Giving your brain a boost. (Editorial).

Do you worry about getting older? "Getting older" has become a fact of life for my generation. In fact, just three years from now the first members of the baby boom generation will be turning 60. Sixty! Fortunately I'm not a member of those first few years of baby boomers. In fact, there are still a number of precious months to go until I turn 50. But consider how time seems to pass by these days. We're all going to get there faster than we care to think about.

Members of my generation have long been notorious for their attitudes about aging. Remember when we were young? Our motto was "Never trust anyone over 30." Clearly that belief has been laid to rest, since all of us baby boomers are over 30.

As a generation we've tried to put off aging for as long as possible. We've tried every workout class available. We've created best-selling books about weight-loss plans (some sensible and some not so sensible). I've always had this image in my mind of a bunch of us baby boomers in a retirement home somewhere years from now, with well-toned bodies but not able to remember our own names.

Well, now comes some research that gives me hope that we'll remember our names and a whole lot more. Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign recently did a study on the brain tissues in volunteers ages 55 to 79. No, they didn't cut them open. Actually, the volunteers submitted to a magnetic resonance imaging test that examined their brain anatomies. And what the researchers found probably won't surprise you.

Those volunteers who were more physically fit had significantly less brain degeneration than those who reported practicing a more sedentary lifestyle. There was more gray matter present in the physically fit. Of course, the idea that fitness improves cognitive abilities in the aging isn't really new. Scientists have proved that exercise boosts brain components before ... in mice. This new study is the first one that shows physical evidence that there's a relationship between cardiovascular fitness and brain fitness.

It makes sense when you think about it. Working out helps your muscles and bones stay young. So doesn't it seem to follow that working out should keep your brain young too? This study's author also analyzed a number of previous research projects on exercise and the aging, and offers some useful tips for those of us racing headlong into the future:

* Combining both aerobic exercise and strength training (weights) produced better results than either type of exercise alone.

* Older adults seem to benefit more than younger ones do. So it's never too late!

* More than 30 minutes of exercise per session produced the greatest results.

The path to successful aging becomes clearer with each new study. And increasingly, it appears that the best way to travel that path will be while wearing your favorite jogging shoes.