>>14421542>>14422674Exercise is the closest thing we have to a panacea, actually. It's benefits go beyond the elderly (although a lot of the studies are in mice/rats, the corollary behavior improvement in humans suggests that it's very likely the same improvements are happening in people).
These include:
Decreased/removal of anxiety and depression (obviously a big one for "brain health", you cannot concentrate or learn with depression nearly as well as you can without)
Improved cognition at ALL ages (increased neuritogenesis and neurogenesis in the young as well, particularly the dentate gyrus: " using fMRI to examine neural activity coupled with the task shows that greater fitness is associated with increases in prefrontal cortex activity during more difficult task conditions")
Protection from mental deterioration (namely, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's AND Huntington's)
With the improved cognition: improved ability to focus long-term, and improved shift-focus (how readily can your brain shift focus between topics? Indicator of ability to synthesize multiple sources)
Improved spatial learning and relational memory
" Indeed, exercise has a much broader beneficial effect on cognition than does cognitive training. "
Any form of "brain training" without exercise is entirely hamstringing yourself.
