Science confirmed that sedentary lifestyle and physical inactivity cause cells to age more rapidly. It means that not necessarily the biological age is the same as the chronological age.
Physical activity and telomere length
Among other structures, our cells contain telomeres, located at the end of chromosomes. Telomeres protect chromosomes from damages. As we age, telomeres become shorter and shorter until they are not able to perform their functions and cells die or transform into oncogenic cells.
The regular physical activity or exercise are related to longer telomere lengths and aging process in various populations. According to studies, athletes tend to have longer telomere lengths than non-athletes. Nearly 1,500 women, ages 64 to 95, participated in the study conducted at University of California San Diego School of Medicine. The participants wore an accelerometer during waking and sleeping hours to track their movements. The researchers found that elderly women who sit for more than 8 hours a day with low physical activity have cells that are biologically older by eight years compared to women who are less sedentary.
Physical activity and mitochondrial health
Exercise also impacts mitochondria. Inside these organelles occur the cellular respiration, the process of extracting energy in the form of ATP from the glucose in the food we eat. Exercise not only increases the number of mitochondria, but also improves the body's ability to produce energy (in other words, the more mitochondria we have, the more energy we are able to generate during exercise and the faster and longer we can exercise). Movement also regulates quality of mitochondria , induce mitochondrial biogenesis, helps to eliminate metabolic waste and also to efficient removal of dysfunctional or damaged mitochondria
Can regular exercise reduce the risk of developing dementia?
Researchers have long understood that exercise improves people's cognitive performance, including their executive functioning, attention and memory, as well as their brain structure. After exercise, the levels of brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) increase. BDNF is a special protein that helps to brain repair cells, to protect healthy cells but also plays an important role in neuroplasticity. That involves creating new neurons (important for short-term memory), generation of new neural connections as well as strengthening connections between neurons (important for long-term memory). Any kind of regular exercise could be one of the protective factors against developing Alzheimer's or Parkinson's disease. According to a survey from 2019 (3), by having BDNF levels higher by one standard deviation, the risk for Alzheimer's disease or dementia was lowered by 33%.
As there is a link between exercise and cognitive development, it is very important to motivate children to any regular movement, especially during the first years of life. It is when perception, memory, thinking, intelligence, attention and other functions are formed.
Physical activity as the prevention
A constant moderate physical activity is an inseparable part of life and it seems to be a natural cure for almost every disease. It reduces the risk of heart attack, stroke, memory loss, depression, diabetes, obesity, breast and colon cancer. It helps prevent arthritis and rheumatism from getting worse, prevents osteoporosis, positively affects emotional state, and if this list is not enough, it prolongs life. We can take the best dietary supplements, but without exercise, many processes in the body will not work properly. The conclusions of the studies clearly show that physically active people have their functional abilities at a higher level throughout life, compared to people with a sedentary lifestyle.
Source:
Associations of Accelerometer-Measured and Self-Reported Sedentary Time With Leukocyte Telomere Length in Older Women (https://academic.oup.com/aje/article/185/3/172/2915786)
Exercise and mitochondrial health - https://physoc.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1113/JP278853
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6358753/
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/2165079917737558