When it comes to living longer and healthier, research suggests that physical activity plays an important factor as we age.
New research shows that regular exercise from swimming can improve vascular health and lower blood pressure. A team led by Dr. Nantinee Nualnim from Austin’s Cardiovascular Aging Research Laboratory at the University of Texas followed 43 adults over the age of 50 for 12 weeks with either stage 1 hypertension without using medication or pre-hypertension. The participants were randomly assigned into groups which either performed regular swimming exercises or relaxation exercises during the 12 week period.
Following the study, it was determined that the group who performed regular swimming exercises recorded a decrease from 131 ± 3 to 122 ± 4 mm Hg in casual systolic blood pressure. Other measures of the swimmers vascular health were also improved. Researchers also reported a 21 percent increase in the arteries ability to contract, known as Carotid Artery Compliance. Blood pressure and vascular health noticed no changes for the second group. The study was published online in The American Journal of Cardiology on January 16, 2012
Another study shows that physical activity may be more important than weight as we age. Ideally, all of us should be both slim and active, but this study is a “light at the end of the tunnel” for so many who struggle with their weight as they age.
Exercise expert Steven Blair of the University of South Carolina and colleagues tracked about 2,600 people age 60 and up, examining how physical fitness and body fat affected their death rates over 12 years. The study results are published in the December, 2007, issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
In short, the men and women who were fit, as judged by a treadmill test, but were overweight or obese had a lower mortality risk than those of normal weight but low fitness levels.
Those in the lowest fifth in terms of fitness had a death rate four times higher than participants ranked in the top fifth for fitness. The study showed that even a modest effort to improve physical activity can provide health benefits and lower mortality risk significantly.
The findings are particularly relevant as people in the United States and many other countries live increasingly sedentary lifestyles and obesity rates remain high.
"If you're obese and unfit and you start taking three 10-minute walks a day and you do that at least five days a week, you're not going to lose an enormous amount of weight; you’re going to still be heavy. But you're going to be much healthier if you do that," Blair said. Blair also stressed the importance of a healthful diet including lots of fruit, vegetables and whole grains.
Wholefood Farmacy foods are rich in fruits, vegetables and whole grains – and – they are the perfect foods to snack on before or after taking a walk.
