New research suggests being overweight can age your brain by as much as a decade.

Your brain contains white matter – tissue that connects different parts of the brain and helps you think and remember things. Normally, the amount of white matter you have in your brain decreases as you get older. A recent study points to excess fat tissue as a probable cause for slightly speeding up this process.

What does this mean for you? Consider it another of many potential motivators for using healthy eating and regular physical activity to help you live a longer, healthier life.

MP’s Take: Weight isn’t the only way to measure how healthy you are. It’s important to remember, though, that diet and exercise are good for both your body and your mind in a number of different ways. A number of past studies have suggested that carrying around too much extra weight might have an effect on the way you think as you get older. To keep your mind sharp in the future, the best thing you can do now is take care of your body. Engage in fitness training you look forward to. Find a way to eat things you like without overdoing it. There are a lot of factors that go into how much you weigh other than food and fitness. But you can take small steps to keep your brain as healthy as possible, right here, right now.

Source

http://www.menshealth.com/health/extra-weight-shrinks-brain