From Brightside.Me
THIS IS A TOO GOOD TO MISS ARTICLE THAT MOST OF US HAVE FOR SOME REASON. THIS IS A POSITIVE DISCOVERY THAT BENEFITS EVERYONE AND IS A VITAL OVERLOOKED ASPECT OF OUR PHYSICAL AND MENTAL FITNESS BECAUSE MOST OF US WEREN'T AWARE OF IT BEFORE - NOW DISCOVERED BY HEALTH SCIENTISTS FOR OUR BENEFIT, GIVING US MORE GOOD REASONS TO GO FOR WALKS EACH DAY OR WEEK, AND ALSO SHEDS LIGHT ON WHY WALKING UP STEPS PROVES BENEFICIAL. IT'S A FITNESS THING SOME PEOPLE ENGAGE IN, IT SO TURNS OUT, IS GOOD FOR US NEUROLOGICALLY. WOULDN'T IT BE GOOD TO FIND OUT WHY WALKING BENEFITS MORE THAN OUR HEART WHEN WE ARE GETTING UP IN YEARS TOO? LETS CALL IT A GOOD FORM OF PRACTICLE HEALTH INSURANCE WE ALL CAN AFFORD.
Running is one of the most popular sports worldwide, statistics say. And weight concerns are usually the main reason people practice it. However, it poses another big bonus: leg exercises have a great effect on our brain health too.
We at Bright Side consider scientific discoveries vital and even practical for our everyday lives, so here are some proven reasons to start exercising right away.
It Slows Down Brain Aging.
Research has shown that people who are unable to actively use their legs, like bed-ridden hospital patients or even astronauts on extended travel, have altered body chemistry. In contrast, when we use the legs, particularly in weight-bearing exercises, signals are sent to the brain that are vital for the production of healthy neural cells.
It Improves The Central Nervous System’s Functionality.
This study also revealed that when the body has difficulties producing new nerve cells because of poor leg activity, it can impact our nervous system. That’s because these cells are fundamental for us to handle stress and adapt to challenges in our lives. So exercising enough could have a very positive effect on our whole body.
It’s Good For Memory And Learning.
Another study done at the University of British Columbia says that regular aerobic exercise may boost the size of the hippocampus, the area of the brain involved in verbal memory and learning. So activities like running, cycling, and brisk walking are highly recommended for people of all ages.
It Affects Metabolism.
Also, by reducing our exercise, we lower the amount of oxygen in our bodies. Which, as researchers say, alters our metabolism and impacts the genes that are responsible for releasing energy the body can then use. That’s why using our legs whenever possible is crucial for our health.
What kind of exercise do you practice to keep your legs fit? Have you noticed any of these effects on yourself?
Source HERE
Leg Exercise Is Essential For Brain And Nervous System Health
Posted on June 7, 2018 in Featured News, Neuroscience
By Rachael Bishop, Frontiers science writer
The study provides new insights into why patients with neurological diseases rapidly decline once movement is limited.
In a new take on the exercise truism ‘use it, or lose it,’ researchers show neurological health is an interactive relationship with our muscles and our world.
Groundbreaking research shows that neurological health depends as much on signals sent by the body’s large, leg muscles to the brain as it does on directives from the brain to the muscles. Published in Frontiers in Neuroscience, the study fundamentally alters brain and nervous system medicine — giving doctors new clues as to why patients with motor neuron disease, multiple sclerosis, spinal muscular atrophy and other neurological diseases often rapidly decline when their movement becomes limited.
“Our study supports the notion that people who are unable to do load-bearing exercises — such as patients who are bed-ridden, or even astronauts on extended travel — not only lose muscle mass, but their body chemistry is altered at the cellular level and even their nervous system is adversely impacted,” says Dr. Raffaella Adami from the Università degli Studi di Milano, Italy.
The study involved restricting mice from using their hind legs, but not their front legs, over a period of 28 days. The mice continued to eat and groom normally and did not exhibit stress. At the end of the trial, the researchers examined an area of the brain called the sub-ventricular zone, which in many mammals has the role of maintaining nerve cell health. It is also the area where neural stem cells produce new neurons.
Limiting physical activity decreased the number of neural stem cells by 70 percent compared to a control group of mice, which were allowed to roam. Furthermore, both neurons and oligodendrocytes — specialized cells that support and insulate nerve cells — didn’t fully mature when exercise was severely reduced.
The research shows that using the legs, particularly in weight-bearing exercise, sends signals to the brain that are vital for the production of healthy neural cells, essential for the brain and nervous system. Cutting back on exercise makes it difficult for the body to produce new nerve cells — some of the very building blocks that allow us to handle stress and adapt to challenge in our lives.
“It is no accident that we are meant to be active: to walk, run, crouch to sit, and use our leg muscles to lift things,” says Adami. “Neurological health is not a one-way street with the brain telling the muscles ‘lift,’ ‘walk,’ and so on.”
The researchers gained more insight by analyzing individual cells. They found that restricting exercise lowers the amount of oxygen in the body, which creates an anaerobic environment and alters metabolism. Reducing exercise also seems to impact two genes, one of which, CDK5Rap1, is very important for the health of mitochondria — the cellular powerhouse that releases energy the body can then use. This represents another feedback loop.
These results shed light on several important health issues, ranging from concerns about cardio-vascular impacts as a result of sedentary lifestyles to insight into devastating diseases, such as spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), multiple sclerosis, and motor neuron disease, among others.
“I have been interested in neurological diseases since 2004,” says co-author Dr. Daniele Bottai, also from the Università degli Studi di Milano. “The question I asked myself was: is the outcome of these diseases due exclusively to the lesions that form on the spinal cord in the case of spinal cord injury and genetic mutation in the case of SMA, or is the lower capacity for movement the critical factor that exacerbates the disease?”
This research demonstrates the critical role of movement and has a range of potential implications. For example, missions to send astronauts into space for months or even years should keep in mind that gravity and load-bearing exercise play an important role in maintaining human health, say the researchers.
“One could say our health is grounded on Earth in ways we are just beginning to understand,” concludes Bottai.
Source HERE