ConsumerTIME

Say "No" to Brain Drain

A recent study by the University of Illinois at Champagne/ Urbana and the University of Pittsburgh found some good news about maintaining memory as we age. The research was based on a body of evidence that regular exercise generally benefits overall health.

Earlier studies showed that exercise could lead to small improvements on mental tests for older adults and also reduce brain atrophy for people in the beginning stages of Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers at the two universities wanted to know how those improvements occur. So they recruited 120 sedentary adults and engaged them in physical activity for 40 minutes a day, three days a week. Half the group did stretching and muscle-toning exercises, while the other half did brisk aerobic walking. 

Both groups had some memory improvement, but the walking group showed an amazing result. The walkers experienced a near 2 percent increase in the size of the hippocampus – the brain component directly related to memory. Normally there’s a slight shrinkage in the hippocampus as a result of aging, but the study showed that the shrinkage could be reversed by aerobic exercise that increases heart rate and blood flow to the brain. 

So head out tomorrow morning and take a brisk walk around the block. It will exercise your mind as well as your body.