Dementia describes a destructive set of symptoms associated with cognitive decline. Despite what many people think, the brain condition is not a direct result of ageing. Fortunately, this means there are ways to reduce your risk. Now, a new study suggests that six minutes of a certain activity a day could help.
From your diet to your exercise routine, there’s no doubt a healthy lifestyle can be quite effective at staving off various health problems.
The latter – exercise – was now proven to reduce your risk of Alzheimer’s disease in new research.
What’s more, you don’t have to spend hours sweating in a gym, as six minutes a day should be enough to do the trick.
Short bursts of activity that work up a sweat can boost a protein essential for brain formation, learning and memory.
READ MORE: Popular fish could increase your high blood pressure risk – ‘Try to avoid’
However, the exercise you choose also plays a part, with the research team explaining it has to be strenuous.
While strenuous exercise is guaranteed to make you break a sweat, there are plenty of activities to choose from.
Some examples of strenuous exercise include jogging, running, aerobic dancing, jumping rope, single tennis, and cycling.
The study found that a molecule known as BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor) increased up to fivefold after a hard bout of cycling.
DON’T MISS
The new findings are based on 12 physically active participants – both men and women – aged 18 to 56.
The phenomenon may be due to the increased number of platelets – the smallest blood cells – which store large quantities of BDNF.
However, further investigations are currently needed to understand the mechanisms involved.
Plus, the study was only conducted on a small population sample that can’t represent everyone.
The study is published in The Journal of Physiology.
