HOW CAN YOU IMPROVE YOUR BRAIN DOING PHYSICAL EXERCISES?
If I had to define the human body without doubt I would say that it is a perfect machine. And as any machine it is made up of different components that work harmoniously. The integration and coordination of all the parts of our body is made by the nervous system.
Many different and complicated functions are performed by the nervous system, but all can be summarized in one basic function: survival. The nervous system has different structures to accomplish this fundamental objective, one of which is the brain.
Our brain is a malleable organ, it is able to change in response to internal and external influences. The structural changes that occur are related to changes at the level of neurons, glial cells and blood vessels (Pearson-Fuhrhop, KM, Kleim, JA, and Cramer, SC, 2009).
Depending on the type of influences, the changes in the brain can be positive or negative. There are numerous studies (Smith et al., 2010) that show that exercise produces beneficial changes within the brain.
But specifically … What does exercise do?
Basically it changes the chemical composition and brain plasticity. Some of these changes are related to changes in the hippocampus, a brain structure involved in memory (Young, RJ Br. J., 1979).
In many researches it was found that exercise increases the creation of new neurons (neurogenesis) in the hippocampus. As a result of which the ability to memorize improves. This increase in the number of neurons in the hippocampus is insufficient if it is not accompanied by an increase of blood capillaries (Ding et al., 2005). Like what happens in muscle tissue, under conditions of exercise, brain tissue also increases the amount of blood vessels. In this way an enriched environment is provided that will ensure the survival of new neurons created.
Some time ago, it was believed that all our capacities were determined exclusively by our genetic load. And therefore, it was not in our hands to change. Today, many concepts have changed and it is known that we possess a collection of genes that have and need to be activated in order to act. Through this article I would like to emphasize the importance of our participation in this activation.
As we see, through simple activities such as physical exercise we can stimulate the creation of new neurons that act increasing our memory. Furthermore, this exercise provides sufficient oxygen and nutrients to these new cells. So, as a result of the incorporation of physical activity in our lives we get improvements in our cognitive abilities.
FROM THEORY TO PRACTICE …
We all know that the brain is an organ that can be easily modified. In this blog we propose a modification based on exercise. Particularly aerobic exercises have a positive impact on cognitive function (Colcombe et al., 2006). In order to improve the brain, the American College of Sports Medicine recommends:
-30 minutes / day of moderate intensity exercises during 5 days a week or 20 minutes / day of high intensity exercises during 3 days a week.
-resistance exercises are also recommended, exercises that involve larger muscle groups as well as neuro motor exercises (for example: flexibility, coordination, balance and agility) for 2 / 3 days a week.
Are you ready to improve your brain?
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Pearson-Fuhrhop,K.M.,Kleim,J.A., and Cramer,S.C.(2009).Brainplas- ticityandgeneticfactors. Top.Stroke Rehabil. 16, 282–299.
Young, R. J. Br. J. Sports Med., 1979, 13, 110.
Smith,P.J.,Blumenthal,J.A.,Hoff- man, B.M.,Cooper,H.,Strau- man, T.A.,Welsh-Bohmer,K., Browndyke,J.N.,andSherwood,A. (2010). Aerobicexerciseandneu- rocognitiveperformance:ameta- analyticreviewofrandomizedcon- trolledtrials. Psychosom.Med. 72, 239–252.
Ding, Y.-H., Young, C. N., Luan, X., Li, J., Rafols, J. A., Clark, J. C., McAllister, J. P., and Ding, Y. (2005). Exercise preconditioning ameliorates inflammatory injury in ischemic rats during reperfusion. ActaNeuropathol. 109, 237–246.
Colcombe,S.J.,Erickson,K.I.,Scalf,P. E., Kim,J.S.,Prakash,R.,McAuley, E., Elavsky,S.,Marquez,D.X.,Hu, L., andKramer,A.F.(2006).Aerobic exercisetrainingincreasesbrainvol- ume inaginghumans. J. Gerontol.A Biol. Sci.Med.Sci. 61, 1166–1170.