Category Archives: Physical Exercise

Lifestyle Affects Both Alzheimer’s & FTD

Posted on by

Alzheimer’s disease (60-80%) and Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) (10-20%) make up the two largest populations of dementia sufferers (Dementia with Lewy bodies comprises another 5%). Two fairly recently published studies have examined the effects of lifestyle changes on both Alzheimer’s and FTD. Both studies considered the participants’ physical and cognitive activities to create a definition of “active lifestyle” for the participants. For both the Alzheimer’s and FTD studies, participants with the greatest activity scores showed the greatest resistance to cognitive decline (for those not already showing mild cognitive impairment) or the greatest reduction in rate of cognitive decline (for those already showing some mild cognitive impairment).

Here are links to three media articles on lifestyle & Alzheimer’s:
People at Risk of Alzheimer’s May Improve Brain Function With Individualized Treatment
Lifestyle changes improved cognition in people at risk for Alzheimers, study shows
Could Regimented, Prescribed & Individualized Lifestyle Changes Improve Cognition in People at Risk for Alzheimer’s Disease?

Here is a link to the research article on lifestyle & Alzheimer’s:
Individualized clinical management of patients at risk for Alzheimer’s dementia

Here are links to three media articles on lifestyle & FTD:
Lifestyle changes may combat a dementia that strikes people in their 40s and 50s
Lifestyle Choices Could Slow Familial Frontotemporal Dementia
Active lifestyle may slow inherited frontotemporal dementia

Here is a link to the research report on lifestyle & FTD:
Active lifestyles moderate clinical outcomes in autosomal dominant frontotemporal degeneration

All links have been added to Health > Physical Exercise and Alzheimers > Mental Exercise.

Category: Alzheimers/Dementia, Amelioration/Prevention, Mental Exercise, Physical Exercise

Exercise & Brain: Four 2019 Articles

Posted on by

At the end of this past December, the NY Times published an overview/review (Move Your Body, Bolster Your Brain) of four 2019 articles covering research work on physical exercise and brain health. We’ll recap these below, providing additional media links along the way.

A Single Workout Can Alter the Brain (How Exercise Affects Our Memory)

A study of healthy older adults shows that just one 30 minute session of exercise increased activation in the brain circuits associated with memory — including the hippocampus. The latter shrinks with age and is the brain region attacked first in Alzheimer’s disease.

Here are two additional media articles:
Exercise activates memory neural networks in older adults
30 Minutes of Aerobic Exercise Supercharges Semantic Memory

Here is a link to the research publication:
Semantic Memory Activation After Acute Exercise in Healthy Older Adults

How Exercise May Sharpen Memory (How Exercise May Help Keep Our Memory Sharp)

New evidence reaffirms suggestions that exercise-induced irisin, a hormone, may protect against neurodegeneration and boost memory in both humans and mice.

Here are three additional media articles:
How exercise may protect against Alzheimer’s
Exercise-Linked Irisin May Protect Against Neurodegeneration
‘Exercise Hormone’ Could Slow Progression of Alzheimer’s Disease

Here is a link to the research publication:
Exercise-linked FNDC5/irisin rescues synaptic plasticity and memory defects in Alzheimer’s models

Weight Training Changes the Brain (How Weight Training Changes the Brain)

Until recently the majority of research on exercise and brain health has been done with aerobic exercise, which indeed, has show that exercise is good for your brain. Now, new work using lab rats has demonstrated that weight training can overcome cognitive impairment and even jumpstart the creation of new neurons.

Here are three additional media articles:
Weight Training – Good for the Brain Too?
Research shows surprising link between weightlifting and cognition
Strong Rat. Smart Rat. Got That?

Here is a link to the research publication:
Resistance-exercise training ameliorates LPS-induced cognitive impairment concurrent with molecular signaling changes in the rat dentate gyrus

The Right Kind of Exercise to Lower Dementia Risk (The Right Kind of Exercise May Boost Memory and Lower Dementia Risk)

It is never too late to begin exercising. This study shows that even starting in your 60’s, you can reduce your risk of dementia. Short intense sessions may be the most helpful.

Here are three additional media articles:
Improved fitness can mean living longer without dementia
Being Physically Fit Reduces the Risk of Dementia
Robust Workouts Guard Brains & Health at Any Age

Here is a link to the research publication:
Temporal changes in cardiorespiratory fitness and risk of dementia incidence and mortality: a population-based prospective cohort study

All the links above have been added to Health > Physical Exercise

Category: Alzheimers/Dementia, Amelioration/Prevention, Mental Agility, Physical Exercise

Exercise, Aging & Inflammation

Posted on by

Inflamm-aging (aka inflammaging or inflamm-ageing) is a chronic low-grade inflammation developing with advanced age, contributing to biological aging and worsening the course of Alzheimer’s disease, atherosclerosis, type II diabetes and chronic heart diseases. Earlier studies have indicated that exercise is useful in resisting such inflammation, and a new study of lifelong active athletes reinforces those studies. Note that inflammation is a normal body process, dealing with invading microbes as well as physical stress (including exercise). But when microbes are have been dealt with, or when exercise/stress concludes, inflammation should decrease to a normal base level. The chronic inflammation associated with aging remains above that normal base level.

At the beginning of the present study, two things were already known: 1) higher levels of inflammatory factors in people are associated with greater loss of muscle mass, and 2) physically fit people tend to have lower levels of inflammation in their bodies than inactive people. So the question was: do older, active people also have more and healthier muscle mass than other less active older people? This first study focused on men — another study on women is to be published soon.

This study enrolled 21 elderly athletic men, 10 healthy but sedentary elderly men, and 10 runners and cyclists in their 20s, none of whom had been performing weight training. The initial measurements taken focused on blood (for measuring inflammation levels) and thighs: their size at outset of the study, and the quality of their front (quadriceps) muscle as determined by biopsies. Immediately, the following was evident:

Group Thigh Size
Young Men Largest
Elderly Athletes Middle
Elderly Inactive Smallest

The experimental activity consisted of lower-body weight lifting, which would stress the thighs of all of the participants. After the weight-lifting, blood samples and biopsies were again drawn and examined for signs of both flaring of inflammation, together with signs of counter-inflammation activity, as shown here:

Group Inflammation Level Anti-Inflammation Activity

Young Men Smallest Greatest
Elderly Athletes Middle Middle
Elderly Inactive Largest Smallest

While being a lifelong athlete is obviously protective of one’s muscles, starting at middle age to go to the gym, or run, or cycle can gradually build up missing mass. And those aches and pains at first are the signs of inflammation, and their decline are the signs of the decline of inflammation.

Here are links to three media articles on the work:
25 Again? How Exercise May Fight Aging
Lifelong Exercise Prevents “Inflammaging”
LIFELONG EXERCISE PROTECTS AGAINST AGING

And here is a link to the research publication:
Effects of aging and lifelong aerobic exercise on basal and exercise-induced inflammation

All links have been added to Aging and Health > Physical Exercise

Category: Aging, Physical Exercise

Physical Activity And Dementia

Posted on by

A study published early this year shows that there is an association between the level of a person’s physical activity (even light activity) and the level of cognitive ability, even if the person displays behavioral signs of Alzheimer’s or other dementia. While the study does not demonstrate a causal link, the known links between exercise and heart health make adding or maintaining physical movement a good bet for reducing the risk of, or diminishing the effects of, Alzheimer’s.

Here are four media articles on the work:
Activity sharpens even dementia-affected brains, report suggests
Daily Movement — Even Household Chores — May Boost Brain Health In Elderly
Study Links Moving More in Older Age to Sharper Memory
Dementia care: The one activity you need to do in old age proven to protect the brain
Research article:
Physical activity, common brain pathologies, and cognition in community-dwelling older adults

A man epitomizing using physical activity to fight Alzheimer’s:
Meet the man living with Alzheimer’s who climbs the same mountain every day

All links have been added to Health > Physical Exercise and Alzheimers > Amelioration/Prevention. The last link above has also been added to Alzheimers > Coping & Caregivers Coping Stories.

Category: Amelioration/Prevention, Physical Exercise

Catch Up II: Weight Training, A Wedding, History, COPD.

Posted on by

Here we continue Catch Up I: Dementia Signs, Microbiome & Brain, Processed Foods & More, setting out four brief posts concerning links which either bring up to date earlier posts on Strong Brain, or which are simply of interest in and of themselves.

☞ Weight Training & Brain Health

Add weight training to the list of types of exercise benefitting body and brain (even if the study deals with rats): Serious Exercise May Seriously Defer Aging.

Media articles:
How Weight Training Changes the Brain
Weight Training – Good for the Brain Too?
Research publication:
Resistance-exercise training ameliorates LPS-induced cognitive impairment concurrent with molecular signaling changes in the rat dentate gyrus

Category: Exercise, Aging

☞Another Bittersweet Wedding.

So sad, yet so sweet: A man descends into dementia, forgets he is married to his wife — who is his caregiver, and who he deeply loves — and pesters her to marry him. Which she does, again:
After Countless Proposals, She Finally Said Yes. Again.

See Coping & Caregiving: Bittersweet Stories for more such stories.
Category: Coping & Caregivers > Coping Stories

☞ History of Alzheimer’s

The History of Alzheimer’s Disease

Category: Alzheimers > General & Resources > General

☞ COPD and Your Brain

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) cuts down on the amount of oxygen supplied by your lungs to all parts of your body, including your brain. It is linked to a higher risk for memory and cognitive problems with older adults with COPD having nearly twice the risk for memory problems:
How COPD Affects Your Brain

Category: Risk Factors

Each group of links has been added to the indicated categories.

Category: Aging, Alzheimers/Dementia, Caregivers & Coping, Physical Exercise, Risk Factors

Once Again, Lifestyle Counts

Posted on by

Another new study, involving 196,383 UK adults age 60 and older, has re-confirmed the importance of following healthy lifestyles for lowering your dementia risk — even if you have a high genetic risk for dementia. The study results showed a statistically significant difference: 1.13% of those with a healthy lifestyle developed dementia later in life compared with 1.78% of those with a less healthy lifestyle. The definition of healthy lifestyle included the following:

  • avoid smoking tobacco
  • be physically active
  • drink alcohol in moderation, or not at all
  • healthy diet: following recommendations on dietary priorities for cardiometabolic health

Here are three media articles on the study:
Your lifestyle can lower your dementia risk, even if you have high genetic risk, study says
Healthy lifestyle may offset genetic risk of dementia
Is healthy lifestyle associated with lower risk of dementia regardless of genetic risk?
The study was simultaneously presented at the 2019 Alzheimer’s Association International Conference together with JAMA publication here:
Association of Lifestyle and Genetic Risk With Incidence of Dementia

Another study presented at the Alzheimer’s Association Conference looked at similar issues. It tracked 2,765 individuals over about 10 years, rating them 1 point for maintaining each of the following healthy behaviors:

  • a low-fat diet
  • did not smoke
  • exercised at least 150 minutes each week at moderate-to-vigorous levels
  • drank moderately
  • engaged in some late-life cognitive activities

Those who rated 4 or 5 (i.e., participated in 4 or 5 of the healthy behaviors) were were 60% less likely to develop Alzheimer’s compared with participants who rated only 0 or 1 (i.e. participated in none or one of the healthy behaviors). The results did not vary by race or gender.
Here are two media articles on the work (formal publication is not yet available):
It May Be Possible to Counter Some of the Genetic Risk of Alzheimer’s With These Lifestyle Changes
Doing these five things could decrease your risk of Alzheimer’s by 60 percent, new study says

All links have been added to Alzheimers > Amelioration/Prevention, Alzheimers > RiskFactors, Alzheimers > Mental Exercise, Health > Diet, and to Health > Physical Exercise.

Category: Alzheimers/Dementia, Amelioration/Prevention, Diet, Mental Exercise, Physical Exercise, Risk Factors

Irisin, Exercise & Alzheimer’s

Posted on by

Irisin is a messenger hormone generated by muscles during exercise. Recent research shows that higher levels of irisin circulating in the blood is correlated with diminished risk of Alzheimer’s: One more reason to maintain at least a moderate exercise program.

Here are seven media articles about irisin, exercise, and Alzheimer’s, together with a research review article, and the most recent research article:

The molecule that helps exercise protect the brain from Alzheimer’s
Exercise produces irisin — irisin might prevent Alzheimer’s, researchers say
‘Exercise Hormone’ Could Slow Progression of Alzheimer’s Disease
A hormone released during exercise might protect against Alzheimer’s
To Burn Fat, You Could Exercise … or Shiver
How Exercise May Help Keep Our Memory Sharp
Irisin: The “Exercise Hormone” has Powerful Health Benefits

Research article:
Exercise-linked FNDC5/irisin rescues synaptic plasticity and memory defects in Alzheimer’s models
Research review article:
The Role of Irisin in Alzheimer’s Disease

All links have been added to Alzheimers > Amelioration/Prevention and Health > Physical Exercise.

Category: Alzheimers/Dementia, Amelioration/Prevention, Physical Exercise

Exercise And Alzheimer’s

Posted on by

In an earlier post, we pointed to work showing that one’s aerobic fitness level inversely correlates with one’s overall mortality risk: The higher one’s fitness level, the lower one’s risk of dying. And in another post, we pointed at work demonstrating the relationship between cardiac health and dementia, again an inverse relationship: The more you improve your cardiac health, the more you lower your risk of dementia. So it certainly follows that exercising to improve your heart health will lower your risk of dementia. And studies show that this is the case. One in particular showed strikingly that higher fitness levels correlate strongly with lower risk of dementia:
Dementia study links your risk with your fitness level
—-
Studies continue to show directly that performing physical exercise is one of the best ways to reduce your risk of dementia. Almost certainly, part of the benefit is due to the positive effect of exercise on your heart health, and that in turn improves blood flow to your brain, reducing your dementia risk.

The studies have ranged from intense 7-10 minute aerobic interval training to 30-minute walks. Clearly interval training will have more of an effect on your body than 30-minute walks. However, even those walks will have an effect, including the likely effect of reducing mental/emotional stress. And one very important point is to maintain a regular exercise program. If you start ambitiously and fall off to nothing, you haven’t done yourself much good.
—-
For maintaining both mental and physical health and strength, it’s quite tempting to think that massive intense workouts are necessary, both physical and mental. However, regularity is easily as much or more important for both. We’ll explore this in future posts.

The new link above has been added to Health > Physical Exercise.

Category: Alzheimers/Dementia, Physical Exercise

Exercise Is Best For Survival

Posted on by

A massive long-term study from Cleveland Clinic, published two days ago, shows that there is no such thing as too much exercise, and that too little exercise is a mortality risk factor greater than smoking or diabetes. The study followed 122,007 patients who underwent exercise treadmill testing at Cleveland Clinic between Jan. 1, 1991, and Dec. 31, 2014, to measure the association between aerobic fitness and mortality due to any cause.

The researchers found that there is a direct relationship between greater aerobic fitness and lower risk of mortality:

  • The higher a person’s level of fitness, the lower their risk of dying, with very high levels of fitness having very strong positive effects for people over 70, and
  • The lower a person’s level of fitness, the greater their risk of dying, with the most sedentary persons have a greater risk of mortality than the risks produced by coronary artery disease, smoking, or diabetes.

 
Here are links to three media articles about the study, together with a link to the original research publication:
Researchers show better cardiorespiratory fitness leads to longer life
Confirmed: Higher Cardiorespiratory Fitness Predicts Lower Mortality
New study says not exercising is pretty much the worst thing you can possibly do
Research article:
Association of Cardiorespiratory Fitness With Long-term Mortality Among Adults Undergoing Exercise Treadmill Testing

The links have been filed under Health > Physical Exercise and Aging

Category: Aging, Physical Exercise

Exercise, Brain And Heart

Posted on by

Not only is exercise good for dealing with depression, but — as many of us would testify — it boosts happiness and contentment, as shown by a recent large scale review of exercise-related studies. The review combined 23 mostly observational studies published since 1980, combined involving over 500,000 people, of all ages and a wide range of socioeconomic and ethnic groups, and studied the relationship between their exercise and the their positive feelings (i.e., happiness).

Here are two media articles on the review:
Get moving to get happier, study finds
Even a Little Exercise Might Make Us Happier
Here is the research review:
A Systematic Review of the Relationship Between Physical Activity and Happiness

And there’s more. It’s likely that exercise can help middle-aged people reduce their risk of heart disease:
Middle-aged can reverse heart risk with exercise, study suggests

And exercise helps deal with chronic stress, even including the stress of advanced Alzheimer’s. Here are several media articles and research reports on the effect.

How Strenuous Exercise Affects Our Immune System
Meet the man living with Alzheimer’s who climbs the same mountain every day
Aerobic exercise for Alzheimer’s disease: A randomized controlled pilot trial

Running exercise mitigates the negative consequences of chronic stress on dorsal hippocampal long-term potentiation in male mice.

All links have been added to Health > Physical Exercise

Category: Physical Exercise
Older Entries →