FHN Complementary Medicine Monthly Newsletter February 2008
Remember to Dance!!!
“ Dancing with the Stars” has brought back the popularity of ballroom dancing. But did you know that dancing is also good for your cardiovascular system and can reduce the risk of various forms of dementia including Alzheimer’s, vascular and mixed types!
The June 2003 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine demonstrated in a landmark study report that dancing reduced all forms of dementia.
Romualdo Belardinelli, M.D., director of cardiac rehabilitation at Lancisi Heart Institute in
Results revealed that both the waltzers and standard cardiac exercisers showed improvement in cardiopulmonary function. However, the waltz group scored better in quality of life and functional measures as assessed by the Minnesota Living with Heart Failure Questionnaire. The waltz group reported more improvement in sleep, mood, the ability to perform hobbies, housework and sex. Also, no one had to withdraw from the waltz program!
So dance your way to a healthy heart and memory! And, you are invited to join us for our next dance class of the TANGO to begin Fridays in February. Contact the Freeport Park District to register.
Sincerely
Drs. Julie and Glenn Smith
Complementary Medicine
