by Cristina Marrone
Argentinian research shows how even just 25 minutes of physical activity is enough to improve spatial memory even in sedentary people
There are now numerous studies that demonstrate how physical activity, in addition to various health benefits, is also able to prevent cognitive decline. From a new job It now emerges that physical activity not only helps improve memory (particularly spatial memory) but could contribute to the genesis of new neurons even in adulthood. A group of Argentine neuroscientists has shown that even sedentary people improve their spatial memory (i.e. the memory responsible for recording information about the environment) after doing 25 minutes of exercise on an exercise bike. Spatial memory deteriorates with aging and Alzheimer’s disease, and it is important that research identifies simple ways to improve it.
How the experiment was carried out
A group of 98 volunteers between 18 and 40 entered a sort of “visual cave”, a Computer Assisted Virtual Environment (in English, cave). A desert landscape was projected onto the walls and floor to give the feeling of real immersion. Participants had to carefully observe the landscape and try to carefully memorize where a series of flags were positioned. It was possible to move virtually with a joystick, like in a video game, taking advantage of the few reference points such as mountains or some clouds. The artificial environment allowed participants to keep the variables stable which, in a natural context, would have been altered by factors such as wind, sunlight, temperature and the presence of animals. Upon exiting the immersive experience, the participants were randomly divided into two groups: one exercised with an exercise bike for 25 minutes (among them there were athletes and sedentary people) and a second group sat and watched a video of a cycling race. Twenty-four hours later both groups returned to the cave to see if they had been able to locate the flags they had seen in the first phase on their own. It emerged that all those who had done physical activity, including sedentary people, were able to correctly identify where the flags had been positioned; a task that the group that watched the cycling race was unable to do. «What interests us is to identify external stimulations that can help memory – he says The country the neuroscientist and coordinator of the study Fabricio Ballarini at the Technical Institute of Buenos Aires -. Starting from the age of 40-45, memory deficits are observed in healthy people and even more so in the aging population and by the end of the century, in some countries, there will be a huge number of people with cognitive problems.” The study is certainly not sufficient to prove that specific physical exercise has generated neurons, but it represents confirmation of what has been discovered a few years ago: neurogenesis, even in advanced age, can pass through physical activity
Neurogenesis
Neurogenesis is still an unclear dilemma in science. Some discoveries of the last 20 years suggest that the human brain can produce new neurons in the hippocampus (neurogenesis) even in adulthood and this activity, albeit in a more limited way, could continue throughout life and not only, as initially thought, until shortly after birth.
In the past many studies have been done on mice «But when studying humans the molecular aspects cannot be analyzed for ethical reasons, so we must observe the behavior of memory» says Ballarini. «The known dogma, especially for mammals, is that we are born with a reserve of neurons which over time reduce their volume and the number of synapses, and new ones are not formed. But to know this, we would need to install a permanent camera capable of detecting the exact moment a neuron is born. It’s impossible. The only way to know is indirectly: to understand how memory works.”
It is now known that physical activity facilitates the release of the brain-derived neutrophic factor, Bdnf, a protein that has a protective effect and promotes the formation of new neurons and synapses. Swimming, running or cycling seem to better stimulate the production of nerve cells (and counteract brain aging) than anaerobic activities such as weight lifting.
March 20, 2024
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED