According to a new study, having stronger muscles reduces the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease compared to peers with weaker ones.

Dr. Patricia A. Boyle from Chicago’s Rush Alzheimer’s Disease Centre, including colleagues found greater muscle strength lowers the risk of an Alzheimer’s diagnosis over a 4-year period. The same holds true for loss of mental function preceding full-blown Alzheimer’s.

Grip strength, a person’s weight and level of physical activity have all been found to be linked to Alzheimer’s. Boyle and her team noting in November’s Annals of Neurology say, their findings support the link between physical health and cognition in aging, including it being important to maintain good physical function and strength.

Nine hundred and seventy dementia-free men and women aged 54 to 100-years old (average age 80) participated in the study, with researchers measuring strength of nine muscle groups in their arms and legs, including testing the strength of their breathing muscles.

In the four-year follow-up, 138-people developed Alzheimer’s, but these individuals not only happened to be older and weaker, they also had worse mental function than the rest of the participants of the study.