Within the facilities of a laboratory in Floridavarious adults monitor the rhythm of their breathing while doing physical activity on stationary bicycles. These volunteers did not suspect that, after completing a year of systematic training, tomography scans of their brain organs would reveal a surprising fact: Their brains would look almost a year younger compared to those individuals who did not modify their sedentary habits. This discovery, which has been disseminated through the Journal of Sport and Health Scienceoffers a new perspective on how physical activity directly impacts neurological health.
The research was led by experts from AdventHealth Research Institutewho summoned a total of 130 healthy people with an age range between 26 and 58 years old. A portion of the participants received instructions to execute moderate to vigorous intensity aerobic exercise. These routines were performed twice a week under professional supervision, complemented with activities at home until a total of 150 minutes per week. Meanwhile, the rest of the volunteers maintained their usual lifestyle. At the end of twelve months, MRI scans were used to evaluate changes.
The final data indicated that those who complied with the training regimen experienced an average reduction in 0.6 years into your “predicted brain age”which is an indicator that links the biological age of the organ with the chronological age of the subject. In contrast, the group that did not exercise showed a slight increase in 0.35 yearsa figure that the researchers did not consider statistically significant. He doctor waslead author of the research, noted:
“We found that a simple, guideline-based exercise program can make the brain look noticeably younger in just 12 months.”
The relevance of brain youth
The evaluation of the age cerebral It is performed through detailed analysis of images obtained by magnetic resonance imaging. A brain that shows an age greater than that of the individual is considered to be closely linked to a poor cognitive performance and a latent danger of developing degenerative pathologies. He doctor Kirk I. Ericksonwho serves as director of the AdventHealth Research Institute and is co-author of the study, highlighted a fundamental point:
“Although the difference is less than one year, previous studies suggest that each additional year of brain age is associated with significant differences in health in old age.”
One aspect that makes this study unique is that it focused specifically on individuals of middle ageunlike most research that usually focuses on older adults. According to Erickson, “Intervening at 30, 40 and 50 years gives us an advantage”. For the scientific team, acting on brain aging before clinical symptoms appear could be decisive in postponing or mitigating the risk of dementia and other cognitive impairments.
What is the mechanism behind this rejuvenation?
During the research process, various variables were explored to find the cause of this effect, including the cardiorespiratory capacity and the presence of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF)an essential protein for neuronal flexibility and regeneration. However, the doctor Wan He admitted that the results were unexpected: “We expected that improvements in physical fitness or blood pressure would explain the effect, but this was not the case”.
This suggests that physical exercise could be acting on the brain structure through processes that have not yet been fully identified, such as microscopic changes in tissues, the reduction of inflammatory processes or a substantial improvement in vascular health. It is important to highlight that the benefits did not come from extreme exercises, but from the constancy in fulfilling the 150 minutes a week of aerobic activity, a figure that is aligned with the standards of the World Health Organization and the American College of Sports Medicine.
Limitations and preventive projections
Despite the encouraging results, the research team stressed that the participants were healthy people with a high level of education. To determine exactly whether this decrease in brain age really prevents serious events such as cerebrovascular accidentfuture studies with a more diverse volunteer base and long-term monitoring will be required.
Regarding preventive actions that can be taken immediately, the doctor Erickson was emphatic in stating that “Our findings support the idea that following current exercise guidelines can help keep the brain biologically younger, even in middle age.”. For the majority of the population, concern about mental health only arises at the first signs of forgetfulness, but this study reaffirms that prevention is key.
Finally, the specialist recalled that the brain organ maintains its plasticity throughout much of life. “The brain is still capable of changing”he stated Ericksonconcluding that “There are positive changes that can be achieved at almost any stage of life”.
Source: Infobae
