Articles related to EXERCISE/WORKING OUT

Higher levels of physical activity were associated with greater processing speed reserve in older women but not in older men, according to a recent study. This is good news, as dementia may be slowed by cognitive reserve, the capacity to maintain cognition in the face of brain damage. A cognitively active lifestyle that includes reading and information processing may delay the onset of dementia in Alzheimer’s disease by up to 5 years in persons in their 80s, according to recent research. Other research has suggested that cognitive reserve may be one factor in some centenarians’ ability to resist cognitive decline in the face of brain dysfunction.

Muscle dysmorphia (MD), sometimes referred to as “reverse” or “big” anorexia (colloquially called “bigorexia”) is on the rise, and this article presents a comprehensive review on its history, highlights a few studies, provides the DSM-5 diagnostic criteria for both MD and body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), and discusses the behaviors associated with the conditions, including risk factors, comorbidities, and complications. In addition, the author provides questions to ask to ascertain whether MD may be present.

A follow-up to the discussion we recently presented, this article asks doctors to look beyond the physical health of the patient to recognize and potentially treat muscle dysmorphia, the notion in which an individual is preoccupied with the idea that his or her body build is too small or insufficiently muscular.

A video and transcript of a conversation between Harrison “Skip” Pope Jr., MD, MPH, of Harvard Medical School, and Katharine Phillips, MD, of New York-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center, who discuss symptoms, treatments, and social propagation of “muscle dysmorphia”: a preoccupation with the belief that one’s body isn’t large or muscular enough.

Walking exercises have been found to improve outcomes for people suffering from peripheral artery disease (PAD). Specifically, among adults with PAD and intermittent claudication, a home-based, walking exercise behavior change intervention, compared with usual care, resulted in improved walking distance at three months. However, authors of the JAMA study concluded that further research is needed to determine the durability of these findings.

In this clinical trial, the authors attempt to answer the question of whether a high-intensity interval training program can improve cardiorespiratory fitness and delay the biochemical progression of prostate cancer in patients who are undergoing active surveillance. One group was asked to complete 12 weeks of thrice-weekly, supervised aerobic sessions on a treadmill at 85% to 95% of peak oxygen consumption (V̇o2). The usual care group maintained their normal exercise levels.