News Headlines: Fitness
Even a Little Activity Boosts Mental Health
Older Women Have a Tougher Time Staying in Shape
Exercise Produces Similar Benefits to Estrogen's
Arthritis Foundation Exercise Program Improves Symptoms
Exercise Reduces Menopausal Anxiety, Stress, Depression
Walking and Moderate Exercise Help Prevent Dementia
Exercise and Education Program Improves Fibromyalgia
Walking Improves Bone Mass in Men Treated for Prostate Cancer
Water Exercise Improves Pain and Function in Hip or Knee OA
Low Levels of Exercise Help High Blood Pressure
Exercise Improves Balance In Older Adults
Even a Little Activity Boosts Mental Health
Although regular physical activity is thought to be associated with better mental health, there is a lack of consensus regarding the optimal amount and type of activity to achieve these benefits, say researchers at University College in London who reported their findings in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.
The researchers examined the association between mental health and physical activity behaviors among a representative sample of 19,842 men and women from the Scottish Health Surveys. They identified psychological distress, as gauged by responses to a questionnaire, in 3,200 of the participants. Any form of physical activity – including housework, gardening, walking and sports – was associated with lower levels of distress.
While the study offers good news for those who are minimally active, it also offers an incentive for them the minimally active to exercise more. The results show that while a minimum of 20 minutes improved mental health, a high level of activity decreased the chance of psychological distress even more. 4/18/08
Older Women Have a Tougher Time Staying in Shape
Research is now showing what women have suspected all along: it’s harder for women than men to maintain muscle as they age. The reason, a new study has found, has to do with key differences in the way women’s and men’s bodies react to food.
In the study, published in the Public Library of Science One, post-menoapusal women were less able to respond to food to build muscle mass whereas men of the same age were able to store protein in muscle. The change is probably the result of hormonal changes at menopause, chiefly the reduction of estrogen, already known to be needed to help maintain bone mass.
The researchers say their findings fit in with other preliminary results showing that older women are less able than men to build muscle after resistance exercise — lifting weights in the gym. Younger men and women who have not reached the menopause do not seem to show any differences.
But all is not lost, they say. The new results underline the importance for older women of eating plenty of protein such as eggs, fish, chicken and lean red meat, in conjunction with resistance exercise.Maintaining muscle is crucial in reducing the risk of falls — one of the major causes of premature death in elderly people. 3/26/08
Exercise Produces Similar Benefits to Estrogen's
Women who exercise regularly after menopause can achieve health-protective benefits of estrogen without the adverse effects of hormone replacement therapy (HRT), according to a new study reported in the Journal of Women and Aging.
The study, which followed 48 sedentary postmenopausal women (21 on HRT and 27 not on HRT) through a 24-week aerobic exercise program, found an 11 to 18 percent drop in the women’s thiobarbituric acid reactive substances, an indicator of oxidative stress.
Oxidative stress occurs when oxidants, harmful chemicals that damage tissue and cells, outnumber antioxidants in the body. Antioxidants protect cells and tissues against oxidants. Prior to menopause, estrogen is known to reduce this chemical imbalance, which can lead to cardiovascular diseases such as coronary heart disease and stroke. After menopause, however, levels of oxidative stress rise.
"Given the controversy with HRT, postmenopausal women can now use aerobic exercise training to lower chemical stress levels, thus reducing another risk factor for chronic disease," said Michael D. Brown, PhD, a co-author and associate professor of kinesiology at Temple University's College of Health Professions. 3/21/08
Aquatic Exercise Improves Symptoms of Fibromyalgia
Exercising in a heated pool reduces the symptoms of fibromyalgia, according to a new study published today in Arthritis Research & Therapy.
A team of researchers in
The researchers found that this long-term aquatic exercise program was effective in reducing symptoms and improving the health-related quality of life of the participants. In an earlier study, the researchers had shown that even a short-term exercise regime could reduce symptoms but pain would return once the patients stopped the exercise course.
The researchers have yet to compare aquatic training with other forms of exercise, such as low-impact aerobics, walking, and tai-chi. 2/22/08
Arthritis Foundation Exercise Program Improves Symptoms
When arthritis causes pain and fatigue, beginning and sticking with an exercise program can be a challenge. But a new study confirms that doing so can pay off in many ways.
Led by Leigh F. Callahan, of the
The results showed that the intervention group had significant improvements in pain, fatigue, and managing arthritis at eight weeks and maintained improvements in pain and fatigue at six months. Although the program focuses mainly on range-of-motion and low-resistance exercises, a separate analysis found that those completing the program showed increased strength in their upper and lower extremities, indicating that strength training – one of the more minor components of the program – was effective.
“Our findings indicate that the basic eight-week PACE Program is a safe program for sedentary older individuals with arthritis to start exercising without exacerbating their symptoms,” the authors conclude, adding that symptoms actually improved. They note that studies need to be conducted to determine if offering the program more than twice a week and for longer periods leads to additional benefits.
The study was published in the January issue of Arthritis Care & Research.
Exercise Reduces Menopausal Anxiety, Stress and Depression
Want to ease menopausal symptoms without the risks of hormone replacement therapy? A new study shows that a brisk walking routine can help reduce a variety of psychological symptoms such as anxiety, stress and depression.
The study followed 380
In the category of stress, researchers found that high levels of physical activity were the most beneficial to postmenopausal women and African-American women. They reported lower levels of perceived stress than those who did not exercise. This top-tier group walked at a moderate pace (4 miles per hour) for an hour and a half at least five times a week.
While the study found mental benefits of exercise, it did not show that exercise reduced physical symptoms such as hot flashes. “Physical symptoms like hot flashes will go away when you reach menopause, but mental health is something women still need to think about post-menopause,” says
“Physical activity can help throughout the menopausal transition and afterwards,” says Nelson. “If you stick to a moderate-paced walking schedule, it can keep your body mass index down and lower the risk of stress, anxiety and depression,” she added.
The research is published in the January issue of Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention.
Walking and Moderate Exercise Help Prevent Dementia
Want to help your brain? Work your body. A new study published in the December 19 online issue of the journal Neurology found that people age 65 and older who walk regularly and got other forms of exercise appear to significantly lower their risk of developing vascular dementia, the second most common form of dementia after Alzheimer’s.
In the four-year study of 749 men and women, researchers measured the amount of energy exerted in the participants’ weekly physical activities, including walking, climbing stairs, and moderate activities, such as house and yard work, gardening, and light carpentry. By the end of the study, 54 people developed Alzheimer’s disease and 27 developed vascular dementia.
The study found the top one-third of participants who exerted the most energy walking were 27 percent less likely to develop vascular dementia than those people in the bottom one-third of the group. It found no association between physical exertion and Alzheimer’s risk.
The researchers can’t say why exercise reduced vascular dementia risk, but say it’s possible that physical activity may improve cerebral blood flow and lower the risk of cerebrovascular disease, which is a risk factor for vascular dementia. But further research is needed about the mechanisms operating between physical activity and a person’s memory.
Program of Exercise and Education Improves Fibromyalgia Symptoms
An exercise program that incorporates walking, strength training and stretching may improve daily function and alleviate symptoms in women with fibromyalgia, according to a new study supported by the Arthritis Foundation. These benefits appear to be enhanced when exercise is combined with education about managing the condition.
Researchers from Harvard’s Brigham & Women’s Hospital randomized 207 women taking medication for medication for fibromyalgia to four treatment groups for
At six-month follow-up, the researchers found, women who participated in all forms of exercise improved their physical function, an effect that was larger in the combined education and exercise group. “Social function, mental health, fatigue, depression and self-efficacy also improved,” the authors write in the Archives of Internal Medicine.
”Our findings suggest the need for inclusion of appropriate exercise and patient education in the treatment of individuals with fibromyalgia.”
Walking Improves Bone Mass in Men Treated for Prostate Cancer
Men who undergo androgen deprivation and radiation for prostate cancer can reduce and perhaps even reverse bone loss with a regular walking program, a new study suggests.
Researchers at
In an analysis of 70 men who were undergoing radiation and, in about half of the cases, androgen deprivation therapy, the researchers found that those patients who did not exercise lost more than two percent of their bone density in just eight to nine weeks. In contrast, those who walked five times a week for 30 minutes maintained or even gained bone mass.
The study was presented at the 49th Annual Meeting of the American Society for Therapeutic Radiation and Oncology.
Water Exercise Improves Pain and Function in People with Hip or Knee OA
A new study confirms what people with knee and hip osteoarthritis (OA) have known all along – exercising in warm water can help relieve pain and improve daily function.
The study, which appears in the current issue of The Cochrane Library, analyzed six trials with a collective 800 participants with OA. Four studies included patients with OA of either the knee or hip, one study followed patients with only hip OA and one included patients with only knee OA.
In the studies, some patients did aquatic exercises for different lengths of time and numbers of sessions per week, while others did no exercise or exercised on land. Most of the studies measured patients after three months of therapy.
Based on the studies’ results, the reviewers said, “In people with osteoarthritis of the hip or knee, pain may decrease by 1 more point on a scale of 0 to 20 with aquatic exercise, and function may improve by 3 more points on a scale of 0 to 68.”
Based on these findings the study’s authors say, “one may consider using aquatic exercise as the first part of a longer exercise program for osteoarthritis patients.”
The Cochrane Library is a publication of The Cochrane Collaboration, an international organization that evaluates research in all aspects of health care.
Low Levels of Exercise Help High Blood Pressure
If you know you need to exercise – for your general health as well as your arthritis -- but don’t have the time or energy to exercise as much as you’ve heard you should, take heart. A new study shows even low levels of weekly exercise can lower blood pressure and boost overall fitness.
To prevent health problems, adults are currently recommended to get 30 minutes of moderately strenuous exercise at least five days a week. But few people, for various reasons, meet those recommendations.
In the new 12- week study, previously sedentary middle-aged adults who walked briskly for 30 minutes three days a week experienced reductions in systolic blood pressure as well as in waist and hip measurements – all of which could make a difference in their risk of dying from cardiovascular disease, say the researchers.
The study was published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.
Exercise Improves Balance in Older Adults
For an older person with fragile bones, a loss of balance can lead to a fall with potentially devastating results. A new review of research shows exercise can help keep people steady on their feet in later years, possibly reducing the risk of fall-related injuries.
The analysis, which gathered evidence from 34 studied with a collective 2,800-plus participants, showed gains in balancing ability across different groups of adults (mostly women over age 75) who participated in a variety of exercises including walking, strength and balance training, dancing and tai chi.
After engaging in an exercise program, study participants achieved improvements in different kinds of balance measures including walking speed, standing on one leg and reaching forward without tipping over.
“Our message is that some form of exercise will improve balance and it’s never too late to exercise. Specifically, exercise that challenges your balance is best,” said lead review author Tracey Howe, director of HealthQWest, a research consortium based at
The review appears in the latest issue of The Cochrane Library, a publication of The Cochrane Collaboration, an international organization that evaluates medical research.
