Vitality Digest Magazine
This article originally appeared in Vitality Digest Magazine.
A Powerful Prescription for Health at Any Age
by Ember Reichgott Junge
When I walked into a dance studio at the age of 35, I had one purpose—to find a husband. I found one, but he doesn’t dance a step. Instead, dance changed me.
I wasn’t even thinking about health benefits. I was a young attorney and state senator in the 1980s. I worked long hours to be the perfect career woman. I could not make a mistake, at least publicly.
My skilled dance coach knew how to take control from a woman normally “in charge.” He taught me to relax and laugh at myself. I had found a safe place to be me—the authentic me. I could let go. I could make a mistake and be vulnerable. I could love myself. And I could love another person when he stepped into my life.
My dance coach was really a life coach, introducing me to a healthier lifestyle. Sure, my posture improved after years of sitting at the computer. My balance was strong on snow and ice. But I had no idea that partner dance was such a powerful—and overlooked—tool for body wellness and brain health.
Now 72 years old, I realize that partner dance is a prescription for healthier aging. A landmark study led by the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City found that weekly partner dance can reduce dementia risk by an astonishing 76% - more than any other form of exercise. Yes, the Tango really can help prevent dementia.
The study, published in 2003 in The New England Journal of Medicine and recited in subsequent publications, evaluated the subjects’ cognitive activities such as reading books, working crossword puzzles, playing cards and playing musical instruments over a 21-year period. They studied physical activities like tennis, golf, swimming, bicycling, walking, and dancing.
The results? Of all activities studied, frequent partner dancing yielded the greatest reduction of dementia risk. Though working crossword puzzles at least four days a week and reading lowered dementia risk by 47 and 35 percent respectively, no other tested physical activity appeared to offer any protection against dementia.
So you don’t worry about dementia? Maybe you should. According to 2025 data, the lifetime risk of dementia after age 55 is 42%. Rates are substantially higher for women and black adults.
Dancing can also ease symptoms of Parkinson’s disease, improving mobility, balance, and quality of life. Dance fosters connection and community, easing depression and isolation during this “epidemic of loneliness” declared by former Surgeon General Dr. Vivek H. Murthy. His study found that loneliness and social isolation can increase risk of premature death by up to 29%.
I include this little-known science in my book The Dance of Resilience released in January. I lift the curtain on the remarkable health benefits of partner dance, weaving in compelling first-hand stories of how dance supports aging, resilience, and healing. These stories describe people navigating grief, illness recovery, and major life transitions through partner dance with courage and self-discovery.
But as a former legislator, I don’t stop there. Did you know a large insurance company is paying for dance sessions for members of its Medicare Advantage retiree portfolio? Some doctors are now issuing “social prescriptions” for a series of dance sessions, paid by insurance or public funds.
You can help! Join me in a Call to Action to help bring partner dance into the insured healthcare system to improve health and well-being for people across our nation.
Dance on with resilience. Together we can make this happen!