3 Easy Ways Exercise Can Help Prevent Alzheimers

Exercise Your Body

Exercising three times a week reduces the risk of Alzheimers by about 30 percent, even if you're over 65.

Since exercise promotes good blood flow to the brain and encourages growth of new brain cells, it can lower the risk of getting Alzheimer's disease and slow cognitive decline in people who already have Alzheimer's.

Studies have found that a variety of types of exercise is especially helpful to the brain. Besides walking, try strength training workouts, getting involved in a sport, joining a hiking club, or going dancing.

Thirty minutes of these types of exercise at least three days of the week should be sufficient to keep your heart and brain healthy.

Exercise and Take Care off Your Mind

Mental exercise and taking care of your mind may be able to reduce your risk of getting Alzheimer's.

One of the top ways to take care of your mind is to make sure your heart is performing at its best by exercising (see previous tip on exercising your body).

Why is cardiovascular fitness so important to cognitive health? In laboratory animals, at least, exercise seems to stimulate the body's production of certain molecules called growth factors, which help nerves stay healthy and keep functioning.

A healthy cardiovascular system may even, to some extent, compensate for tiny defects in the brain.

One of the most important things is to keep your brain engaged as you age. Try crossword puzzles, games like chess and checkers, reading, attending a lecture, volunteering or taking a class that interests you.

By stimulating your brain you can increase the number of brain cells and the connections between the brain cells, as well as strengthen your current brain cells and connections between them.

Learn Something New

To keep your brain healthy and your mind sharp, do something different, learn something new every day or engage in a challenging activity that will exercise your brain. Below are some examples of things you can do to stretch yourself mentally:

• Learn to play a musical instrument
• Learn a foreign language
• Learn a new kind of dance
• Play memory games to improve or train your memory
• Start a new hobby
• Do crossword puzzles, Sudoku, and jigsaw puzzles
• Play board games, card games, or other strategy games
• Practice using your opposite hand for something you usually do with your dominant hand
• Read, especially challenging material
• Write a book, an article, in a diary, write letters or emails, or write your memoirs
• Take a class
• Visit museums
• Join a book discussion group
• Debate or discuss topics with people
• Seek out new friends, new experiences and activities