A new study revealed that regular cycling could hold back ageing and also revitalizes the immune system. This debunks the myth that regular cycling makes us weak in as we get older. It is well established that regular exercise is good for health. But the current research, it was revealed that apart from staying healthy, regular cycling also helps to maintain high testosterone levels even in old age.
Research study:
For this study, scientists carried the tests on 125 amateur cyclists aged between 55 to 79 and compared the results with the non-exercising younger adults. The non-exercising group comprised 75 healthy people aged between 57 to 80 and 55 young people between 20 to 36. The study group included both male and female cyclists. Male cyclists in the study were able to complete 100 km in 6.5 hours whereas the female cyclists completed 60 km in 5.5 hours. The findings revealed that the cyclists preserved muscle mass and strength and also maintained constant levels of body fat and cholesterol. The amateur cyclists also recorded high testosterone levels.
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The most astonishing finding is that the immune system is replenished in older cyclists. The thymus is an organ associated with the production of immune cells called T-cells. The organ shrinks with age, and there will be a decrease in the production of T-cells as the person becomes old. But in this new research, it was revealed that Thymus is active in amateur cyclists and surprisingly produced the same number of T-cells as their younger counterparts. The benefits of exercise have been revealed by Hippocrates way back in 400 B.C, but it did not gather much attention. Now, the current research unravels the benefits associated with regular cycling. It also reveals the reason behind most of the cyclists remaining healthy and young even though they do not exercise. The current research offers the solution to the problem, where most of the people live longer but not healthier.
The research was published in the journal Aging Cell.
