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What is the definition of irony? How about sitting in your car, waiting to go through the Walgreens drive through to pick up your weight loss medicine? Or maybe your high blood pressure or high cholesterol pills? Okay, to be fair (and PC) perhaps some of these are handicapped or injured people who cannot walk into the pharmacy to pick up their medicine. But I am certain a large percentage of them are just like a lot of Americans these days: overweight and lazy.

Since I’m the owner of a St. Louis home care agency that works primarily with elderly clients, I am acutely aware of what happens to our minds and bodies as the years go by. I also keep on top of all the research. I doubt many of the people would still be sitting in their cars at the drive through if they read the research I have and saw the things I see each and every day.

There is really no longer any debate. Being active and exercising is probably the most protective medicine we have for our minds as we age. Several recent studies have shown improvement in Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) when the subjects exercised regularly. This is important because about 15% of those with MCI can expect to progress to Alzheimer’s. And older adults who keep active have a nearly 40% reduction in even getting MCI. We are realizing that we need to focus on prevention of neurological diseases such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s or, short of that, fighting them as early on as possible.

When someone is exposed to long term physical and mental stress, they suffer from something called oxidative stress. And suffering from oxidative stress makes the brain more susceptible to diseases such as Alzheimer’s, other forms of dementia and Parkinson’s.

Getting regular aerobic exercise at least 5 days per week can actually shield the brain from this stress. Strength training is important too. Recently researchers assessed the strength of about 1000 dementia free people aged 54 to 100. They followed the group for 4 years noting the strength of nine major muscle groups. Those who ranked in the top ten percent for strength had a whopping 61% lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s than the lowest 10%!

And there’s more! A study published in 2008 in the journal Neurology detailed the findings of a study started in the 1960s and 1970s where the researchers measured the midsections of around 6500 adults. Researchers then followed up with the subjects 36 years later and found those with the largest midsections in middle age were three times more likely to suffer from dementia as compared to those who had the lowest amount of fat in their midsections.

Even as a normal brain ages, loss of neuronal connections, blockages of blood supply and decrease in nerve-signaling chemicals all factor in to decline of brain function. For a long time we thought it was impossible to grow new brain cells. Turns out this is not true. Studies by Fred Gage, Ph.D. and colleagues at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies have shown the more physical exercise you get, the more brain cells you grow, the longer they live and the better they connect with other cells. Brisk walking for just 40 minutes four times/week increases the blood flow to areas of the brain that are able to grow new brain cells. He has concluded that movement is so vital to brain health that a lot of the cognitive decline we conclude is inevitable due to the aging process is really due to being couch potatoes.

Hopefully this will give you reason to pause the next time you start to pull into the Walgreen’s drive thru. Next time I challenge you to park at the far end of the lot and walk in to get your medicine. Who knows, if you keep up that mindset, one day you may not even need that prescription!

Theanna Zika founded St Louis, MO senior in-home care company, Heavenly Helpers, in 2004. She shares tips, strategies and advice about caring for seniors that she has learned over the years on the blog at her company’s website. The site also features a helpful list of St Louis, MO senior resources for seniors and their families in the St Louis, MO Metro area.