Sport and nature: How exercise protects the brain

Endurance sports can improve not only physical fitness, but also the psyche. Studies show that sport can increase brain volume, especially the areas that are important for memory. A neurologist from Vienna therefore recommends to science.ORF.at. Sport as a preventive measure against dementia.

Josef Spatt, the Viennese neurologist and psychiatrist, explains that the brain can still grow even in adults. While alcohol and cigarettes tend to shrink brain volume, activities such as road cycling, swimming and jogging can make the hippocampus, which is important for memory, grow. Researchers at the University of Bochum came to this conclusion back in 2013.

The more athletic you are, the better. However, a 2010 study by the University of Pittsburgh shows that even a long-term walk of about ten kilometers per week can increase brain volume. This is particularly true for brain regions that are important for storing new information and that are particularly affected in the dementia form Alzheimer type, according to Josef Spatt.

Although you can visit a gym, Josef Spatt recommends exercise in the outdoors for mental health. Nature allows us to experience ourselves as part of a larger whole, which can be calming and stress-relieving. Noticing the colors and sounds of green space can free us from the anxieties and worries of everyday life.

A walk is enough to "aerate" the brain. Sometimes it is even more helpful than a strenuous mountain bike tour or a purposeful running workout. According to Josef Spatt, it is important to regularly perform purpose-free movements that serve only pleasure without pursuing a specific goal. Man has been shaped for thousands of years by a time when he roamed the savannah as a hunter-gatherer, and aimless roaming is one of the most natural movements for us humans. Josef Spatt therefore always prescribes outdoor exercise for his patients with incipient Alzheimer's disease or depression and anxiety disorders.

Source:

Neurology: Sport makes the brain grow - and prevents dementia - science.ORF.at

Pittsburgh study, 2010: Physical activity predicts gray matter volume in late adulthood - PMC (nih.gov).

Bochum Study, 2013: https://rp-online.de/leben/gesundheit/fitness/sport-laesst-hirnareale-wachsen_aid-15945025