You could see it on her, the stately older woman sitting across the table from me. The once clear, bright eyes seemed dim with a sense of confusion and worry clouding the countenance. Sometimes, she knew exactly what was going on around her, other times perplexity reigned. It was dementia robbing her of what was rightfully hers, her mind. Dementia is the fourth most common cause of death in the world today. It is one of the most expensive diseases to care for, both financially and emotionally. And sadly, there is no effective treatment for it.
However, common exercise has been seen to help in the prevention of developing dementia. The Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Survey found that people who regularly exercised had almost 50% lower odds of developing dementia than those who did not exercise regularly. The increased circulation to the brain that exercise brings could be one reason for these results.
Whatever the reason behind these findings, exercise is once again seen to be beneficial for health and here especially the mind. So, don’t wait with exercising, start now with daily regular exercise to reduce your odds of dementia and even many other health risks.
Text: Fred Hardinge
Adapted from www.positivechoices.com