HHS HealthBeat (January 12, 2007)

Keeping going

From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I'm Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.

Use it or lose it applies even when you are growing old. Researchers say older people who start exercising are more likely than folks who don't exercise to hold onto their ability to walk at the same pace and distance.

Marco Pahor of the University of Florida saw what happened when people from 70 to as old as 89 years of age started doing moderate activity – endurance, flexibility, strength and balance – mostly walking.

After about a year, exercisers did considerably better than people who didn't exercise.

Pahor's conclusion:

"We would recommend that older persons who are sedentary engage in moderate physical activity, primarily walking, and resistance exercises, on most days of the week." (11 seconds)

The study in the Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences was supported by the National Institutes of Health.

Learn more at www.hhs.gov.

HHS HealthBeat is a production of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. I'm Ira Dreyfuss.

Last revised: January, 18 2007