Early jump on exercise to boost brain health
EARLY morning exercise may be the key to running away from dementia and stroke for older people.
New research has found that by getting up and active early in the day, those aged 55–80 can improve the blood flow to their brains for the rest of the day, even if they then spend hours being inactive.
The benefits are so pronounced that morning exercisers receive a blood flow boost to their brains about four hours later, which the Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute’s Michael Wheeler says is vital to maintain cerebral health.
“There is a danger when blood flow to the brain declines,” he said.
“Brain blood flow is the mechanism that delivers nutrients and energy to the brain so, when you have a decline, you risk exposing the brain to an energy shortage and compromising the energy to the brain. That can cause damage over a longer period of time, though damage does not occur immediately.”
By measuring the blood flow to participants’ brains the research collaboration between the Baker and the University of Western Australia found it was strongest in the morning, before dropping by about 20 per cent by lunch time and remaining low for the rest of the day.
When the same participants worked out on a treadmill for half an hour at 8am before sitting down for the rest of the day, their brain blood flow also dropped by 20 per cent but it received a boost four-and-ahalf hours later to bounce back to full capacity, where it stayed.
The study, published in the Journal of Applied Physiology, found participants could fasttrack their brain to restore full blood flow in three hours if they broke up sitting with a three-minute walk every halfhour after their 8am workout.