To protect your brain from Alzheimer’s disease, you should lift weights… A recent study, conducted by researchers affiliated with Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP) and University of São Paulo (USP), highlighted the role of resistance training, such as strength training, in preventing and delaying neurodegenerative disease.
Resistance training reduces stress and therefore Alzheimer’s risk
For this study presented in the journal Frontiers in Neuroscience, the researchers performed experiments on genetically modified mice that showed a buildup of beta-amyloid plaques in the brain, similar to what occurs in people with Alzheimer’s disease. The rodents were subjected to specific training: they had to climb a ladder with loads attached to their tails. Which can be compared to a bodybuilding session in humans.
After four weeks, blood samples taken from the mice tested revealed normal levels of a stress-related hormone, called corticosterone in mice and cortisol in humans. An increase in the latter in response to stress is associated with an increased risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. In addition, analysis of brain tissue showed a decrease in the formation of beta-amyloid plaques. Which is considered a protective feature against Alzheimer’s disease.
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Alzheimer’s: the protective effect would come from the anti-inflammatory action of bodybuilding
Henrique Correia Campos, first author of the article, explained in a press release: “this confirms that physical activity can reverse the neuropathological alterations that cause the clinical symptoms of the disease”.
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“Resistance exercise is increasingly proving to be an effective strategy to prevent the onset of symptoms of sporadic Alzheimer’s disease, which is multifactorial and may be associated with aging, or to delay their onset in Alzheimer’s disease. Familial Alzheimer’s. The main possible reason for this effectiveness is the anti-inflammatory action of resistance exercise.” says Beatriz Monteiro Longo who also worked on this study.
This is why resistance training is considered by researchers to be an effective strategy to combat cognitive decline and the development of Alzheimer’s. They also note that it is a simple and affordable therapy for patients with the neurodegenerative disease.