A lifetime of regular exercise slows down aging, study finds.
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The researchers set out to assess the health of older adults who had exercised most of their adult lives to see if this could slow down ageing.
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The study showed that loss of muscle mass and strength did not occur in those who exercise regularly.
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Those who exercise regularly also did not increase their body fat or cholesterol levels with age and the men’s testosterone levels also remained high, suggesting that they may have avoided most of the male menopause.
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More surprisingly, the study also revealed that the benefits of exercise extend beyond muscle as the cyclists also had an immune system that did not seem to have aged either.
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An organ called the thymus, which makes immune cells called T cells, starts to shrink from the age of 20 and makes less T cells. In this study, however, those who excersis’ thymuses were making as many T cells as those of a young person.
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Bodies have been allowed to age optimally, free from the problems usually caused by inactivity.
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Remove the activity and their health would likely deteriorate.
Ross D. Pollock, Katie A. O’Brien, Lorna J. Daniels, Kathrine B. Nielsen, Anthea Rowlerson, Niharika A. Duggal, Norman R. Lazarus, Janet M. Lord, Andrew Philp, Stephen D. R. Harridge. Properties of the vastus lateralis muscle in relation to age and physiological function in master cyclists aged 55-79 years. Aging Cell, 2018; e12735 DOI: 10.1111/acel.12735
Duggal et al. Major features of Immunesenescence, including Thymic atrophy, are ameliorated by high levels of physical activity in adulthood. Aging Cell, 2018