Regular aerobic exercises not only help to keep the body in tone, maintain lung health and lift the mood. Researchers from the University of São Paulo (Brazil) and the University of Bristol (Great Britain) have discovered another miraculous effect of these exercises – they can become a great ally in the fight against Alzheimer’s disease.
According to statistics from the World Health Organization (WHO), around 50 million people worldwide suffer from dementia. Of these, 60-70% have a form of Alzheimer’s disease.
Alzheimer’s disease is a neurodegenerative disease, the most common form of dementia, which interferes with the proper functioning of brain cells and causes progressive memory loss, impairment of thinking skills and other impairments of cognitive functions. This disease is most often diagnosed in the elderly and is characterized by the formation of amyloid plaques and tau protein deposits in the brain, which leads to neuronal damage.
One of the first areas of the brain to be affected by degeneration is the hippocampus. It is responsible for creating new memories and spatial orientation. An international group of scientists decided to focus on this region of the brain in their study and measure the effect of aerobic exercise on the main symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease: amyloid formations, tau-protein accumulations and iron accumulation in the cells that produce myelin – the so-called oligodendrocytes.
Research progress
The experiment was conducted with 10 laboratory mice. During the study, all mice received ad libitum food and water and were housed under controlled conditions of temperature (approximately 22 °C), humidity (60%) and light cycle (12 h light/12 h dark). All mice were diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.
The animals were divided into two groups: the first group performed several aerobic exercises every day, and the second group did not exercise.
The researchers examined the changes in the brains of the mice during the study and found that the mice that performed aerobic exercise had a 63% reduction in tau protein deposits and a 76% reduction in amyloid formations. In addition, improved brain cell health was observed in this group, including an increase in the number of oligodendrocytes and a decreased rate of cell death.
Research perspective
The study authors now plan to conduct clinical trials in humans to further confirm the effects of aerobic exercise. If the results are successful, a special exercise program may be developed as a treatment method for patients diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in the future.
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Photo associative @Canva
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