NEW YORK (HealthDay News)—Vigorous exercise more than once a week may reduce the risk of dementia in people with high blood pressure, a clinical trial shows.
People who engaged in vigorous physical activity each week had lower rates of mild cognitive impairment and dementia despite their high blood pressure, according to results published in the journal Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association.
Examples of vigorous activity include walking uphill, jogging, brisk bicycling, swimming, aerobic dancing, jumping rope and heavy gardening, according to the American Heart Association.
“We know that physical exercise offers many benefits, including lowering blood pressure, improving heart health and potentially delaying cognitive decline,” said lead researcher Richard Kazibwe, an assistant professor of internal medicine at Wake Forest University School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
The new study offers insight into how much exercise is needed to reap the benefits, Kazibwe adds.
The clinical trial involved 9,300 people with hypertension over the age of 50, who were recruited from 100 hospitals and clinics across the United States.
Early results, published in 2019, showed that tight blood pressure control significantly reduced the risk of developing mild cognitive impairment, a precursor to early dementia.
In the latest report, experts analyzed the effect of exercise on brain health.
Nearly 60 percent of participants reported vigorous physical activity at least once a week, even among those over 75, Kazibwe notes.
“It is good news that more older adults are exercising,” he says.
“This also suggests that older adults who recognize the importance of exercise may be more inclined to exercise at higher intensities.”
However, the protective impact of vigorous exercise on brain health was most pronounced in those under 75 years of age.
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2024-08-17 04:37:23
