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Why you’re never too old to start keeping fit

An interesting article was published in The Times today with the above title. Written by Chris Smythe, their Health Editor, it references some detailed research in Norway on 1,400 men, which looked at the benefits of exercise in reducing the long term risks of a stroke.  The article starts:

“The sight of lycra straining to contain a middle-aged spread might attract mocking smiles as its owner puffs past, but late converts to exercise will have the last laugh. Getting fit in your 40s and 50s could halve your long term risk of a stroke, a study has found. Even couch potatoes who got in shape were less likely to suffer a stroke over the next 3 decades than those who had been fit but had stopped working out, according to results that suggest it is never too late to start exercising.

Researchers said that their findings offered encouragement to those whose youthful fitness had faded, while also serving as a warning to people not to let themselves go in middle age.

Although previous studies have suggested that improving fitness in mid-life can protect the heart, scientists had never linked this to stroke risk. About 100,000 people a year in Britain suffer a stroke, either through disruption of blood supply to the brain or bleeding within it.”

The full article can be found on The Times web-site although unfortunately it is only available to subscribers. We have a copy in the Club if anyone is interested to read the whole thing.

Just another reason to keep (or start) exercising!

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