The brain has different areas with different functions. It is small and very powerful, but over the years we lose power and the "power plant" tends to decrease in performance. The hippocampus is the area that has functions related to the control of emotions and memory, and a recent study ensures that physical exercise can help maintain good functioning.
How much physical exercise do we need to keep the hippocampus working as it should?
Some investigations Previous studies found that some lifestyle behaviors can make a difference, most notably caloric restriction and physical exercise. In the study cited above, the researchers suggest that it's not as much as you might think. In fact, in a single exercise session you can tell the difference.
The study, published in the Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, focused on the semantic memory, which is the ability we have to remember words, concepts and numbers, and the effects of exercise on the hippocampal activation.
For this, they had 26 participants, between 55 and 85 years of age, and subjected them to rest cycles or 30 minutes of physical exercise on two separate days. Right after, they were given an MRI and asked to recall names of famous and non-famous people.
In the post-exercise test, they obtained earnings much higher in terms of the memory, compared to when the volunteers only dedicated themselves to resting for half an hour. They didn't just have one increased activation in the hippocampus, but other parts of the brain were also activated.
«From previous studies, we know that regular exercise can increase the overall volume of the hippocampus, and our study shows that even in one exercise session we can have a significant effect.said lead author J. Carson Smith.
Why does exercise generate this benefit?
It is difficult to know the mechanism of the brain. There are a number of possibilities as to why exercise makes the brain function better. The author of the study suggests that it could have to do with a increase in neurotransmitters, such as norepinephrine and dopamine, which increase the "signal to noise ratio." This means that neural networks can be activated more efficiently.
The memory-enhancing effect on study participants lasted for approximately one hour after each exercise session. But even if the effects tend to wear off a bit after that time, regular training can benefit neural networks and the hippocampus. Let's say it's similar to "training" the brain, just as we train the muscles.
«We don't have long-term follow-up to confirm that, but based on this study and other research, it's quite possible that over time, the brain adapts to exercise in the same way as the body.. The brain gets stronger«. With this conclusion, he puts a finishing touch to the false myth that people who go to the gym do not have many neurons (although we already knew that).