SYDNEY, Feb. 12 (Xinhua) -- Australian researchers showed that lifting weights can help protect the brain from degenerative Alzheimer's disease, according to the study revealed on Tuesday.
Scientists from the University of Sydney (UoS) said six months of weight training helps protect the brain areas which are vulnerable to the disease, slowing or even halting its onset.
The study involved 100 older people who were at high risk of developing Alzheimer's disease due to already mild cognitive impairment.
"Our research shows that strength training can protect some hippocampal subregions from degeneration or shrinkage for up to 12 months after the training has stopped," study leader Dr. Kathryn Broadhouse said.
The findings should change the way people are informed about preventing dementia, according to Professor Michael Valenzuela, leader of the Regenerative Neuroscience Group at UoS's Brain and Mind Centre.
"Given this was also linked to protection from cognitive decline, the message is clear: resistance exercise needs to become a standard part of dementia risk-reduction strategies," Valenzuela said.
