Resistance Exercise Beneficial - Study

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Hi folks:

Here is a link to the full text of this one:

http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?tool=pubmed & pubmedid=17520024

Rodney.

> >> > Washington Post> > Health Section> > > > By Schneider> > Tuesday, August 26, 2008;> > > > There is a branch of my wife's family convinced that running ruined > our> > cousin Frances (not ruined in the Southern gothic sense, of course, > just> > hobbled in the knees and back). Frances ran pretty regularly in her > day, and> > my mother-in-law warns me about it whenever she catches me in > running shoes,> > most recently last month on a trip to the beach.> > > > Just in time (who doesn't love rebutting his mother-in-law?), > researchers at> > the Stanford University School of Medicine released the latest > batch of> > results from a long-term study comparing hundreds of older runners > with> > others of about the same age.> > > > After my colleague Rob Stein posted an item on The Checkup health > blog last> > week, it seemed most of those who commented thought the study was > consistent> > with their experience: that regular running or other vigorous > exercise was a> > way to stave off the effects of aging, not a recipe for trouble.> > > > Here's the gist of the research: Begun in 1984, the project > assembled nearly> > 1,000 volunteers, about 538 runners and 423 "healthy controls." They> > averaged about 59 years old at the time. Death and dropouts have > winnowed> > the group, but about 440 have stayed involved.> > > > They are now pushing into their 80s, and the research has found > that the> > running group is living longer, with a lower incidence not just of> > cardiovascular disease, but of some forms of cancer as well. More > to the> > point here, they also are suffering fewer disabilities than the non-> runners.> > > > Using a standard questionnaire that assesses eight basic life > activities,> > such as standing, dressing and eating, the study found that non-> runners, as> > they aged, were much more likely to reach a point where they were > unable to> > do one or more of those tasks. F. Fries, who began the > project to look> > at the long-term effects of exercise on aging, calls it > the "compression of> > morbidity": people who stay active as they grow older not only live > longer> > but also go through a shorter period of infirmity before they die.> > > > Along with faring better on the study's broad measure of > disability, the> > runners seemed to have the same rates of osteoarthritis of the knee > as the> > non-runners, said Eliza F. Chakravarty, an assistant professor at > the> > Stanford medical school and one of the researchers. A > rheumatologist, she> > found that especially interesting as she reviewed the data.> > > > "There's a concern that with all of the pounding, [running] would > wind up> > being detrimental to the knee," she said. "But there was no > significant> > difference between the runners and the controls."> > > > Why is that the case?> > > > Chakravarty said there are plenty of possibilities.> > > > Running itself will increase muscle and ligament strength, while the> > weight-bearing impact of the exercise will help bone density. The > cartilage> > in our joints, she said, is not fed directly by any set of > dedicated blood> > vessels or other system, and it needs the squeezing and motion of > exercise> > to be adequately lubricated and nourished.> > > > There may, of course, have been a self-selecting aspect to the > outcome:> > Perhaps those still running in their 60s and 70s stuck with it > because they> > had remained injury-free.> > > > The message is "it is never too late to adopt exercise, and we > should not> > discourage people from exercise just because of their age," she > said.> > > > Although this study focused on runners, she said it is likely that > biking,> > swimming or any strenuous activity (which the researchers defined > as keeping> > the heart rate higher than 120 beats per minute) would have much > the same> > result.> > > > Of course, common sense and good training rules still apply: Warm > up, cool> > down and stretch, and if you are just starting out on a running > program, mix> > some walk breaks in at first as your body adapts.> > > > As some of the commenters noted in Rob's blog, injury often occurs > when we> > press beyond limits we have not prepared for: Endurance is built > with> > consistency, not acquired all at once.> > > > If you still have doubts, try to think less about the possible > aches and> > pains and more about why we have arms and legs in the first place. > Animals> > use their limbs to find food and run from danger. Just because > there are no> > saber-toothed tigers around anymore doesn't mean we can't pretend.> >>