Exercising throughout our life can help us live longer and healthier lives, says a new study. It showed how loss of muscle mass and strength did not occur in those who exercise regularly, and their body fat and cholesterol levels also doesn’t increase
Regular exercise for a lifetime can slow down the ageing process and help in keeping the body active, a study claims. Researchers assessed the health of older adults, who had exercised most of their adult lives, to see if this could slow down ageing. research has shown that exercise can make our cells healthier and lead to a longer life span.
For the study, published in the journal Ageing Cell, the researchers recruited 125 amateur cyclists aged 55 to 79, 84 of which were male and 41 were female. The men had to be able to cycle 100 kilometres in under 6.5 hours, while the women had to be able to cycle 60 kilometres in 5.5 hours. Smokers, heavy drinkers and those with high blood pressure or other health conditions were excluded from the study.
The participants underwent a series of tests in the laboratory and were compared to a group of adults who do not partake in regular physical activity. This group consisted of 75 healthy people aged 57 to 80 and 55 healthy young adults aged 20 to 36. The study showed that loss of muscle mass and strength did not occur in those who exercise regularly. The cyclists also did not increase their body fat or cholesterol levels with age and the men’s testosterone levels also remained high, suggesting that they may have avoided most of the male menopause. The study also revealed that the benefits of exercise extend beyond muscle as the cyclists also had an immune system that did not seem to have aged either.
FROM AWARD-WINNING AUTHOR DR GOVIND SHUKLA, NUTRITION EXPERT
Govind Shukla, Specializes in Pharmacology, Toxicology, Nutraceuticals & Herbal Drugs has published More than 100 research papers in National & International Journals. He is also a reviewer of International Journal of Pharmacology & pharmacotherapeutics, Chief editor of IJPNR Journal & Freelance Medical Writer for Different publication Groups including Lambert Academic Publishing Saarbrucken, Germany.
