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For a number of years research has shown a variety of forms of mental and physical stimulation reduce the risk of developing dementia. Research findings published in 2003 that dancing is among the best forms of movement to give the brain a workout, as well as the body.
The increased blood flow from dancing helps keep the mind sharp, as does the opportunity for social interaction that dancing provides. Whether someone joins a dance or aerobics class, or grabs a partner and hits the dance floor, the movement and the social aspect bring dancing to the top of the must-do list for those who desire to keep their mind and body active.
Dancing also requires memorizing a number of intricate steps and movements, as well as mastering the timing and coordination to complete those movements, sometimes alone as in aerobics, or with a partner on the dance floor.
Other benefits of dancing include increased confidence, improved posture, body alignment, flexibility, and endurance.
The study lasted for twenty years as researchers followed approximately 500 men and women who claimed dancing was their only regular physical activity. Those who danced more than three or four times a week were found to have less risk of developing dementia over the period of the study than those who danced once a week or less.
Researchers agreed that the increased blood flow to the brain offered protection against brain disease.
Dementia causes significant loss of memory and mental function, and continues to worsen over time. One of the causes of dementia is the build-up of plaque in the brain that disrupts normal function. Vascular dementia is caused by problems in the blood circulation to the brain causing damage from multiple tiny strokes.
Dementia is defined as a loss of intellectual abilities and motor skills severe enough to interfere with the ability to function. Such intellectual abilities include attention, orientation, memory, judgment, and language. Although there are many forms of dementia, Alzheimer’s is the most common.
As further studies progress, what we can learn from those already conducted are that we need to keep our minds and bodies stimulated to ward off or slow the ravages of dementia.
So, get your dancing shoes on, grab that partner, and have a blast as you keep your body and mind moving to the beat!
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