Physical exercise is known to be an essential lifestyle choice for anyone who wants to maintain their cognition. It boosts oxygen and nutrient supply to the brain as well as stimulating the release of neurochemicals, such as BDNF, (brain derived neurotrophic factor) which enhances the maintenance of existing neurons as well as stimulating the birth of new brain cells in a process called neurogenesis.

Previous studies have reported that people who exercise regularly, not necessarily with vigorous exercise but with a daily routine of 20-30 minutes of say walking, benefit the most in terms of maintaining memory and thinking skills.

Brain scan studies have shown exercise slows down brain shrinkage, which develops due to loss of neuronal connections. A U.S. study reported that walking for 6 -9 miles per week was associated with helping to maintain memory as well as reducing brain shrinkage. Other studies have shown that regular moderate exercise can reduce a person’s relative risk of dementia or Alzheimer’s disease and that certain forms of exercise such as ballroom dancing are particularly good because they produce cross-training for the brain.

One area of the brain that is associated with learning and memory is called the hippocampus. This brain area typically shows damage early in Alzheimer’s disease. Being able to maintain the size of one’s hippocampus is important as a means of reducing relative risk of cognitive decline.

One study reported in early 2011 showed that walking for 40 minutes three times a week produces an increase in hippocampal volume, significant enough not only to show up on brain scans but translating into one to two years of better cognition by preventing hippocampal volume loss.

In the study, 120 subjects in their mid sixties either walked for 40 minutes three times a week along with a warm up and cool down session while the control group did less aerobic stretching and toning exercises, yoga and resistance training with rubber bands.

After one year follow up brain scans showed that the control group had hippocampal volume loss of 1-2% while the walking group had increased in volume by 2%. Both groups showed improvements in spatial memory but this was more marked in the walking group. The walking group also had higher levels of BDNF the neurochemical associated with enhancing neuronal support and neurogenesis.

None of us can avoid the ageing process. Hippocampal loss is a common finding with ageing. However moderate exercise appears to be able to reverse this trend that could mean a lower risk of memory problems and Alzheimer’s disease in older age.

So what would you choose? A sedentary lifestyle associated with continuing brain shrinkage and hippocampal loss or a lifestyle, which incorporates daily regular exercise to ensure you keep your memory intact and sharper for longer?

I’ve already made my choice. What’s yours?

Ref:
Erickson, K.I., Voss, M.R., Prakash, R.S. et al
Exercise training increases size of hippocampus and improves memory PNAS 2011 108 (7) 3017-3022; published ahead of print January 31, 2011, doi:10.1073/pnas.1015950108

During the last twelve months I have done a lot of writing – a book, my blog posts, some articles, presentations and workshops. They have all been completed with me being in a certain position i.e. sitting at a desk in front of my computer.

I’ve never had to spend so much time on my derriere before and I have to say I noticed a few things.

Firstly something which I can only describe as “writers bottom”, an intense desire to get up, jump up and down or move to do anything physically that would relieve me from the torment of having to sit a moment longer.

I have always endeavoured to ensure I exercise daily, with a 30 to 40 minute walk, some yoga plus a swim a couple of times a week, but this no longer felt adequate to help keep my brain cells firing.

Thirdly I started experiencing backache and various other aches and pains I had never had before. Was it my age I pondered? It was only when I took action to help my sore back by having some physio, doing some cycling and doing yoga that the penny finally dropped – I had advanced “sitting disease” which was impacting my physical and mental well being. Time to change!

But how many of us are not in the position to allow for that change? Luckily I won’t be as dormant next year, as my work will be involving a lot more movement with walking and standing. But if you are a sedentary worker having to sit every day in front of your desk how can you do things differently and overcome the sitting disease?

And it’s not just our bottom, which feels the impact; our tummy muscles lose tone and we tend to put on weight too. The spread of the derriere is accompanied by a spread around the middle. So if your clothes are getting a bit tight and your tummy is protruding more than it used to, perhaps it’s time to consider how much time you are sitting and find a way to sit less.

This week a colleague shared this video clip from Dr Mike, which is one of the best health promotion videos I have seen for a while. He explains exactly WHY exercise is the best prescription your doctor could ever prescribe because it is the remedy to assist so many of our modern day ailments: obesity, depression, hypertension, diabetes, heart disease, arthritis and dementia.

So do yourself a favour, no make that two…..

Firstly watch this video and then commit to filling in your daily prescription of “finding thirty” every day.
And why am I going on about sitting too much? Because of the negative effect it has on our brain function. We evolved to move because it stimulates the production of neurochemicals that support and nurture our existing brain cells as well as promoting the production of new neurons every day.
We need to “find thirty” every day as a minimum to keep our brain working at it’s very best.

So let’s make “sitting disease” and “writer’s bottom” a thing of the past and look to creating a more “brain fit” you.

It is NEVER to late to start building brain fitness.

One of the common misconceptions I frequently hear, is that we lose our ability to process and retain new information, as we get older. With ageing, up to 50% of us will experience some memory decline – we forget our appointments, we forget people’s names more frequently, and misplace our keys and glasses. However, just because our speed of mental processing slows down and it takes a little longer for us to process and retain new information, doesn’t mean that we have lost that ability, and it can be improved.

Brain fitness implies having your brain perform to the best of its ability every day, regardless of age.

Building brain fitness incorporates not only exercising your brain with mental activities and memory training, but also attention to lifestyle choices of healthy nutrition, physical exercise and stress management.

In the first study of its kind, the results of a six week educational program in the States has shown not only did participants show improvement in memory tests, they also reported feeling that their memory was working better.
And if you think that your memory is working well, you are more likely to maintain a happier, more positive outlook on life, which also promotes better brain function.

In this study, 115 residents from two community-based homes were enrolled into the program. The average age was 81 years. Some of them had reported memory complaints but none had been diagnosed with dementia or were taking medication for memory. Half the group remained as controls. The other half underwent memory tests both before and after the program.

Different forms of memory were evaluated including: immediate verbal memory, delayed verbal memory, retaining verbal information, memory recognition and verbal fluency.
Their perceptions of how good their memories were, were based on frequency and severity of forgetting, retrospective functioning and mnemonics use.

In the program memory enhancing techniques were taught along with stress reduction exercises, the importance of daily physical exercise and eating a healthy diet with plenty of antioxidants.

The results of two one hour session per week for six weeks revealed an objective significant improvement in memory (apart from verbal fluency) and also subjectively improved memory performance.

The results are very encouraging and suggest the value of these programs for older people to assist with normal age related memory loss.

Lifestyle choices make a difference.

The good news is that EVERYONE can benefit across the lifespan. You are never to old to start and never to young to begin.

Building brain fitness is as easy as remembering your N.A.M.E ®

N for nutrition with brain healthy foods
A for attitude and stress management
M for mental challenge
E for exercise – the physical sort

So, no excuses, it’s time to start building your better brain health right now.

What have you got planned to incorporate into your life from today that will help build your brain?

Ref:
Miller, K. J., P. Siddarth, et al. (9000). “The Memory Fitness Program: Cognitive Effects of a Healthy Aging Intervention.” American Journal of Geriatric Psych Publish Ahead of Print: 10.1097/JGP.1090b1013e318227f318821.

There has been a lot of debate as to which exercise is best for us. As we age we are advised to undertake weight-bearing exercise to keep our bones and muscles strong. Swimming however confers other benefits including a sense of improved well-being as well as increased cardiovascular fitness and flexibility.

Dr. Norman Swan is one of my favourite medical reporters and I always enjoy listening to his “Health Reports” on ABC radio. I haven’t told him yet, but I would actually like his job, especially in being able to report the latest findings of significance to improve our brain health.

This week on the Health Report, reporter Tegan Phillips discussed the findings from a study by Dr Kay Cox from UWA and Royal Perth Hospital to clarify which form of exercise we should follow.
In this study a group of women in their fifties, who were non exercisers were divided into two groups. They both had to exercise for between 40 to 60 minutes four times a week using either swimming or walking. The effect on their body weight, blood pressure, cholesterol, insulin and glucose were measured. Over the course of a year, health benefits were noticed in both groups but there were additional benefits found for the swimming group.

Women in their fifties who have reached menopause or who are peri-menopausal may also have other health ailments staring to be a nuisance including joint stiffness and arthritis. The swimming group found that being in the water increased their overall flexibility and they were also able to enjoy exercising in a non weight-bearing environment that was more difficult for some in the walking group. Adherence to the program was found to be higher in the swimmers group, probably for this reason. In addition, swimming was found to reduce waist girth by more than an inch compared to the walkers as well as improving insulin levels, (thereby reducing the risk of diabetes) and lowered cholesterol levels.

Dr Cox commented on the fact that in the water you lose more body heat, which also contributes to increased energy use when swimming.

Dr Richard Prince from Sir Charles Gardner Hospital and an expert in osteoporosis (bone thinning which occurs more in menopause) suggested that enjoying a variety of exercise is advisable. He stated that weight-bearing exercise is particularly important for postmenopausal women in the fight against bone loss.

For brain fitness, physical exercise remains a vital key to improve overall well-being and stabilise mood. It also stimulates our brain’s plasticity, encouraging new brain connections to form and enhances neurogenesis or the birth of new brain cells.

As someone who enjoys both swimming and walking, this report is music to my ears. Time to don the bathers and get into the pool.
So whether it is swimming or walking, the main message is to be doing something and aim to exercise regularly. Make it part of your daily routine and enjoy the benefits of improved physical and brain health.

References:
Cox K.L. et al. Short and long-term adherence to swimming and walking programs in older women – The Sedentary Women Exercise Adherence Trial (SWEAT 2). Preventive Medicine 46;6:511-517
Cox K.L. et al. Blood pressure rise with swimming versus walking in older women: the Sedentary Women Exercise Adherence Trial 2 (SWEAT 2) Journal of Hypertension 24;2:307-314

I am currently reading Dr John Ratey’s excellent book “Spark! How exercise will improve the performance of your brain.”
In his book he describes clearly how exercise helps our brain in so many ways:
• helping us to learn in the classroom at school and beyond,
• to manage stress and fend off anxiety and depression,
• improving our ability to focus and pay attention,
• stabilising mood swings associated with hormonal change,
• to remaining cognitively fit as we age.

Over the last couple of weeks I have been having a bit of a rant about our local school reducing the amount of time allocated to its pupils for physical activity from five sessions to just two over a 6 day teaching cycle. This is because of the school’s perception that the students would benefit more from having more classroom time with their teachers from Year 11. This is the time when the pressure to do well in the TEE exams at the end of Year 12 starts to build.
If only the school had read Dr Ratey’s book.
Don’t worry I’m going to ensure they get a copy.

My good friend David Beard, an exercise physiologist here in Perth showed me an article published in the UWA Uniview magazine this week. Dr. Karen Martin, Research Assistant Professor from the School of Population Health discussed her findings from her PhD study where she looked at how the physical, social and policy environments of a school are associated with physical activity of students.

So what were her overall findings?

That a greater focus on physical education (PE) delivered by trained teachers, at school, in clubs or on the local oval would bring a string of benefits:
• Improved concentration in class
• Better academic results
• Increased self esteem
• Less absenteeism
• More attention to homework.

It sounds the answer to every teacher’s prayer!
Our daughter’s school is going to get a copy of this too.

Walking in middle age to protect our memory.

New research published in “Neurology” suggests that walking for at least 9 to 10 kilometres a week will, by protecting brain size assist us in preserving our memory as we age.
Brain shrinkage is normal. We all start losing brain volume from our twenties, albeit at a very low rate of 0.2% per year. This shrinkage rate increases once we reach our sixties and is faster still if we subsequently develop mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer’s disease.

In this study, 299 middle-aged people were followed over a period of 14 years. They basically just had to record the number of “blocks” they walked each week. Brain scans performed nine years later showed that those who regularly walked between nine to fourteen kilometres a week retained a greater amount of grey matter ie brain cells, than those who walked less. Walking further interestingly did not confer any additional benefit.
Four years later, cognitive tests showed that 40% of the participants had developed cognitive impairment or dementia. But those who had walked the most, showed half the risk of developing memory problems.

This suggests that a regular exercise program for everyone in his or her midlife may help to prevent the onset of dementia or Alzheimer’s.
So many times the main excuse I hear from people who are yet to “get around” to exercise in any shape or form is that they are too busy.

If the choice is between taking thirty minutes out of my day to exercise, so that I can keep my brain working the way I want it to for as long as possible or choosing to skip the exercise and just take the risk that memory impairment might hit earlier. I choose to get out there and walk.

So what’s your choice?

Scary Stats from the States.

I am always fascinated by what appear to be quirky stats, but these just blew me away. I wonder how Australians would compare?

80,000 Americans were surveyed over a five-year period to ascertain how much time they spent in either sedentary, light, moderate or vigorous activities on a daily basis.

Are you ready for this?

Only 5% reported doing any vigorous activity of any shape or form.

Most reported spending their time in sedentary activities:
95.6% were eating and drinking
80% were watching TV

Of the light activities:
79% did washing, dressing and personal grooming
71% drove a car, truck or motorbike

The most frequently reported moderate activities included:
26% were involved in food and drink preparation
10% were undertaking lawn, garden and houseplant care.

And finally those engaged in some form of vigorous activity
2.2% used cardiovascular equipment and
1.1% went running.

Those statistics fair took my breath away.
If you took a look at your average day, how would you compare to the average American?

References:

K.I. Erickson, C.A. Raji, O.L. Lopez, J.T. Becker, C. Rosano, A.B. Newman, H.M. Gach, P.M. Thompson, A.J. Ho, and L.H. Kuller. Physical activity predicts gray matter volume in late adulthood: The Cardiovascular Health Study. Neurology, 2010; DOI: 10.1212/WNL.0b013e3181f88359

Catrine Tudor-Locke, PhD, William D Johnson, PhD, and Peter T Katzmarzyk, PhD. Frequently Reported Activities by Intensity for U.S. Adults: The American Time-Use Survey. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, Volume 39, Issue 4 (October 2010) DOI: 10.1016/j.amepre.2010.05.017