The Importance of Exercise in Preventing Dementia and Sarcopenia

[한라일보] After the failure of the first treatment, ‘Aducanumab’, which focused on the core pathology of Alzheimer’s disease, positive research results of new treatments were recently announced, but at least one to two years are expected to be required before commercialization. However, even during this period, the fight against dementia must continue and cannot be stopped.

One of the best ways to prevent dementia and control dementia symptoms is exercise. According to a recent study, when middle-aged or elderly people do aerobic exercise, thinking and memory improve, and the risk of developing dementia is reduced by about 30%. The hippocampus is the area where Alzheimer’s disease begins, and it is the part of the brain most associated with memory decline. In addition, diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, and obesity are vascular risk factors related to dementia, and aerobic exercise can prevent or manage these diseases, thereby reducing the risk of developing brain diseases such as dementia. Aerobic exercise is effective not only in preventing dementia, but also in improving the cognitive function of dementia patients, strengthening physical function, and alleviating symptoms such as depression and anxiety. Therefore, it is important to continue aerobic exercise to prevent dementia and improve the symptoms of dementia patients.

Recently, the importance of not only aerobic exercise but also strength exercise for preventing dementia and controlling symptoms has been emphasized. Sarcopenia is a disease that commonly occurs among the elderly and causes loss of muscle mass, loss of muscle strength, and loss of flexibility. Sarcopenia is an important link in ‘senility’, a frail condition that can lead to disability, various physical ailments and death. About 20-30% of the elderly over the age of 75 are frail. Sarcopenia is also strongly associated with cognitive decline and dementia progression. The brain and muscles interact and influence each other’s growth and maintenance. Sarcopenia increases the risk of developing cognitive decline and dementia. When the physical activity of dementia patients decreases, sarcopenia worsens, which leads to cognitive decline and senility, which intensifies overall dementia symptoms.

Strength training is more important than aerobic exercise to prevent sarcopenia. Preventing muscle loss by strengthening and maintaining muscle strength is a great help in preventing the onset of several geriatric diseases and dementia. It is said that the elderly also increase muscle mass and strength through steady strength training, and the effect lasts for a certain period of time even after stopping strength training. Therefore, in order to prevent healthy aging and dementia, even the elderly should do steady strength training at least twice a week for about 30 minutes without a break.

Continuous aerobic exercise and strength training are essential for successful aging physically, emotionally, and aging without dementia. The weather is very warm, so now is the best season to exercise. Starting today, I recommend that you buy 1 kg dumbbells and start strength training as well as walking exercises.