Two new studies presented at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference in Paris recently adds to the growing body of research that exercise can help safeguard your brain.
And you don't have to be a fanatic to benefit: just a brisk, 30-minute daily walk can delay mental ageing by five to seven years, researchers stated.
One study from Harvard Medical School in the US examined the connection between exercise and mental decline among some 2800 women aged 65 and older who all had cardiovascular disease, which is also associated with increased risk of cognitive problems.
After taking a battery of cognitive tests several times over the course of five years, the most active women substantially outperformed the least active women, according to the findings.
The second, from the US-based Health, Ageing and Body Composition longitudinal study, involved 197 adults aged on average 75 years.
The results from the five-year study showed that the most active seniors were less likely to develop cognition problems than their more sedentary counterparts.
Both studies were published online on 19 July in the journal Archives of International Medicine.
(Source adapted from The Sun newspaper on 29/7/2011)
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