The benefits of regular exercise are well documented but there's a new bonus to add to the ever-growing list. New research found that middle-aged women who were physically fit could be nearly 90 percent less likely to develop dementia (失智症) in later life- and if they did, it came on a decade later than less sporty women.
Lead researcher Dr Helena Hörder, of the University of Gothenburg in Sweden, said: “These findings are exciting because it’s possible that improving people’s cardiovascular (心血管的) fitness in middle age could delay or even prevent them from developing dementia.”
For the study, 191 women with an average age of 50 took a bicycle exercise test until they were tired out to measure their peak (最大值的) cardiovascular capacity. The average peak workload was measured at 103 watts.
A total of 40 women met the criteria for a high fitness level with a capacity of 120 watts or higher,while 92 women were in the medium fitness category. A total of 59 were of low fitness level, with a peak workload of 80 watts or less, or having their tests stopped because of health problems.
These women were then tested for dementia six times over the following four decades. During that time, 44 of the women developed dementia. Five percent of the highly fit women developed dementia, compared to 25 percent of the women with medium fitness and 32 percent of the women with low fitness.
“However, this study does not show cause and effect between cardiovascular fitness and dementia, it only shows an association.” said Hörder. “More research is needed to see if improved fitness could have a positive effect on the risk of dementia and also to look at when during a lifetime a high fitness level is most important.” She also admitted that a relatively small number of women were studied, all of whom were from Sweden, so the results might not be applicable to other groups.
8. What is on the ever-growing list mentioned in the first paragraph?
A.Positive effects of doing exercise. |
B.Exercises suitable for the middle-aged. |
C.Experimental studies on dementia. |
D.Advantages of sporty women over men. |
9. Why did the researchers ask the women to do bicycle exercise?
A.To predict their maximum heart rate. |
B.To assess their cardiovascular capacity. |
C.To change their habit of working out. |
D.To detect their potential health problems. |
10. What do we know about Dr Hörder’s study?
A.It aimed to find a cure for dementia. |
B.The results were far from satisfactory. |
C.Some participants withdrew from it. |
D.Data collection was a lengthy process. |
11. Which of the following is the best title for the text?
A.More Women Are Exercising to Prevent Dementia |
B.Middle-Aged Women Need to Do More Exercise |
C.Fit Women Are Less Likely to Develop Dementia |
D.Biking Improves Women’s Cardiovascular Fitness |