Having Trouble Remembering Things Lately? Try Exercise
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) -- Can't remember that thing you needed to do more and more lately? Exercise might help.
Newly released guidelines by the American Academy of Neurology suggest exercising twice a week could help people with mild cognitive impairment improve memory and thinking.
The recommendations, published in Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology this week, explain 'mild cognitive impairment' as the stage between cognitive decline from normal aging and the more serious decline like dementia.
"Regular physical exercise has long been shown to have heart health benefits, and now we can say exercise also may help improve memory for people with mild cognitive impairment," says Ronald Petersen, M.D., lead author of the study and director of the Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Mayo Clinic, and the Mayo Clinic Study of Aging. "What's good for your heart can be good for your brain."
Opt for aerobic exercise like walking briskly and jogging - anything that will work up a bit of sweat but is not too rigorous.
More than 6 percent of people in their 60s have 'mild cognitive impairment' across the globe and it becomes more common with age.
By the time someone is 85 or older, more than 37 percent have it.