Physical fitness for dementia

Exercising regularly has the reputation same as the mystic fountain of youth. Namely, it can keep people healthy and fit, looking and feeling younger, defying their age and managing to prevent and overcome various illnesses. Moreover, even people who suffer from dementia can benefit from various positive aspects of exercising. Therefore, the lines below will try and name all the positive aspects of physical exercise for people with dementia.

Physical Fitness vs. Dementia

Dementia is known for triggering gradual mental atrophy, especially affecting the parts of our brain responsible for memory and spacial navigation. However, exercising regularly can slow this process down and allow people to maintain these vital mental skills for as long as possible.

Additionally, women who are older than 80 and suffer from dementia find it easier to feed, dress and bathe themselves if they exercise regularly. Therefore, exercising can counter other negative effects of dementia, allowing you to have a productive and proper lifestyle.

Another notorious fact about dementia is that it can lead to bumping into objects and falling, getting injured easily. However, once a person exercises regularly, he/she becomes more resistant to falling due to the fact that his/her balance gets significantly improved.

Dementia and the sheer confusion it brings can easily make a person frustrated and exposed to excessive stress. Yet, exercising regularly stimulates the production of endorphins, our body's fell good hormones, making people relaxed and more positive, preventing depression and moodiness.

Even though cardiovascular health is not medically connected with dementia, staying physically active can be very beneficial for the heart and blood pressure, and this reflect on your overall health and well-being. Thus, improve your general health and battle dementia with the healthy heart.

Finally, exercising is fun and will allow your body to spend its extra energy, improving your sleep patterns. Taking into consideration that insomnia can go hand-in-hand with dementia, sleeping better is a definite plus.

The First Step...

Now that you know the benefits of exercising against dementia, you need to make someone suffering from this condition start being physically active. Basically, you can do this through slow, step-by-step introduction and gradual progress. Start working out together with the demented person, allowing him/her to make a habit out of it.

Mere stretching and strength training may be enough for a good start. Move on to tai chi and regular walking sessions, advancing to gardening, water exercising, performing household chores or riding a stationary bike. Finally, once the person becomes fit and skilled enough, he/she can join exercise classes specifically created for people suffering from dementia.