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Good joints seen as key link in healthy aging

Apr 13, 2016 | Lifestyles

(ProActive Sports Rehab offers a weekly column promoting health, fitness and physical therapy. Please be sure to check back each week for a new topic!)

Exercise has been identified as a key component of aging gracefully, and has been linked with not only improved physical health but also better cognitive performance. The maintenance of fully functioning joints is an important part of enabling active seniors to participate in health-promoting athletic activity, experts agree.

Seniors today are working longer, traveling more and anticipate remaining active longer into life than their predecessors did. With more than 14 percent of the U.S. population at least 65 years old, it’s no surprise that a Google search on “healthy aging” yields more than 18 million results. The National Institutes of Health, a national body that funds research and sets policy, has this to say about exercise for older people: “Being physically active can also help you stay strong and fit enough to keep doing the things you like to do as you get older. Making exercise and physical activity a regular part of your life can improve your health and help you maintain your independence as you age.”

Losing the ability to exercise can have grave consequences, the NIH warns. “Lack of physical activity also can lead to more visits to the doctor, more hospitalizations, and more use of medicines for a variety of illnesses,” the NIH said.

Exercise can prevent or delay disease, help to manage stress and improve mood, and can help support a healthy and intellectually vibrant old age. Recent research from Finland involving more than 5,000 subjects suggests that participating in leisure time physical activity earlier in life promotes mobility in old age. Another smaller-scale study suggests that resistance training, which would naturally tend to place more stress on the joints, helps support healthy cognition among older adults better than do more gentle activities.

Given that today’s seniors are staying active longer, and understand very well that mobility is linked to retaining independence, it’s not a surprise that joint health is also consistently one of the top selling categories of dietary supplements, with glucosamine and chondroitin combinations leading the pack.

For more information on adding exercise to your daily routine, please contact ProActive Sports Rehab today for a consultation.
— NAPS

ProActive Sports Rehab, with offices in Orchard Park and Hamburg, offers one-on-one physical therapy and rehabilitation services. For more information, please visit http://proactivesportsrehab.com or call 674-9600 (Orchard Park office) or 648-8700 (Hamburg office). You can also follow ProActive Sports Rehab on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ProActiveSportsRehab for frequent updates.

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