Exercise 3 times a week ‘can reverse dementia’

EXERCISING three times a week could reverse the early stages of dementia, experts have found.

Doctors have long urged people to exercise throughout their lives, because physical fitness can reduce the risk of dementia and other illnesses.

But the new research suggests physical activity can actually reverse the progress of the disease once it has taken hold. The findings, published in the Neurology medical journal, bolster growing evidence that exercise can be used to treat cognitive problems, rather than simply being used to lower the risk many years in advance.

A clinical trial on people with an average age of 74 found those who followed an exercise programme for an hour, three times a week, saw an improvement in overall thinking skills. The participants’ blood pressure also improved and they were able to walk further. But the results suggested the benefit lasted only as long as people continued with an exercise plan.

The research, led by experts at the University of British Columbia in Canada, examined people with early signs of vascular dementia. This is the second most common type of dementia, after Alzheimer’s disease, and affects 150,000 people in the UK.

It causes memory loss and difficulties with thinking, problem-solving and language – and occurs when there are problems with the supply of blood to the brain.

Dr Doug Brown, of the Alzheimer’s Society, said: ‘We already know keeping active, along with a balanced diet, is one of the best ways to reduce your risk of dementia.

‘This study goes further, suggesting that frequent exercise provides modest improvements in memory and thinking for people who already have vascular dementia.’