Can Exercise Help Protect You From Alzheimer's Disease?

Source: Tufts University
November 14, 2002 (Reviewed: November 13, 2004)

It's often said that regular exercise is as good for the brain as it is for the body, because it helps "clear the mind" and get rid of stress. A new study suggests that the mental benefits of exercise may go even further, by possibly lowering the risk for Alzheimer's disease. The results are published in the American Journal of Epidemiology.

Over the course of five years, researchers in Canada studied a population of more than 4,600 men and women aged 65 and older who did not have either Alzheimer's disease or other cognitive impairments to see how many would develop Alzheimer's disease.

The subjects completed detailed questionnaires about their lifestyles at the start of the study, which included information about factors such as smoking, diet, exercise, and alcohol consumption.

Exercise associated with lower risk

After five years, 194 new cases of Alzheimer's disease had been diagnosed. Factors that were associated with lower risk included use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, regular wine consumption, and regular coffee consumption. The strongest association, however, was for regular physical activity, which lowered risk by as much as 30%.

How it might work

The authors don't go so far as to suggest what it may be about exercise that lowers the risk for Alzheimer's disease, but they find the association "intriguing" and say that their results "warrant further research" on the relationship between exercise and Alzheimer's disease. Such further research could address questions that this study did not, such as how different types, frequencies, and durations of exercise affect Alzheimer's risk and whether the potential protective effect of exercise is the same for men and women.

Exercise for good physical and mental health

In the meantime, consumers are already advised to get moving. In the US, federal guidelines recommend at least 30 minutes of moderately intense exercise on most, if not all, days of the week.

Exercise is a crucial component of weight management and has been shown to protect against diseases including osteoporosis, heart disease, and diabetes. If more studies confirm the results of this one, Alzheimer's disease may be added to that list some day. But be sure to talk to your doctor before beginning any new exercise program.

Source

• Risk factors for Alzheimer's disease: a prospective analysis from the Canadian Study of Health and Aging. J. Lindsay, D. Laurin, R. Verreault,  et al., American Journal of Epidemiology., 2002, vol. 156, pp. 445--453

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