For many Americans, January is a time to set goals concerning exercise for weight loss and heart health. Now there may be one more reason to exercise – to improve memory.

According to a study by the Mayo Clinic, a new guideline for medical practitioners recommends twice-weekly exercise for people with mild cognitive impairment to improve memory and thinking.

“Regular physical exercise has long been shown to have heart health benefits, and now we can say exercise also may help improve memory for people with mild cognitive impairment,” says Ronald Petersen, M.D., Ph.D., lead author, director of the Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, Mayo Clinic, and the Mayo Clinic Study of Aging. “What’s good for your heart can be good for your brain.” Dr. Petersen is the Cora Kanow Professor of Alzheimer’s Disease Research.

Petersen defines mild cognitive impairment as “an intermediate stage between the expected cognitive decline of normal aging and the more serious decline of dementia. Symptoms can involve problems with memory, language, thinking and judgment that are greater than normal age-related changes.”

Read the complete article here:  https://newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/new-guideline-try-exercise-to-improve-memory-thinking/