Researchers: Walking lowers dementia rates
Source: Agencies |
October 15, 2010, Friday
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WALKING at least six miles a week may be one thing people can do to keep their brains from shrinking and fight off dementia, say researchers in the United States.
A study of nearly 300 people in Pittsburgh who kept track of how much they walked each week showed that those who walked at least 9.6 kilometers had less age-related brain shrinkage than people who walked less.
"Brain size shrinks in late adulthood, which can cause memory problems. Our results should encourage physical exercise in older adults as a promising approach for preventing dementia and °?Alzheimer's disease," said Kirk Erickson of the University of Pittsburgh.
Alzheimer's disease, the most common form of dementia, slowly kills off brain cells, and activities like walking have been shown to build brain volume.
Erickson and colleagues tested to see if people who walk a lot might be better at fighting off the disease.
They studied 299 volunteers who were free of dementia and who kept track of how much they walked.
Nine years later, scientists took brain scans to measure their brain volume. After four more years, they tested to see if anyone in the study had °?developed cognitive impairment or dementia.
They found that people who walked roughly between 10km to 14km a week halved their risk of developing °?memory problems in later life.
A study of nearly 300 people in Pittsburgh who kept track of how much they walked each week showed that those who walked at least 9.6 kilometers had less age-related brain shrinkage than people who walked less.
"Brain size shrinks in late adulthood, which can cause memory problems. Our results should encourage physical exercise in older adults as a promising approach for preventing dementia and °?Alzheimer's disease," said Kirk Erickson of the University of Pittsburgh.
Alzheimer's disease, the most common form of dementia, slowly kills off brain cells, and activities like walking have been shown to build brain volume.
Erickson and colleagues tested to see if people who walk a lot might be better at fighting off the disease.
They studied 299 volunteers who were free of dementia and who kept track of how much they walked.
Nine years later, scientists took brain scans to measure their brain volume. After four more years, they tested to see if anyone in the study had °?developed cognitive impairment or dementia.
They found that people who walked roughly between 10km to 14km a week halved their risk of developing °?memory problems in later life.
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