Bewegen tegen veroudering*
Beweging lijkt het meest effectieve
wapen tegen veroudering, zo blijkt uit
een Canadese studie, weliswaar met muizen. Het onderzoek toont aan dat voldoende beweging niet alleen een vroegtijdige dood tegengaat, maar het verouderingsproces bovendien flink vertraagt.
De onderzoekers ontdekten dat zij het verouderingsproces bij een groep muizen kon stopzetten, hoewel
zij genetisch gemanipuleerd waren om juist sneller oud te worden. De ene groep muizen
deed 3x per week lopen in een looprad en dat ruim vijf maanden lang. Deze muizen
bleken niet alleen hun jeugdig uiterlijk te behouden doch ook de veroudering in de inwendige organen werd een halt
toegeroepen in vergelijking met de groep muizen die niet extra deden bewegen. Volgens de onderzoekers hielp beweging tegen vergrijzing van de vacht, haarverlies, dementering, spierafbraak en meer tekenen van veroudering.
De lever, de milt, ieder orgaan dat we bekeken, was in betere conditie door de
oefeningen, aldus de onderzoekers.
Hoewel het onderzoek plaatsvond op muizen, zijn de wetenschappers van mening dat de resultaten ook voor mensen van toepassing zijn.
Endurance exercise prevents premature aging
Endurance exercise can stop you from looking and feeling old and may even help you live longer, a study by McMaster University researchers has found.
The study, published Monday in the prestigious science journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, found that premature aging in nearly every organ in the body was completely prevented in mice that ran on a treadmill three times a week for five months.
"Many people falsely believe that the benefits of exercise will be found in a pill," said Mark Tarnopolsky, principal investigator of the study and a professor of pediatrics and medicine of the Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine. "We have clearly shown that there is no substitute for the "real thing" of exercise when it comes to protection from aging."
These mice were genetically engineered to age faster due to a defect in a gene for polymerase gamma (POLG1) that alters the repair system of their mitochondria - the cellular powerhouses responsible for generating energy for nearly every cell in the body.
Mitochondria are unique in that they have their own DNA. It has been thought that lifelong accumulation of mitochondrial DNA mutations leads to an energy crisis that results in a progressive decline in tissue and organ function, ultimately resulting in aging. But the study on genetically-disadvantaged mice found those who had endurance exercise training three times a week looked as young as healthy mice while their sedentary siblings were balding, greying, physically inactive, socially isolated and less fertile.
"Others have tried to treat these animals with "exercise pill" drugs and have even tried to reduce their caloric intake, a strategy felt to be the most effective for slowing aging, and these were met with limited success," said Tarnopolsky.
"I believe that we have very compelling evidence that clearly show that endurance exercise is a lifestyle approach that improves whole body mitochondrial function which is critical for reducing morbidity and mortality," said Adeel Safdar, lead author and a senior PhD student working with Tarnopolsky. "Exercise truly is the fountain of youth."
"The recipe for healthy aging is very simple, and that's exercise," said co-author Jacqueline Bourgeois, associate professor of pathology and molecular medicine. "The problem is that most people find it a difficult recipe to follow."
Tarnopolsky said he hopes that this research will motivate children and adults to adopt a healthier lifestyle and for government agencies to promote health and sport.
The study was funded by Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), and private donor Warren Lammert and his family, who made an in-kind donation to support Tarnopolsky's work in the Mitochondrial Disease Clinic and in mitochondrial disease research. Adeel Safdar holds a CIHR - Institute of Aging doctoral research scholarship.
by Faculty of Health Sciences, McMaster University (Maart 2011)
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