14 Hallmarks Of Ageing That Regular Exercise Can Slow Down

Here's why sticking to an exercise routine could help you live longer.

You probably already know that exercise can help us to live longer.

Research has shown that walking 7,000 steps a day can lead to a 47% risk reduction in all-cause mortality, while strength training has been linked to up to four years of extra life.

In fact, the Mayo Clinic stated that strength training could “slow and, in many cases, reverse the changes in muscle fibres associated with ageing”.

But why exactly does that happen? And what do we mean when we talk about exercise “reversing” or “slowing” ageing?

A paper published in the Journal of Sport and Health Science said: “Current evidence suggests that exercise favorably modulates all 14 hallmarks of ageing.”

Here’s what those markers are, as well as how exercise improves them:

1) Genome instability

As we get older, our DNA is more likely to mutate, sustain damage, and lose the ability to repair itself.

This amounts to “genome instability”, which has been described in some research as the main driver of physical ageing.

But, the paper reads, regular physical activity “appears capable of promoting genome stability by reducing DNA damage and enhancing DNA damage repair”.

2) Telomere shrinking or loss (attrition)

Our telomeres – DNA structures that humans have at the ends of our chromosomes, and which keep our cells working better for longer – tend to shrink when we age.

Telomeres have been compared to “the protective plastic caps at the end of shoelaces”. Shorter telomeres are associated with a shorter life.

Thankfully, the review said: “Exercise can also activate telomerase [a special enzyme that maintains telomere length] and increase telomere length and thus decrease telomere attrition”.

3) Less epigenetic regulation

Epigenetic factors are those that seem to be able to switch certain genes on or off without changing a........

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