Researchers at Chicago's Rush Alzheimer's Disease Center found that the greater a person's muscle strength, the lower their likelihood of being diagnosed with Alzheimer's over a four-year period. The same was true for the loss of mental function that often precedes full-blown Alzheimer's.
Medical studies have linked grip strength to Alzheimer's and medical experts have noted that a person's weight and level of physical activity also influence risk of the disease. To date, however, no one has studied whether muscle strength might play a role in dementia risk
Every 72 seconds someone in America develops Alzheimer's disease according to the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance. An estimated 5.1 million Americans have the disease and estimates are that there will be 615,000 new cases a year by 2030.
Researchers measured the strength of nine muscle groups in the arms and legs of nearl one thousand dementia-free men and women between the ages of 54 and 100. The average age was around 80. They also tested the strength of study participants' breathing muscles.
During follow-up, which lasted about four years, some 138 people developed Alzheimer's. These individuals were older and had worse mental function than the rest of the study participants. They also were weaker.
But even after the researchers adjusted for age and education level-which can influence Alzheimer's risk-they found that muscle strength had a strong influence on the risk of the disease.
Study participants who ranked in the top 10 percent for muscle strength were 61 percent less likely to develop Alzheimer's than the weakest 10 percent. Stronger people also showed a slower decline in their mental abilities over time.
The relationship between muscle strength and mild mental difficulties, which occurred in an additional 275 people, was similar, with the strongest 10 percent being at 48 percent lower risk than the weakest 10 percent.
While the study couldn't draw a conclusion whether keeping one's muscles strong will keep Alzheimer's at bay, the medical researchers noted that staying fit is a good idea-and good for the brain-no matter what. The findings were reported in the November 2009 edition of the Archives of Neurology.
Written by Mindy Hartman
Los Angeles, CA
Exclusive to HULIQ.com
Posted November 11th, 2009 by Mindy Hartman
