Movement & Memory

1 min

The more you move, the better your memory is likely to be. Researchers at the University of California, Irvine (UCI), and the University of Tsukuba in Japan reported that as little as 10 minutes of mild exertion did the trick among 36 healthy young adults. The investigators used high-resolution functional magnetic resonance imaging to examine the participants’ brains shortly after exercise. The team reported seeing better connectivity among parts of the brains linked to detailed memory processing.

“It’s encouraging to see more people keeping track of their exercise habits — by monitoring the number of steps they’re taking, for example,” said study leader Michael Yassa, a professor of neurobiology and behavior, He added that even short walking breaks throughout the day “may have considerable effects on improving memory and cognition.” He added that while earlier research focused on the way exercise promotes the generation of new brain cells in memory regions, the new study demonstrates a more immediate impact: strengthened communication between memory-focused parts of the brain.

Source:
Michael A. Yassa et al, “Rapid stimulation of human dentate gyrus function with acute mild exercise.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, October 9, 2018; 201805668 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1805668115

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