It’s been known for years now that engaging in physical activity–and exercise in particular–can prevent a lot of chronic health problems, including several mental health issues. This goes especially for depression and Alzheimer’s disease, as well; two issues that plague the elderly population currently. Another disease that research is showing can be alleviated with physical exercise is Parkinson’s. The good news for potential Parkinson’s patients is that it doesn’t even need to be a lot of activity for there to be noticeable benefits. A medium amount of exercise can help, and it doesn’t need to be strenuous, either.
The study looked at over 43,000 individuals over the course of more than 12 years, on average. Those who were active for more than six hours per week had a 43 percent less likely chance of developing Parkinson’s. Both men and women were observed, and all were completely free of Parkinson’s symptoms at the beginning of the observation period. Another interesting thing about this study was that it didn’t look at just “exercise.” It takes into account that different people exercise in different ways, and that the label that is given doesn’t matter. As long as the person was not completely sedentary, it counted as activity for this study. In this light, getting six hours per week is actually really easy. Six hours of actual exercise could be tough for most elderly folk, but six hours of activity is quite simple. This can be as simple as walking down the hallway, or as advanced as running a marathon.
In-home care, and other types of senior care, can be a great way to keep seniors safe when doing this. Your caregiver may not be a trained physical therapist, but then can make sure that any activity is done safely. Activity should never be dangerous or unsafe, but having someone around in the event that something bad were to happen is a great safety net, and it adds an extra layer of peace of mind, too. A caregiver can also make it so that the little things around the house are done, too, just so that this does not become an issue or get in the way of activities throughout the day, too. Walking is typically a safe thing, but if there is a risk of tripping over clutter, then it becomes a big hazard. A caregiver will ensure this doesn’t happen and increase overall safety.
Even if you can’t get six hours of activity in every week, some is always better than none. As you know, exercise boosts your health in lots of other areas, too. It reduces the risk of heart disease, lung disease, and eases symptoms of diabetes, arthritis, and depression and anxiety. It’s officially recommended by U.S. government agencies that 2 hours and 30 minutes be obtained each week, but even an hour and a half shows marked benefits within health, other research says. So, if exercise is difficult for you, just getting what you can will help in more ways than one.
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