Keeping Your Senior Mind Fresh with Exercise
Research has found that exercise not only helps protect current nerve cells in the brain, but can actually help to grow new ones!
For a long time people have heard that there are many benefits to a regular regimen of exercise. Now there is even more reason to take a brisk walk, especially if you're a senior.
One of the common things people battle when they retire is depression. Exercise has been suspected as improving a person's outlook, but not much research had been done on it in the past. Dr. Jacquie Van Hoomissen, said in a recent CBN News report, "We…know other benefits of physical activity can reduce your body fat percentages and improve your ability to metabolize glucose in your bloodstream, possibly if you were a diabetic. But other than that, there hasn't been a lot of research looking into how physical activity might change your brain function or your mental health."
Van Hoomissen, who is studying the effects of exercise on the brain, found that there is "growing evidence that exercise could put a dent in depression. Even a small dent would save millions in money and misery."
But the advantages don't end there, research suggests that exercise not only helps protect current nerve cells in the brain, but can actually help to grow new ones!
"This was somewhat of a surprise to the field of neuroscience—so for many years people thought the brain was created in utero, and we never could get more brain cells after you were born—you just had the number you were born with," Van Hoomissen said.
That is good news for seniors who want to keep their mind sharp.
The article goes on to state that researchers are soon going to study the effects of exercise on pregnant women and their babies' development.
To watch the CBN News video report, or read the full article, follow the source link provided.
