As demographic aging continues in Japan, the number of very elderly individuals aged 75 years or older is increasing rapidly, as is the number of bedridden, elderly individuals, with ramifications extending to economic problems such as health care costs and insurance for long-term care. Consequently, there is a great importance to questions of how to prevent age-related loss of muscle (sarcopenia) to prevent bedridden states, and further to improve quality of life (QOL) and maintain active lifestyles. Exercise is the most effective means for preventing and addressing sarcopenia. Regular exercise is also reported to prevent progression of arteriosclerosis, prevent lifestyle diseases, and delay onset of dementia. However, the effects of exercise are known to differ substantially for different types of exercise. Regular walking and other aerobic exercise improves cardiovascular endurance, but among the elderly, loss of muscular strength, muscular atrophy, and other diminished physical functions have implications for falling and fractures, and it is not uncommon to see a consequent aggravation of disuse syndrome due to inactivity, leading to a bedridden state. In this light, strength training is also important for elderly individuals, to increase muscular strength and muscle mass. It is also highly important for elderly individuals to eat a diet, particularly amino acids, that enhances the effects of exercise. Here we present an overview of aerobic exercise, resistance training, and “kaatsu training” (i.e., training under pressure-restricted blood flow to the extremities) representing anti-aging exercise methods. We likewise discuss the importance of diet for exercise.

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Purpose: To examine the relationship between the functional age (FA) and the objectively measured daily physical activity (PA).
Methods: The subjects of the present investigation were 15 males and 22 females (68±6 yr.). The Anti-Aging-Dock determined the 5 components of FA (Bone age; BA, Hormone-age; HA, Muscle-age; MA, Nervous system-age; NA, Vascular-age; VA). Each participant wore an electronic pedometer (HJ-720IT, Omron Corporation, Kyoto-city, Kyoto Japan) in order to determine daily number of steps (STEP_day) and the time and steps for PA lasting longer >10-min at >60 steps·min⁻¹ of the step rate (Bout_time and Bout_step). The HA was evaluated by using the standard aging curve of serum DHEA-s and IGF-I concentration.
Result: Simple correlation coefficient showed that the HA significantly associated with STEP_day and Bout_step in female subjects (p<0.05). A multiple regression analysis showed that the Bout_step and Age came out significant parameter of the HA.
Conclusions: The HA significantly associated with steps Bout_step independently from the STEP_day in middle-aged to older female adults. The bouts of PA lasting >10-min may be an effective PA to protect the age-associated changes in hormonal functions.

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Antioxidants are known to prevent oxidative damage in cells caused by radiation. We have previously reported that whole-body irradiation with low doses of gamma rays to mice elevates the antioxidant thioredoxin-1 (Trx-1) levels in several organs. Furthermore, gamma ray irradiation also causes ATP release from the exposed cells. Extracellular ATP release in response to various stimuli has been reported to regulate the expression of intracellular antioxidants through activation of purinergic P2 receptors.
Here, we review the relation between gamma-radiation-induced ATP release and the induction of cellular Trx-1 via purinergic signaling. Irradiation with gamma rays or exogenously adding ATP cause an increase in Trx-1 expression, and these phenomena disappear in the presence of an ecto-nucleotidase. Further, it is revealed that ATP generates intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), and thereby increases Trx-1 expression as an adaptive response to ROS.
These findings suggest that gamma-radiation-induced release of extracellular ATP may contribute to the production of ROS via purinergic signaling, thereby leading to the promotion of intracellular antioxidants in response to an oxidative stress.

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