The benefits of sport are quite recognized, since, in addition to being an essential physical exercise for body functions to develop optimally, it is also perfect to stimulate the production of some hormones in the brain that make us more cheerful, awake and assets.
Nelson Mandela also expressed more than once that sport can change the world . Although it is a difficult sentence to prove, what was not known until now is that sport can modify the morphology of the brain, regardless of the age of the person, interesting, right? Let’s see what it consists of.
Studies on the influence of exercise on the structure of the brain
A study published in the journal Neurobiology of Aging confirms that a physically active lifestyle has benefits for brain health . The study, carried out by experts from the University of Uppsala, in Sweden, asked 331 men and women aged 275 years about the type and amount of exercise they practiced per week. They made a classification by activity levels: light (walking or playing petanque) or intense (running, swimming, etc.), as long as it was practiced for more than 30 minutes. In addition, the two groups of older people were evaluated for their mental capacity, in addition to being subjected to an MRI test that could study the morphology of their brains.
The results of the experiment showed that the level of physical exercise had a direct relationship with a more positive general cognitive state and with greater verbal fluency, at the same time that the subjects were more active when solving memory and alternative attention problems . When magnetic resonances were carried out, it was found that the level of gray matter in the parietal lobe increased , especially in a specific area called precuneus, which has a significant influence on Alzheimer’s disease. The cerebral white matter also grew.
The authors definitely state that physical exercise can be considered as one of the essential elements of the lifestyle that affects the brain health of the elderly. On the other hand, there may be an exchange of variables, the physical exercise being dependent on a brain in better condition.
Although unquestionable conclusions cannot be drawn, benefit from both physical and psychological care, they are argued daily with new publications that affect not only physical exercise, but also the way we feed ourselves, activate ourselves mentally and relate to others.
