New research by the University of Cumbri reveals Scottish country dancing is a beneficial delay the ageing process.
The university's Active Ageing Research Group(AARG) recent findings in the Joumal of Aging and Physical Activity'.
Researchers found that this type of physical activity can delay the ageing process locomotion-related activities in older women and functional ability.
AARG, in partnership with the University of Strathclyde, analysed data from women aged 60-80, who had taken part in Scottish country dancing for at least ten years, and their ability to perform day-to-day tasks in comparison to non- dancers of the same age group.
The 26 Scottish country dancers and 34 non-dancers, who were all healthy and participated in same amount physical activity each week, were assessed on a variety of tasks, such as how far they could walk in six minutes, how fast they could cover six meters, or how far they could reach towards their toes while scated.
while the results showed dancers and non-dancers aged 60-70 had similar functional abilities, the analysis revealed dancers aged 70-80 performed better than their non-dancer counterparts in the various tasks