Wednesday, April 24, 2019


Spring has Sprung

After a long, miserable, cold winter it’s heavenly to feel the sun warming up everything in its path and green beginning to appear on lawns. At long last we can make the best of the good weather by exercising outdoors. When it’s not raining, of course. But why complain? All that rain will mean flowers very shortly in areas where they have not yet come to life.
            It’s no accident that spring is the time dedicated to improving health through exercise. May is National Osteoporosis Awareness and Prevention Month when people, especially older adults, are encouraged to exercise to build up bone and muscle strength. Lifting weights targets bones in the arms, wrists and upper back, while aerobic exercises like walking and dancing benefit the legs, hips and lower back. But bones also need vitamin D which is triggered by sunlight and promotes the absorption of calcium. We should all spend ten minutes or so every few days in the next few months exposing arms, legs or back to sunshine before splashing on the UV protection. Of course, vitamin D is also available as a supplement.
            May is also a month dedicated to older adults, a good time to look at other benefits of regular exercise. We all know that being active not only reduces the risks of heart disease, stroke and diabetes, it also protects memory and thinking skills while reducing brain fog experienced by so many of us as we age.
           A study at the University of British Columbia concluded that regular moderate intensity exercise increases the volume of some brain regions. The study showed that aerobic exercise boosts the size of the hippocampus, an area of the brain for verbal memory and learning. Another benefit of exercise is that it reduces stress and anxiety which often contribute of cognitive impairment. Something to keep in mind when we consider that a new case of dementia is detected every four seconds globally.
            Spring is here at last, so there’s no time to waste. Let’s step outside and enjoy the new season. Happy Spring.