Exercising moderately and having a balanced diet, according to a study, cut 10 years of your brain age.
Research says that one can reduce mental decline for about 10 years by exercising at least thrice a week and maintaining a balanced diet.
In this study, it was found out that older people who eat healthy foods such as whole grains, vegetables, and fruits and who work out for at least three times a week have higher scores get higher scores in tests that measure certain skills that fall away in older age such as organizational and planning skills.
160 people who were around 65 and who have sedentary lifestyles participated in the study. Each of them is not suffering from dementia yet are having issues in planning and making decisions.
Cycling, walking or jogging sessions for 35 minutes thrice a week while having a balanced diet were done by one group.
With the use of a series of tests that measure one’s thinking skills, the mental age of 93 of these individuals have improved to 84 after six months.
Since exercising and eating healthily help in one’s blood circulation, these two habits can easily boost the health of one’s brain, which is beneficial to develop better thinking skills.
The 160 participants were divided into four groups by the researchers from Duke University Medical Centre in the United States. One group was assigned to do the exercises only.
Another set of people employed the same exercise program with a balanced diet. Others were given pieces of health advice through phone calls, while the .last group only acquired the dietary part.
Individuals who received health advice had a decline in the results of the three tests on thinking skills that they have taken. Others who had exercise sessions and maintained a healthy diet experienced the opposite.
Using this study, it can be concluded that there is a huge impact on one’s brain health when a lifestyle change occurs.
