Could exercise pills help create a healthier society?

Finding drugs that mimic the benefits of a workout has long been a goal of science. As a new trial begins, the hope is to assist not just the time-poor or the lazy but elderly people and those with disease or disability

In a hospital in northern Norway, just south of the Arctic Circle, a landmark experiment is taking place that could transform the way we treat ageing in the years to come. Called ExPlas - exercised plasma - the clinical trial involves taking blood plasma from young and healthy adults who exercise on a regular basis and injecting it into people aged between 50 and 75 in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease. It's the first time this has been tested in humans.

The full results will be available in 2025, and the hope is that it will represent a new way of rejuvenating the minds and bodies of older people, and perhaps one day even all of us who lead largely sedentary lives.