alzheimer's Archives » ForeverFitScience

Alzheimer’s Disease- Could Irisin Be the Cure?

Hunter Bennett The one thing that strikes fear into the hearts of most people on this planet is the prospect of losing their mental capacity, such as having Alzheimer’s. To be honest, I am no different. Let’s face it, it’s terrifying. Now, most of you would appreciate that if you don’t actively try and maintain

What Toxins Are Lurking In Your Brain?

Julia C. Basso, PhD As a scientist who studies the effects of exercise on the brain, I am always thinking about what exercise-induced factors (from muscles, bones, organs, brain tissue, etc.) cause the beneficial effects on brain function, like improvements in mood and cognition. Recently I started thinking about it another way. What if we

Lifestyle Recommendations To Prevent Cognitive Decline

Julia C. Basso, PhD Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia, accounting for 60-80% of cases, and is characterized by problems with memory, thinking, and behavior. AD is progressive; symptoms worsen over time, with individuals eventually losing the ability to carry on tasks of daily living. AD results from changes in the

Isometric Exercise and Alzheimer’s Disease

Catherine O’Brien Alzheimer’s Disease is the leading cause of dementia and currently affects an estimated 5.5 million American adults (Center for Disease Control, 2016). Unfortunately, the Center for Disease Control predicts that the incidence of Alzheimer’s will increase in the coming years. The early stages of the disease are marked by Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI)

Exercise-Induced Increases in Brain Size

Julia Basso – PhD Carbon dating in the human brain: Implications for exercise-induced increases in brain size Do you ever wonder why scientists use animal models? Are you skeptical of findings in rodents and find it difficult to understand the importance of these discoveries for humans? If so, that is a totally

American College Sports Medicine Conference

Day 3 of the American College of Sports Medicine Conference – 2017

Neurobiological Effects of Physical Activity Julia Basso – PhD Exercise and neurodegeneration; potential therapeutic role for FNDC5/irisin (Christiane Wrann, Massachusetts General Hospital, and Harvard Medical School) We know that exercise improves cognitive functioning, but why? Recent research has discovered that exercise increases a protein in the muscle known as FNDC5 (fibronectin type III domain-containing protein

Exercise, Fitness, And Alzheimer’s Disease

Sara Thompson – M.Sc. Exercise Science Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease, affecting approximately 5.3 million Americans (Alzheimer’s Association, 2015). It’s usually characterized by memory loss, but can lead to other complications such as changes in behavior, mood swings, and disorientation. There are no preventative treatments or cures for AD, however there is growing

Exercise: A Magic Pill To Help Protect The Brain From Cellular Pathology

Julia Basso – PhD The opening statement in a recent article in the Journal of the American Medical Association reads, “Pathology is not destiny” (Kuehn, 2015). This statement is based off of a huge prospective study that followed 2,566 healthy, older adults (ages 65 years and up) for around 16 years. During the study participants were

Reduce Healthcare Costs with Exercise

Julia Basso – PhD It’s that spooky time of year, and surely something’s scary…healthcare costs in the United States. Countries around the world spend on average 9% of their gross domestic product (GDP) on health care. From this graph, which represents the healthcare costs per capita as a percentage of the GDP, you can see