The amazing power of exercise; tips on building cognitive reserve
Q: I am making sure I get 150 minutes of physical activity a week — and sometimes more — by walking at lunchtime and after dinner when I can, playing sports on the weekends (pickleball and swimming) and using light hand weights for upper body conditioning while I am watching TV. But now that I’m 50, it doesn’t feel like quite enough. What else can I do? — Bob G., Kansas City, Kansas
A: You are doing great … everyone in America should do what you do. But, yes, doing a little more is even better. A newly released 30-year study of more than 116,000 folks reveals that if you do two times more than the recommended 150 minutes of physical activity, including two strength-building sessions weekly, you’ll slash your risk of dying during the next three decades by 26% to 31%. That translates to getting in around 60 minutes of walking a day, in addition to enjoying two 20-minute strength-building sessions a week (using your own body weight or stretchy bands).
When we look at what this amount of exercise does to your Actual age or Real age, we see that it makes you 8.1 years younger than your calendar age. So, you’d be only 42, Bob.
But your control over your future doesn’t stop there. Another very powerful step to take is to eliminate added sugars and syrups from your diet. As Dr. Mike points out in a recent newsletter at michaelfroizenmd.substack.com, a sugar-rich diet may shorten your lifespan because of sugar’s ability to cause a build-up of a natural waste product, uric acid. It also increases cardiovascular risks and leads to blood sugar spikes. The good news? Randomized controlled trials show that controlling blood sugar at all ages, even after age 80 substantially reduces all-cause mortality, strokes, heart attacks, kidney dysfunction, cognitive dysfunction, and immobility.
We applaud your goal of extending your healthy longevity. To discover even more ways to live longer stronger, check out Dr. Oz’s blogs at www.iherb. com/experts/dr-mehmet-oz.
Q: I keep hearing that it is important to cultivate cognitive reserve — but I do not understand what that means. Can you explain why it matters? — Kathy Y., Queens, New York
A: You know the phrase, thinking on your feet? Well, that ability to improvise, adjust to changing input and find solutions to mental and physical challenges all depends on what we call cognitive reserve. It is especially useful if you develop any brain changes that could interfere with thinking or decision-making, such as accumulating amyloid tangles in the brain or heart disease that reduces blood flow to the brain.
Cognitive reserve is something you can tap into when you need your brain’s neurological messages to skirt areas where neurons are not firing optimally and send information along different pathways so you can still think quickly and sharply. This ability of the brain to build detours around damaged pathways was discovered when the Nun Study (of 678 nuns) performed autopsies on its participants. They revealed that folks with brain changes that were thought to cause cognition problems never showed any signs of mental decline while alive if they engaged in activities that required complex verbal skills early in life.
We know now that greater cognitive reserve also helps to resist symptoms of brain diseases such as Parkinson’s, stroke or MS and helps you contend with chronic stress.
So how do you build cognitive reserves? It takes a village — of healthful habits. According to data we published in our book “YOU The Owner’s Manual to Extending Your Warranty,” you can help develop and maintain cognitive reserve by managing your stress responses (using meditation, exercise and talk therapy), building a posse, having a purpose, and enjoying play (that’s most important); eating a healthy plant-based diet, exercising regularly, getting seven to eight hours of sleep nightly, and participating in brain-stimulating activities throughout your life, including by playing speed-of-processing games, especially as you become older.
Dr. Mike Roizen is the founder of www.longevityplaybook.com, and Dr. Mehmet Oz is global advisor to www.iherb.com, the world’s leading online health store. Roizen and Oz are chief wellness officer emeritus at Cleveland Clinic and professor emeritus at Columbia University, respectively. Together they have written 11 New York Times bestsellers (four No. 1’s).