It is known that to age at the lowest possible rate and preserve a healthy brainit is essential to adopt healthy lifestyle habits. They are key, among others, to follow a balanced diet and physical exercise on a regular basis.
Adopt the Mediterranean diet It’s probably easier (and more tempting) than putting on your sneakers to train. However, it is possible to help protect the brain without complicating time.
The easiest way to get physical activity is to simply move around and give some stepssaid the doctor Wendy Suzukineuroscientist and professor at the New York University. “Solo 10 minutes walksomething that anyone anywhere could do, decrease levels of anxiety y depression“Suzuki said during a recent appearance on TED Intersections.
“Simply moving your body, you get immediate, long-lasting and brain-protective benefits“said the expert. Taking daily walks for weeks, months and years can provide the brain with “not only good neurochemicalsbut also growth factors” that can improve your health, he said.
The growth factors are chemicals that promote the creation of new blood vessels in the brain and the abundance, survival and good health of new brain cells.
Taking a short walk can be the equivalent of taking a “neurochemical bubble bath” like the dopamine and serotoninthe expert explained to CNBC News.
The dopamine It is the so-called “hormone of pleasure and reward” and the serotonin as a “well-being hormone”. Both make up the famous “happiness quartet”, together with the oxytocin and endorphin.
Suzuki said it’s never too late to start. Even if you were a “couch potato until you were 75,” the expert said, walk regularly can make the brain healthier.
There are several studies that confirm the neuroprotective function of the exercise. According to one revision 2022 systematic review in the medical journal Neurology, people who engaged in regular physical activity, including walkthey had a 17% less likely to develop dementia than those who did not exercise frequently.
Other study from Harvard University found that following a program of moderate physical exercise for six months, the brain regions of the participants had increased. This means that The exercise improved their memories and thinking skills.
Other investigation of 2022, published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia determined that older adults who remain active have higher levels of brain proteins that improve connections between neuronswhich in turn improves your memory and stimulates cognition. This protective effect was observed in all people, even those who showed signs of dementia.
One reason could be that physical activity promotes synapse healththe small spaces that separate neurons and allow them to communicate. “That’s where the magic really happens when it comes to cognition,” explained the study’s co-author. Kaitlin Casalettoassociate professor of Neuropsychology at the Memory and Aging Center of the University of California, San Francisco.
The good news, he emphasizes, is that the brain of the participants, who on average were between 70 and 80 years old, were able to benefit from exercise even in older people. While the study found that greater physical activity was associated with higher levels of synaptic proteins in brain tissue, “this suggests that when it comes to brain health, all movement counts,” Casaletto stressed. “The more natural the way we incorporate movement into our daily routine, the easier it will be to maintain activity,” added the expert.
In fact, Suzuki said he would recommend physical activity to almost everyone and believes that the best form of exercise for you is the one that makes you happiest. “Any time of the day when we can exercise is the best time to do it,” said the expert. And he added: “If you want to challenge yourself, try to incorporate forms of activity that require strategy that you will work harder prefrontal cortexlike the football or basketball”.
