If regular brain training allows the brain to age better, fitness promotes good memory, even in old age, according to the results of a study published in the medical journal Frontiers in Human Neuroscience.
Researchers from the University of Texas in the United States conducted a study with 36 adults aged 56 to 75 who were divided into different groups. The first practiced several types of physical exercises, including fast walk and the bike three hours a week for three months. The other participants have for the same duration, participated in brain training to work the capacity of attention, synthesis, reasoning and decision-making.
Sport for memory, brain training for decision-making
The brains of the volunteers were observed before and at the end of the study by MRI. The scientists measured the blood flow.
The results of the study showed that to keep their brains healthy, seniors should undergo regular brain training to stimulate cognitive functions such as decision-making or the ability to synthesize and put into perspective and engage in physical activity. aerobically to improve their memory.
Indeed, the blood flow is 8% greater in individuals who have exercised their brain compared to those who have done aerobic exercise. But the researchers also observed that the area of the brain that would control memory was more stimulated in the fitness group.
“We can lose 1 to 2% of cerebral blood flow every 10 years, and this from the age of 20, indicates doctor Mark D’Esposito, professor of neuroscience and co-author of the study. This gain in 8% in people in the second group proves how much you can recover from years of cognitive decline since blood flow is linked with neuronal health.
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