Jogging daily can slow cell aging by 9 years

CAIRO - 14 May 2017: A new study claims that only 30 minutes of jogging a day, five days a week could extend your lifespan by up to 9 years by slowing down the aging of cells.

There is a 7 to 9 year difference at a cellular level between those who do intense exercises on a regular basis compared to those who do moderate exercises, according to a study by researchers at Brigham Young University.

The study finds that people who have consistently high levels of physical activity have obviously longer telomeres than those who have sedentary lifestyles, as well as those who are moderately active.

Telomeres are the protective protein end caps of our chromosomes. Each time a cell replicates, we lose a tiny bit of the end caps. Therefore, the older we get, the shorter our telomeres become.

Lack of exercise contributes to the shortening of telomeres by oxidation, leading to the body’s inability to compensate for the damage caused by free radicals. The study indicated that people who exercise for 30 minutes on a daily basis had longer telomeres, as well as a 9 year longer lifespan than those with moderate activity.