Mind Games

(I want to send out a special “thank you” to the future Dr. Newman, whose feedback, guidance and counsel made it possible for me to bring this post to life… and for not losing your patience or good humor in the face of my incessant questioning)


In the spirit of physical “body conditioning” training – and by default, nutrition – I was recently made aware of a connection between weight-training based exercises and the prevention of Alzheimer’s. In this day and age, most people are familiar with Alzheimer’s: an affliction of the brain where disease onset is most closely associated with advancing age. I want to state for the record that I AM NOT A DOCTOR! but my understanding – based on my own perceived “reasonably thorough” internet research – is as follows: Alzheimer’s is the most common type of dementia in which a person loses cognitive function due to abnormal clumps, tangled fibers, and disconnection of nerve cells in the brain. This results in cell death, which manifests as shrinkage of the affected areas of the brain. It is important to note, however, that Alzheimer’s is NOT a normal part of the aging process; it IS a disease, and as such, measures can be taken to prevent it. One of these measures is weight-training based exercises.

Dr. Ronald Petersen, director of the Alzheimer's Research Center at the Mayo Clinic, said on ABC: "Regular physical exercise is probably the best means we have of preventing Alzheimer's disease today, better than medications, better than intellectual activity, better than supplements and diet."

What are weight-training based exercises?

Also referred to as strength training, you can get the necessary results with weight machines like you find at the gym, free weights, resistance tubing, or even using your body’s own weight. Examples of exercises using your own body weight include: push-ups, pull-ups, abdominal crunches and leg squats.

How do weight-training based exercises help to prevent Alzheimer’s?

While the brain is not a muscle, it CAN atrophy (a fancy medical term meaning your body part is wasting away) from lack of use. If you don’t maintain conditioning of your muscles, your body loses muscle mass – which is what tends to happen as people age and/or they become less physically active. In the brain’s case, the brain itself begins to shrink in size. When muscles are strong, the heart has doesn’t have to work as hard pumping blood which in turn carries oxygen & nutrients to the brain and your other body parts. Therefore, the strength training not only makes sure your organs are “fat and happy” by delivering all of those nutritional things they need to stay in good shape, but the “freeways” in the brain that are being used for those deliveries (aka “neural plasticity”) are kept – through regular use - from getting all tangled and clumped together.

Supporting medical research

Unfortunately, none of the medical research explains WHY exercise helps the brain stay in good functional order; just that it does. One hypothesis suggests that we, as human beings, are genetically designed for physical activity. In today’s society, a lifestyle of inactivity and continuous access to the food supply is the norm (versus the hunter-gatherer, feast and famine lifestyle of ancient times)… Humans haven’t changed much genetically in the last 10,000 years; therefore, this “inactive” lifestyle and other environmental factors are causing our bodies to be more susceptible to chronic conditions like Type 2 Diabetes, coronary heart disease, certain cancers… and yes, you guessed it: Alzheimer’s (Booth, Chakravarthy, Gordon & Spangenburg, 2002). “Interestingly, a number of epidemiological studies have shown that exercise can have a beneficial effect on AD (Alzheimer’s) by slowing down the onset and progression of the disease.” Previous studies noted in one article indicated that less active older people have over a 200% chance of developing Alzheimer’s, as opposed to active older people who have a 60% less chance of developing it (Briones, 2006, p.53).

Respecting the temple

I read about many, many instances where physically active people STILL developed Alzheimer’s, and it seemed like in a lot of cases a severe blow to the head would also lead to the disease. Unfortunately, because they don’t know what actually causes Alzheimer’s there is no fool-proof way to prevent it, but in the case of body conditioning and working out, there are so many other benefits – weight control, emotional and physical well-being, less likely to develop other chronic conditions, etc. – the benefits clearly outweigh the laziness factor, at least they do in my case.

From my own perspective, my brain holds everything that makes me… me. I can’t imagine anything more devastating than losing pieces of myself. My personality. My spirit… my soul. I can’t imagine my loved ones being witness to something like that. I started my workout program in part due to a promise I made to the Bunny. But maybe it was to put me in a place where I could gain some additional motivation to take better care of myself over the long-term – so that even though my husband couldn’t be with me, he could still contribute towards giving me the chance to live a better life. A chance I’m going to take, and run with. Or maybe… sweat with. This is a game I want to win.

If you remember nothing else, remember this: Eat tasty & nutritious food. Breathe deeply. And be good to your body… it deserves your love and attention.


References:

Booth, F. W., Chakravarthy, M., Gordon, S., Spangenburg, E. (2002). Waging war on physical inactivity: using modern molecular ammunition against an ancient enemy. The American Physiological Society. J Appl Physiol 93: 3 – 30. http://www.jap.org

Briones, T. (2006). Environment, Physical Activity, and Neurogenesis: Implications for Prevention and Treatment of Alzhemier's Disease. Current Alzheimer Research, 3(1), 49-54.

Lunde, A., Mayo Clinic. www.mayoclinic.com. Alzheimer’s blog.