We all know that physical exercise is good for your body, but #didyouknow that exercise is also good for your brain?
For healthy adults, the recommended daily exercise amount is at least 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity or 75 minutes of intense aerobic activity per week. The Department of Health and Human Services also recommends at least 2 strength training sessions per week. Examples of aerobic activities include running, swimming, and playing tennis. Even household activities, such as mowing the lawn, can count toward your aerobic exercise measure. If you get tired of repeating a particular exercise, you can always search the web to find new and exciting exercise regimens.
Regular exercise strengthens your body, toning muscles and improving physical endurance. With exercise, your tissues receive increased blood flow and oxygen perfusion, helping your body systems to run more efficiently and control your weight. So if exercise is incredibly healthy for the body, shouldn't it also be great for the brain?
Yes!
Research over the years has pointed to a variety of reasons that exercise may be healthy for the brain. Because exercise elevates your heart rate, your brain gets more oxygen and nutrient flow. Hormones, proteins, and nutrients get released in the brain which provide nourishment to your energy "hungry" neurons. One of these hormones, dopamine, excites your neurons and produces a "feel good" effect, boosting your mood and energy. Exercise may also promote brain plasticity, helping the brain to form new connections between various cortical regions.
Research published in Nature Medicine in 2019 points to another potential benefit of exercise: protecting the brain from Alzheimer's disease. A cytokine released from muscle during exercise, irisin, stimulates brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in the hippocampus. The hippocampus is a region of the brain that is crucial to memory formation and storage, meaning that irisin-induced BDNF may have a protective role against the development of Alzheimer's disease.
There are many benefits to daily exercise. Keep your brain and body healthy by participating in a physical exercise activity today!