10.25.2012
A New Study out of Scotland adds to a Growing Body of Evidence that the best way to keep the mind and body sharp is to stay in motion during the day
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New research published in the this week’s issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology, found exercise (e.g. walking regularly) superior to engaging in social and/or mental activities in preventing age related declines in brain volume. The challenge is finding ways to motivate individuals to be less sedentary. TrekDesk treadmill desk helps individuals stay in motion during normally sedentary desk bound tasks allowing more movement through out the day.
The study, out of the University of Edinburgh, surprisingly found that mental and social activities long believed to aid in cognition actually had no effect on preventing a decrease in brain size in older populations however exercise illustrated significant benefits. "People in their seventies who participated in more physical exercise, including walking several times a week, had less brain shrinkageand other signs of aging in the brain than those who were less physically active," stated study author Alan J. Gow, PhD. "On the other hand, our study showed no real benefit to participating in mentally and socially stimulating activities on brain size, as seen on MRI scans, over the three-year time frame."
The study evaluated 638 subjects from Scotland born in 1936 over a period of three years using an MRI to evaluate changes in brain volumes. Only exercise was attributed with the prevention of brain shrinkage.
Labels: alan-gow, university-of-edinburgh
