Exercise May Cut Risk of Dementia

A Study Shows Physical Activity in Middle Age Has Brain Benefits Years in the Future

WebMD Health News Exercising in middle age may help ward off dementia and Alzheimer's disease decades later.

In a study of more than 1,400 adults, those who were physically active in their free time during middle age were 52% less likely to develop dementia 21 years later than their sedentary counterparts. Their chance of developing Alzheimer's disease was slashed even more, by 62%.

These patterns were even stronger in people with the ApoE e4 gene, which is associated with higher risk of developing Alzheimer's disease.

"By being physically active in midlife, people who carry the ApoE e4 gene can lower their risk of Alzheimer's to the same level as someone not carrying the gene," says researcher Suvi Rovio, MSc, of the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden

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