Your Brain on Exercise

Your Brain on Exercise If you read the BWS Newsletter even occasionally, it should be no surprise that exercise improves your health. Besides promoting a healthy body weight and helping maintain weight loss, regular exercise may also help reduce risk for chronic disease. For example, increased insulin sensitivity and HDL cholesterol from exercise give you a potent risk reduction for type 2 diabetes and heart disease. And without medication! If you need another reason to start and stick with an exercise routine, do it for your brain! Research shows that regular exercise changes parts of the brain’s structure, which can result in improved thinking and attention span along with a lower risk of cognitive decline. Avid exercisers will happily tell you about their boost in mood and energy levels following a vigorous workout. Exercise reduces stress hormones and increases levels [...]

MIND Diet

MIND Diet Did you know someone in the United States develops Alzheimer’s disease every 65 seconds? Nearly 6 million Americans currently live with Alzheimer’s disease, but this number is projected to grow to nearly 14 million by 2050 as our population over age 65 surges. As the sixth leading cause of death with no known cure, it is wise to take action to lower your risk by protecting your brain. There are many Alzheimer’s warning signs, but the most common symptom is memory loss that disrupts daily activity, especially forgetting recently learned dates, names, and events. Other warning signs include difficulty developing or following tasks involving numbers; losing track of the passage of time; having trouble following conversation; misplacing and losing items in odd places; and making poor decisions regularly. Keep in mind that forgetting, but later remembering, new [...]