Seniors who are in the earliest stages of dementia might be able to slow the disease by pumping weights a few times a week, new research out of Vancouver suggests.
Researchers at the Centre for Hip Health and Mobility at Vancouver Coastal Health and the University of British Columbia found that seniors in the earliest stages of dementia performed better on mental tests after just six months of twice-a-week resistance training.
The team studied 86 women who were between the age of 70 and 80 and who had probable "mild cognitive impairment."
People with MCI typically forget recent events or conversations, have difficulty performing more than one task at a time, and take longer to make decisions or perform calculations.
Having MCI puts one at greater risk for dementia, though, for reasons still not understood, not everyone goes on to develop it. MCI is thus considered an important window of opportunity for perhaps slowing cognitive decline.
