Exercise reverses effects of ageing on brain
October 18th 2008
Writing in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, Professor Art Kramer from the US Beckman Institute at the University of Illinois said there was now an increase in evidence suggesting that taking regular exercise can reverse the mental decline that comes with age. Exercise has long been thought to slow the development of problems such as memory loss but it is now believed that there is evidence that exercise can improve the way older brains function.
The findings of one study suggested that people who exercised for one hour three times a week increased their brain size to someone three years younger.Research has also shown that exercise can help older brains retain the capacity to grow and develop. Professor Kramer wrote: “An active lifestyle with moderate aerobic activity will likely improve cognitive and brain function, and reverse the neural decay frequently observed in older adults.”
(Telegraph,p10, Kate Devlin, 8 col.”; Express p17)
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