[ti:Simple Exercise Can Slow Memory Loss] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.04]New research suggests that even a simple exercise program [00:06.60]might help older people with light, or mild, memory problems. [00:13.32]Doctors have long advised patients to do [00:17.12]physical activity to help keep their brains healthy. [00:21.88]But the U.S. government-supported research marks the longest study [00:27.72]of whether exercise makes any difference once memory starts to decline. [00:35.88]Researchers found around 300 inactive older adults [00:40.64]with memory changes called mild cognitive impairment (MCI). [00:47.00]MCI is a condition that sometimes comes before Alzheimer's disease. [00:53.56]Half of the older adults did aerobic exercises, [00:57.68]and the rest did stretching and balance movements [01:01.40]that raised their heart rates a little. [01:04.04]People in both groups got attention from trainers [01:07.84]who worked with them at youth organization centers [01:11.36]called YMCAs around the United States. [01:15.40]When COVID-19 shut down gyms, [01:18.72]the trainers helped the study participants keep [01:21.68]moving at home by video calls. [01:24.92]After a year, testing of mental activity [01:29.04]showed neither group had worsened, [01:31.36]said lead researcher Laura Baker [01:34.12]of Wake Forest School of Medicine [01:36.68]in the state of North Carolina. [01:40.24]Brain scans did not show the shrinkage [01:43.16]that often goes with worsening memory problems, she said. [01:48.52]By comparison, similar MCI patients [01:52.20]in another long-term study of brain health [01:55.72]— but without exercise — experienced cognitive, [01:59.92]or mental, decline over a year. [02:03.24]The early findings are surprising. [02:05.92]But the National Institute on Aging cautioned [02:09.60]that tracking non-exercisers in the same study [02:13.52]would have offered better evidence. [02:17.28]The results suggest "this is doable for everybody" [02:22.12]— not just seniors healthy enough [02:24.84]to work up a hard sweat, said Baker. [02:28.32]She presented the data recently [02:31.52]at the Alzheimer's Association International Conference. [02:36.36]"Exercise needs to be part of the prevention strategies" [02:41.88]for at-risk seniors, she added. [02:45.32]Maria Carrillo is the Alzheimer's Association chief scientific officer. [02:51.92]She said earlier research has found regular physical activity of any kind [02:58.68]may reduce damaging inflammation and increase blood flow to the brain. [03:05.68]She added that the new study is especially interesting [03:10.44]because the COVID-19 pandemic began halfway through the study. [03:15.92]That meant the study participants became socially isolated, [03:21.12]or separated from others. [03:24.08]Social isolation has long been known [03:27.16]to increase people's risk of memory problems, Carrillo said. [03:33.28]It is a difficult time for dementia research. [03:36.80]Doctors are not sure about prescribing [03:40.00]a high-priced new drug called Aduhelm. [03:44.16]The drug is supposed to be the first [03:46.68]to slow the progression of Alzheimer's [03:49.44]— but it is not yet clear if it really helps patients. [03:53.60]Researchers last month reported another drug that works [03:57.88]similarly failed in an important study. [04:01.60]It, too, targets amyloid plaques in the brain. [04:06.76]There is growing urgency to find whether exercise [04:10.60]and other steps might offer at least some protection. [04:15.48]How much and what kind of exercise? [04:18.64]In Baker's study, seniors were supposed [04:21.84]to get moving for 30 to 45 minutes four times a week. [04:26.84]It did not matter whether it was exercise [04:30.48]on the treadmill device or stretching exercises. [04:34.32]Baker believes the social connection with the trainers helped. [04:38.80]Each participant completed over 100 hours of exercise. [04:44.16]"We wouldn't have done the exercise on our own," [04:47.20]said Doug Maxwell of Verona, Wisconsin, [04:50.68]who joined the study with his wife. [04:52.96]The husband and wife, both 81, [04:56.60]were assigned to the stretching classes. [04:59.60]They felt so good afterward that when the study ended, [05:03.72]they bought electric bikes in hopes of even more activity. [05:08.32]Baker suspects that the volume of exercise [05:11.68]might explain why even the simple stretching [05:14.72]added up to a health benefit. [05:17.88]Participants were supposed to exercise without social support [05:22.28]for an additional six months. [05:24.60]Baker has not studied that data yet. [05:27.80]In addition to the recent study, Baker is leading [05:31.92]an even larger study of older adults [05:34.80]to see if adding exercise to other steps [05:38.52]such as a healthy diet, brain games [05:41.80]and social activities may reduce the risk of dementia. [05:47.36]I'm John Russell. [05:48.92]And I'm Ashley Thompson. 更多听力请访问51VOA.COM