We all know that exercise is important for our health, but as we get older and take on more responsibilities, it can become harder to find time for exercise each and every day. However, a new study has revealed an interesting connection between midlife physical activity and late-life brain function.
According to a new study published in Neurology, individuals with higher levels of leisure time physical activity during their midlife had less late-life brain damage as viewed on an MRI compared to individuals with little midlife physical activity.
“Our study suggests that getting at least an hour and 15 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity a week or more during midlife may be important throughout your lifetime for promoting brain health and preserving the actual structure of your brain,” said Priya Palta, PhD, of Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York City and first author of the study. “In particular, engaging in more than two and a half hours of physical activity per week in middle age was associated with fewer signs of brain disease.”
Improving Your Brain Health
For the study, researchers examined more than 1,600 patients over the course of 25 years. During this time, they received five examinations and had an MRI at a mean age of 72. At baseline and 25 years later, participants were asked questions about their moderate to vigorous physical activity levels, which were classified as none, low, middle or high. Types of activities were addressed in a separate questionnaire.
Researchers then compared activity levels to white matter integrity as revealed during the MRI scan. Without getting into all the specifics of white matter development and function, researchers noted that those who had higher levels of midlife activity also had more promising white matter imaging compared to those with little or no midlife physical activity.
So if you want to ensure you have improved cognitive function long into your wonder years, it’s important to carve out time to exercise during your 30s, 40s and 50s. Obviously exercise is important at all stages of your life, but this is one of the first studies to find an association between midlife activity and late life brain function. So find time 3-4 times a week to partake in some moderate-to-vigorous activity, and you may be sharper later in life!
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