Jordan Hoang
Mr. Ippolito
AP Biology C Even
12/2/18
Reynolds, Gretchen. “Regular Exercise May Keep Your Body 30 Years 'Younger'.” The New
York Times, The New York Times, 21 Nov. 2018,
Research throughout the years have found that exercise can have amazing benefits for our physical and mental health. However, many previous studies have failed to test those of an older age that yield an average, recreational athletic ability. Ball State University in Muncie intended on focusing on this group and found that those "who have exercised for decades are indistinguishable in many ways from those of healthy 25- years olds". Specifically, the experimental study compared active, elderly individuals and equally active 20 year olds through a series of enzyme, tissue, capillary and "aerobic capacity" tests to measure muscular strength. The study defined active, elderly individuals as those who regularly performed activities such as cycling or swimming throughout the past 50 years or so. In addition, the experiment involved a control group of inactive, older people to compare the results to. While the older, active group inevitably achieved lower results than the younger individuals, it was found that "their capacities were about 40 percent higher than those of their inactive peers". What was even more astonishing was that the results of the active, elderly group achieved the same numbers as those almost 30 years younger then them who were perceived to have "normal" health. In general, although these older people may have not been performing high intensity, vigorous activity, their consistency with exercise may have been the reason for their commendable results in these health studies.
The applications of this study is what I found to be especially important. Like the article mentioned, many scientists in the past have failed to study those who are not of amazing athletic capacity. With this study however, they were able to make information about exercise accessible to a much larger range of people. This experiment is also very significant to the study of human health because it helps scientists discover factors behind longevity. It further exemplifies that strenuous activity is not the only method to maximizing your health. With continuous, moderate or leisurely exercise, you can live a healthier life while looking and feeling much younger than you actually are.
I enjoyed how the author highlighted faults in the experiment, including how other factors such as diet, environment, or genetics might have affected the results. In addition, I liked how he mentioned how the scientists failed to include how "exercising late in life" would affect the conclusion to this study.As a minor critique, I feel as though the author should have included more specifics on the amount and type of exercise the elderly group were performing. In other words, what exactly classified them as being "active"? This would have made the results of the study even more strong and applicable to the general audience.
For this week’s current events I read Jordan Hoang’s review of “Regular Exercise May Keep Your Body 30 Years Younger” by Gretchen Reynold of The New York Times. I thought that this review was strong for its concise and informative summary which clearly laid out the experiment this article was analysing. Jordan described the logistics of the observation study which involved studying the health of active and inactive elderly individuals over the course for around 50 years. Another element of Jordan’s piece that made it stand out was the way she touched on the significance of the study in the context of other scholarship on the subject. I agree with Jordan that much research has been done on the more immediate effects of regular exercise, but scientific scholarship needs definitive answers as to how exercise benefits us in the long run. Lastly, Jordan’s review was exceptional for her thorough critique of the experimental design of the original observational study where confounding variables like diet and environment could be at play.
ReplyDeleteWhile this review was exceptional, I would have liked to have seen less summary and more emphasis on the significance of the study and Jordan’s critique of the author. I thought that, when she elaborated on these points, Jordan’s writing was very strong and I would have enjoyed seeing her develop these ideas further. Secondly, I think that this review and the study it accompanies still leaves many questions to be answered about the effects of long term exercise. For example: what constitutes “exercise” from a scientific perspective? How can we definitively measure the effects of high levels of activity with so many confounding variable? How does the lack of exercise impact the long term health of a majority of Americans who are overweight?
When reading this review and the article, I was struck by how limited our scientific knowledge of exercise truly is. For a subject that saturates public scientific discourse and heavily talked about in the media, there is very little scientific investigations about the specific health benefits of exercise over the course of decades. I would also be curious to see the effects of over exercise as seen in high performance athletes has on individuals as they age.
I read Jordan Hoang’s review on the article “Regular Exercise May Keep Your Body 30 Years ‘Younger’” by Gretchen Reynolds. The article discusses the numerous benefits of lifelong exercise and its effects on the elderly. The study demonstrated that elderly people who had been exercising on a regular basis for the last half century were 40% more healthy (in terms of enzymes, muscles, etc.) than sedentary elderly people. Jordan’s review is very strong in multiple areas- for instance, her summary of the article was adequately detailed yet concise, resulting in a synopsis that was very clear and easy to understand. She defined all of the necessary terms in the article that may have been a cause for confusion as well; she states, “The study defined active, elderly individuals as those who regularly performed activities such as cycling or swimming throughout the past 50 years or so.” Jordan also makes consistent connections between the study and its influence and impact on the world. She explains that this study further enforces the significance of exercise in a healthy lifestyle, concluding that “with continuous, moderate or leisurely exercise, you can live a healthier life while looking and feeling much younger than you actually are.” This means that even with “leisurely exercise”, one’s health could remain at a high level even with the passage of time. Lastly, Jordan’s critique of the article was highly accurate, reflecting one of the issues with the article in that “the author should have included more specifics on the amount and type of exercise the elderly group were performing.” While the author does explain the results in great detail, she fails to delve into the specifics of the experiment itself and the “type of exercise” that the elderly were performing. As Jordan articulated, it would have been far more helpful to the reader if we were to receive more information in this area.
ReplyDeleteAlthough Jordan’s review was very well-written, there are some areas in which Jordan could make improvements. For one, I felt as though she could have elaborated more on the significance of the experiment’s results rather than on the experiment itself, which is rather curt when compared to her polished summary. There were some areas in which Jordan could have afforded to remove a sentence or two, such as when she describes how “Ball State University in Muncie intended on focusing on this group and found that those ‘who have exercised for decades are indistinguishable in many ways from those of healthy 25- years olds.’” This particular piece of information is already stated later in her review and could be removed to increase coherency. While said summary is rather concise and detailed, she could have included more information and criticism in her final paragraph, which only lists one “minor critique”. She should be considering the article’s other faults as well, such as the article’s lack of data and statistics, and how the numbers of enzymes and rate of capillary activity effectively point to significant health benefits or deficiencies.
After reading through Jordan’s review and corresponding article, I was particularly struck by the implications that even leisurely but consistent exercise can have on our lives. I was surprised to see that while exercise increased longevity and health, it “turns back the physical and health-related clock” on our bodies even while we chronologically age. I specifically chose to read this review because I was interested in learning more about how and why the elderly exercise given that they are oftentimes so “frail”; however, I now see that this “frailty” is the effect, not the cause of a lack of health and nutrition. With these astounding results that have recently come to light, it is likely that a greater number of younger people (in their 20’s or so) will begin a healthy regimen of daily exercise to mitigate the effects of aging. As an individual, I myself have learned to place more emphasis and value on daily exercise so that I can retain a more balanced, more sustainable lifestyle in the future.
ReplyDeleteReynolds, Gretchen. “Regular Exercise May Keep Your Body 30 Years 'Younger'.” The New
York Times, The New York Times, 21 Nov. 2018,
www.nytimes.com/2018/11/21/well/move/regular-exercise-may-keep-your-body-30-year
S-younger.html.
Jordan’s review is effective in that it adds an artful introduction to the piece, giving context to the topic of the article before formally introducing it. This allows the reader to have a better grasp of the importance of the issue, and eases their immersion into the review. This also lets the reader understand the topic of the article, and by extension review with more depth. The review is very efficient in its summary, where the topic of its review--the benefits of exercise are made abundantly clear. This allows the reader to follow the review and understand its key points from the start, giving them a strong sense of guidance within the article. The review is also very strong in how it handles personal opinion. It makes it apparent that the reason as to why this article was chosen is for the practical applications of the study. The article’s implications for society are strong and pronounced--and the review capitalizes on that.
However, the review could improve in the sense that it could add examples to strengthen the opinion part of the review. Adding concrete examples of how the study could be applied to the review could help solidify the importance of the issue even further. This is easily improved on by simply researching and finding studies or cases where the article’s information could be applied. Also, the review lacks in that it lacks a definitive conclusion. Adding a more poignant and powerful final statement can help Jordan enforce her point even further, and would be of overall benefit to the review’s overall strength.
As the human race becomes more developed, and less concerned about survival, we search to improve our own bodies, and be in peak condition for as long as we can. This study’s insight into the power of exercise in the long term, and how it yields to healthier individuals is a testament that age is becoming less of a barrier to physical fitness, and that one can stay in shape for many years after their “prime”. This changed my perspective on the issue of long-term health, as it drove me to reconsider the amount of exercise I do, as since I want to live the rest of my life to the fullest, starting to do regular exercise will help my overall long-term health.
Caitlin Mooney
ReplyDeleteCurrent Event 11
AP Bio
12/10/18
Reynolds, Gretchen. “Regular Exercise May Keep Your Body 30 Years 'Younger'.” The New
York Times, The New York Times, 21 Nov. 2018,
www.nytimes.com/2018/11/21/well/move/regular-exercise-may-keep-your-body-30-year
S-younger.html.
I read my classmate, Jordan’s review of “Regular Exercise May Keep Your Body 30 Years Younger” by Gretchen Reynold, for this week's current event. This article describes the effect constant exercise has on the health of the elderly. One thing I think Jordan did well was that she cited quotes in her review. Another positive aspect of this review was how she was able to summarize the article in a way that allowed the reader to understand such a complex topic. Jordan was able to do this by describing how the Ball State University “enzyme, tissue, capillary and "aerobic capacity" tests to measure muscular strength”. Finally, I thought Jordan did a great job with her critique of the author. Jordan was able to compliment the author by saying that their author “highlighted faults in the experiment”.
Although I thought Jordan did a great job overall, I think there is still room for improvement. One thing Jordan could improve upon is that she could add more quotes or statistics. Not only would this help the reader understand the study better but it would add weight to her words. Another aspect of her review I think Jordan could have improved upon is that she could have emphasized more on the Ball State University study, and what the results of the study indicate.
When I first saw this review I was surprised to hear about how little we know about the long-term effects of exercise when there is such a focus on it the the early years of life. While the topic described in this current event might not be as pressing as some other topics being reviewed, I found this very interesting, and I hope to learn more about developments in this subject area.