Health benefits of early-life exercise

Abstract

Although accumulating evidence indicates that exercise has a positive impact on healthspan, the influence of early-life exercise on adult health has been understudied. The matter is important as recent reports suggest that most adolescents do not meet current physical activity guidelines. New research published in Nature Communications demonstrates that 3 months of early-life exercise results in lasting health benefits in both male and female mice. The researchers subjected male and female C57BL/6J mice to either sedentary conditions or swimming exercise (90 min per day for 3 months) at 1–4 months of age before rearing the animals without exercise for the rest of their life. While early-life exercise did not extend the overall lifespan of the mice, evaluation of various health parameters revealed that it enhanced systemic metabolism, cardiovascular function and improved musculoskeletal health in aged mice. Early-life exercise also reduced systemic inflammation and frailty, two fundamental hallmarks of aging. Notably, early-life exercise was associated with a reduction in alopecia and fur color loss in aged mice. Further studies are needed to explore the mechanisms underlying the long-term health effects of early-life exercise and to translate these findings to human populations.

Original reference: Feng, M. et al. Nat. Commun. 16, 6328 (2025)