A diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease cuts a person's life expectancy in half. A new study of patients age 60 and older found that the median survival for those newly diagnosed with Alzheimer's was 4.2 years for men and 5.7 years for women. That's half of what someone about the same age who does not have Alzheimer's could be expected to live.

Implication: Alzheimer's patients should remain active through walking and various other types of exercise to reduce the risk for pneumonia, bone fractures and other life threatening conditions.

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