The good news keeps coming about exercise lowering the risk of developing dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease.
The latest study reports benefits from doing more aerobic exercise in middle age and old age. It was published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.
“Our study underscores the critical role of cardiovascular fitness in reducing dementia risk, even for those genetically predisposed to Alzheimer’s disease,” said Weili Xu, a professor in the Aging Research Center at Karolinska Institute in Stockholm. “Encouraging gradual fitness improvements offers a practical and impactful way to support brain health across diverse populations.”
People in the best cardiorespiratory shape had better brain function and much lower risk for dementia. Even people with a genetic predisposition for Alzheimer’s had a 35% lower risk of developing it in the study.
Cardio endurance increases oxygen uptake in the lungs and heart and helps sustain activity over an extended period.
“Genes are not our destiny. We can all make proactive choices to help win the tug-of-war against our genes,” said Dr. Richard Isaacson, a neurologist not involved in the report, to CNN. “While in this study higher fitness alone delayed onset of dementia by 1.5 years, we can do even better by also following a healthy diet, managing cholesterol, blood pressure and blood sugar, getting regular hearing and vision checks, and prioritizing sleep.”
Aerobic fitness can improve brain speed, as well, he said.
The study followed more than 61,000 people 39 to 70 years old for up to 12 years.
Holly Kouvo is a personal trainer, functional aging specialist, senior fitness specialist, brain health trainer, writer, and speaker.