leads to irreversible brain cell loss. His study that was recently published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, claims that regular exercise reduces the risk of dementia and Alzheimer's disease by as much as 40% !

According to Dr. Eric Larson even a simple walk for 15 minutes three times a week was enough to cut the risk. During the course of the study carried out by him, he and his team followed 1,740 people aged 65 and older over a six-year period, none of whom showed any signs of dementia which like Alzheimers is a condition of memory disorder. After six years, 158 participants had developed dementia, of which 107 had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease.

It was observed that people who exercised three or more times a week ran nearly a 40% lower risk of developing dementia as compared to those who exercised fewer than three times per week.

The explantion provided by Dr Larson for such an observation is that exercise plays a vital role in improving the way the brain functions by boosting blood flow to areas of the brain used for memory. Explaining further, he said, "Earlier research has shown that poor blood flow can damage these parts of the brain. So one theory is that exercise may prevent damage and might even help repair these areas by increasing blood flow. SO, even if you're 75 and have never exercised before, you can still benefit by starting to exercise now." According to the researchers, even those elderly people who did modest amounts of gentle exercise, such as walking for 15 minutes three times a week, appeared to benefit. "Based on these findings, we can advise older people to 'use it even after you start to lose it,' because exercise may slow the progression of age-related problems in thinking," he added.

Voicing a similar opinion, Rebecca Wood, of the Alzheimer's Research Trust, said that previous research too, had suggested exercise could reduce the risk of Alzheimer's. "Many researchers believe that what is good for the heart is good for the head. The study is particularly important since it shows that exercise is beneficial even after the age of 65 and even among frailer people," she added.

What is worth noting is that not only did regular exercise cut the risk of dementia, the results also suggested that it might be able to help delay progression of the condition in people who begin to develop symptoms.

According to the study, those with the poorest memory and health got the most protection with regular exercise and managed to delay dementia for up to three years.

Backing the findings of the study, Dr. Michael Borrie, medical director for the Aging Brain and Memory Clinic in London, Ontario, said that the study should encourage people at all fitness levels. He said, "The people who benefited the most were the people who had the lower level of function, so it really says that one doesn't have to be extremely physically able to actually benefit from this regular exercise."