Study: Simple exercises decrease Alzheimer's risk by 50%

Want to decrease your risk of Alzheimer's by 50%? Take a walk, buddy! Simple physical activity may protect you from Alzheimer's.

Regular physical activity, which can mean movement of many types, might cut the risk of Alzheimer's by 50 percent. It's brand new research out of UCLA. When looking at lifestyle and brain scans of 900 older adults, activity from jogging, to walking to gardening seems to boost grey matter in the brain. More grey matter means a healthier brain and a lower risk of alzhimer's.

For the study the seniors had MRI's to measure the size of their brains and answered questions about memory. They were asked about movement, from riding an exercise bike to gardening. The more active, the larger the brain part linked to memory and learning.

Kate Pierce is the manager at the Alzehimer's Association of Greater Michigan. She said that we know what's good for the heart is good for the brain so these results make a lot of sense.

Right now alzhimer's disease affects about five million americans, but over the next 30 years, that number is expected to rise to nearly 14 million. That's why doctors say since we don't have a cure, the focus has got to be on prevention.