Can Regular Exercise Help You Live Longer?
Can Regular Exercise Help You Live Longer?
It has been quite a while since I last spent some time jogging at a local lake garden. It's not that I really don't have the time but it's the laziness that has conquered my better judgment.
After reading an article in the last Sunday paper and coming across several articles here, I find that exercise can reduce the severity of two types of aging: Normal aging and disease-related aging.
Strength Maintenance
Normal aging results in a gradual loss of muscle mass that begins in middle age. Strength-training can offset this loss. Having stronger muscles and better balance may mean fewer falls, a leading cause of death among the elderly.
Cardiovascular Health
Over time, arteries become stiffer, paving the way for cardiovascular disease, according to a study done at University of Colorado. The chemical composition of the artery walls begins to shift, making the walls more rigid. That stiffening can cause changes in the blood pressure, putting extra stress on the heart.
Regular aerobic exercise slows or reverses some of the changes.
Diabetes Risks
As we age, blood-glucose control becomes less robust, making us more insulin-resistant and increasingly susceptible to diabetes. People also tend to gain weight as they age, further upping the chances for developing the disease.
During aerobic exercise, muscles take up glucose from the blood and use it for fuel, keeping the body's blood sugar levels low.
Exercise also causes the pancreas to decrease production of insulin. Continuous, steady exercise especially causes the liver to take lactic acid, amino acids and fats and turn them into glucose, further feeding the muscles and regulating blood sugar levels.
Inflammation Control
Inflammation can also worsen as we age.
It may become exacerbated by extra weight, increasing the risk for cardiovascular disease, lowering the immune system and paving the way for bacteria and viruses to take hold. Cancer cells may also find this condition ideal for growth.
Regular exercise may help decrease the levels of C-reactive protein, a marker for inflammation.
Based on a study, inflammatory markers were lower in those who had higher levels of exercise and physical activity, as well as those who used antioxidant supplements, regardless of their exercise level.
Brain Health
This study found that older adults who did a minimum of 180 minutes per week of aerobic activity a week for 10 consecutive years had more small-diameter blood vessels with less twisting than a less active group that did less than 90 minutes of physical activity a week.
The vessels of the more active group had a vessel pattern that was similar to those of younger people.
The research leaves no doubt that activity isn't just meant for younger years.
Studies linking exercise to living longer sometimes leave off the important message that being physically active improves the quality of life as well.
It has been quite a while since I last spent some time jogging at a local lake garden. It's not that I really don't have the time but it's the laziness that has conquered my better judgment.
After reading an article in the last Sunday paper and coming across several articles here, I find that exercise can reduce the severity of two types of aging: Normal aging and disease-related aging.
Strength Maintenance
Normal aging results in a gradual loss of muscle mass that begins in middle age. Strength-training can offset this loss. Having stronger muscles and better balance may mean fewer falls, a leading cause of death among the elderly.
Cardiovascular Health
Over time, arteries become stiffer, paving the way for cardiovascular disease, according to a study done at University of Colorado. The chemical composition of the artery walls begins to shift, making the walls more rigid. That stiffening can cause changes in the blood pressure, putting extra stress on the heart.
Regular aerobic exercise slows or reverses some of the changes.
Diabetes Risks
As we age, blood-glucose control becomes less robust, making us more insulin-resistant and increasingly susceptible to diabetes. People also tend to gain weight as they age, further upping the chances for developing the disease.
During aerobic exercise, muscles take up glucose from the blood and use it for fuel, keeping the body's blood sugar levels low.
Exercise also causes the pancreas to decrease production of insulin. Continuous, steady exercise especially causes the liver to take lactic acid, amino acids and fats and turn them into glucose, further feeding the muscles and regulating blood sugar levels.
Inflammation Control
Inflammation can also worsen as we age.
It may become exacerbated by extra weight, increasing the risk for cardiovascular disease, lowering the immune system and paving the way for bacteria and viruses to take hold. Cancer cells may also find this condition ideal for growth.
Regular exercise may help decrease the levels of C-reactive protein, a marker for inflammation.
Based on a study, inflammatory markers were lower in those who had higher levels of exercise and physical activity, as well as those who used antioxidant supplements, regardless of their exercise level.
Brain Health
This study found that older adults who did a minimum of 180 minutes per week of aerobic activity a week for 10 consecutive years had more small-diameter blood vessels with less twisting than a less active group that did less than 90 minutes of physical activity a week.
The vessels of the more active group had a vessel pattern that was similar to those of younger people.
The research leaves no doubt that activity isn't just meant for younger years.
Studies linking exercise to living longer sometimes leave off the important message that being physically active improves the quality of life as well.
posted by Lae at 11:33
0
comments
