Questão 1 - UFV 2024

            Travel May Slow Down Aging Process

 

    Forget the serums and injections and instead pack your bags. A new study shows that travel may be one of the best ways to prevent premature aging.

    Researchers at Edith Cowan University in Australia set out to study whether travel can slow the typical human body’s “low entropy” or gradual decline. Turns out that all the positive aspects that come with travel — physical activity, mental stimulation, exposure to new experiences, immersion in nature, and new social interactions — can in fact help slow down aging. “Tourism isn’t just about leisure and recreation. It could also contribute to people’s physical and mental health,” said a professor who led the study’s research, in a statement. That emphasis on physical and mental health is the key to staying younger, longer. “Aging, as a process, is irreversible. While it can’t be stopped, it can be slowed down,” she said.

    In the Edith Cowan study, the researchers found that travel might help alleviate chronic stress, dampen overactivation of the immune system, and encourage normal functioning of the self-defense system, which can all help slow physical and mental aging. The reason that travel is so good for you is that vacationers typically end up doing more physical activity than they do at home, like hiking mountain trails, walking miles through European towns, or beach strolling for miles. “Engaging in recreation potentially releases tension and fatigue in the muscles and joints. This relief helps maintain the body’s metabolic balance and increases the anti–wear-and-tear system’s effectiveness,” the professor explained.

    Additionally, new destinations mean new mental stimulation—new sights, new languages, new experiences, all of which are good for the brain. According to the research, those new activities and novel settings can stimulate stress responses and elevate metabolic rates, positively influencing metabolic activities and the body’s self-organizing capabilities. While stimulating stress sounds like a bad idea, she said it is actually beneficial and can improve the body’s ability to identify real stress and threats and make it stronger.

Internet: www.southernliving.com/travel (adapted).

 

According to the previous text, the study conducted by Edith Cowan University concludes that