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Poor fitness results in smaller brains with age, says study
Posted on: 13/Feb/2016 11:58:37 AM
A recent study has said that people who are not physically fit in middle age may get a smaller brain as they age, when compared to those who exercise regularly. Previous studies have said that reduction in the size of the brain is part of ageing. Other factors are smoking, obesity, diabetes and high blood pressure. The study was conducted by researchers at the Boston University School of Medicine and was published in the journal Neurology.
Say the researchers, We found that poor fitness in midlife was linked to more rapid brain ageing two decades later. This message may be especially important for people with heart disease or at risk for heart disease, in whom we found an even stronger relationship between fitness and brain ageing.
The study was conducted on 1583 people. They enrolled in the Framingham Heart Study. They took a treadmill test to assess their fitness levels at 40 years of age. At the time, they did not have any signs of dementia or heart disease. After 20 years, the respondents were asked to take a treadmill test again. They also went through MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scans of their brains. The average age of the respondents was 58 years.
Results showed that in the first treadmill test, 89 percent of the respondents achieved their target rate. They had an average estimated exercise capacity of 39 ml of oxygen per kg of Body Mass Per Minute (ml/kg/min). This is also known as peak VO2. The idea is to determine the maximum amount of oxygen the body is capable of using in one minute.
After 20 years, the scans and the tests showed that those who had below average fitness in the first test had a smaller total brain volume than the others.
Say the researchers, The study also wasn`t designed to prove that poor fitness erodes brain volume or directly causes cognitive decline. Even so, the findings should encourage people to exercise earlier in life, and often. The take-home message is a familiar one - an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. People who haven`t started exercising by 40 can still get moving.
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