Although older people and dementia patients are unlikely to be able to do long daily runs or other aerobic exercises high-intensity exercises, these exercises are the focus of most scientific studies on alzheimer . Because? That is what the new study published in the scientific journal tried to find out. Frontiers in Neuroscience by Brazilian researchers affiliated with the Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP) and the University of São Paulo (USP).
In addition to this, the scientists determined how many weeks and what kind of training it turned out to be the best for even “reversing the physical and behavioral changes” associated with Alzheimer's disease. But first, we must bear in mind that there is no magic recipe to stop the disease. For many years, scientists have been trying to find an effective treatment against this type of cognitive impairment and, although a few months ago we witnessed important findings that decrease memory loss for the first time in history there is still a way to go.
Until then, it has been suggested through scientific works that the physical exercise can help alleviate the symptoms of Alzheimer's . The study by the Brazilian researchers, in fact, goes further and points out that regular physical exercise, especially endurance training can prevent the disease or at least delay the onset of its signs and serve as a “simple and affordable therapy” for Alzheimer's patients.
At work, those from São Paulo remember that the World Health Organization (WHO) itself recommends the resistance exercise as the best option to train balance, improve posture and prevent falls. Running, swimming, or cycling are examples of resistance training.
Basically, resistance training involves the contraction of specific muscles against external resistance and is considered an essential strategy for increasing muscle mass, strength, and bone density. This type of physical exercise also improves overall body composition, functional ability and balance . Finally, it helps prevent or mitigate muscle atrophy (sarcopenia), making it easier to perform daily tasks.
Resistance exercise lowers Alzheimer's-associated protein
To observe the neuroprotective effects of resistance training, researchers from the Departments of Physiology and Psychobiology of UNIFESP, and the Department of Biochemistry of the USP Institute of Chemistry (IQ-USP), conducted experiments with transgenic mice with a mutation responsible for the accumulation of beta-amyloid plaques in the brain, associated with Alzheimer's. This protein accumulates in the central nervous system, impairing synaptic connections and damaging neurons, all characteristic of the disease.
During the study, mice were trained to climb a ladder 110 centimeters with an inclination of 80° and 2 cm between steps. Tail loads corresponding to 75%, 90% and 100% of their body weight were fixed. The experiment mimicked certain types of resistance training performed by humans in gyms
At the end of a four week training period , blood samples were taken to measure plasma levels of corticosterone, the hormone in mice equivalent to cortisol in humans. Hormone levels were normal (the same as those found in the control group consisting of animals without the mutation) in the exercise-trained mice, and analysis of their brain tissue showed a decreased formation of beta-amyloid plaques
“This confirms that physical activity can reverse neuropathological alterations that cause the clinical symptoms of the disease”, says Henrique Correia Campos, first author of the article.
Exercise also reduced Alzheimer's agitation
“We also observed the behavior of the animals to assess their anxiety and found that resistance exercise reduced hyperlocality to levels similar to controls among mice with the Alzheimer's-associated phenotype,” explains Deidiane Elisa Ribeiro, co-author of the article and researcher at the IQ-USP Neuroscience Laboratory. That is reduced agitation, restlessness and wandering common early symptoms of Alzheimer's and other types of dementia.
“He resistance exercise is increasingly revealing itself as an effective strategy to prevent the onset of symptoms of sporadic Alzheimer's (not directly caused by a single inherited genetic mutation), which is multifactorial and may be associated with ageing, or to delay its onset in familial Alzheimer's. The main possible reason for this effectiveness is the anti-inflammatory action of exercise of resistance”, says Beatriz Monteiro Longo, last author of the article and professor of neurophysiology at UNIFESP.
The same UNIFESP group had previously compiled clinical evidence that the benefits of resistance exercise include positive effects on cognitive dysfunction, memory deficit and behavioral problems in patients with Alzheimer's disease, concluding that it may be an affordable alternative or coadjuvant therapy.
“Alzheimer's doesn't just affect the patient. It affects the whole family, especially in low-income households,” says Caroline Vieira Azevedo, first author of the review article and a postgraduate student at UNIFESP. “Both items offer information that can be used to stimulate the creation of public policies . Imagine the cost savings if the onset of symptoms in elderly patients is delayed by ten years,” she concludes.