Aerobic mice prove how humans can improve memory

- Thu, 30 Aug 2007

A study of exercising mice has proved just how aerobic exercise affects the brain. Wired Science online journal reports that at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies near San Diego, USA, neuroscientist Fred Gage tested a group of mice in a Morris water maze - a well-recognised IQ test for mice, where rodents are placed in a tank of opaque water and have to find their way to the safety of a platform. Gage found that those mice which performed smartest and fastest had running wheels in their cages. Those without the gym gear performed worse.

The mice were then injected with a dye that travels into actively dividing cells in the body. Later autopsies found new brain cells developing in all the mice, but the mice who had enjoyed aerobic wheel work were producing two to three times as many new brain cells as the sedentary ones. To establish whether this same pattern held for humans, Gage injected the same type of dye into the brains of terminal cancer patients. In subsequent autopsies he found that, indeed, their brains were producing fresh new brain cells.

The results stunned the scientific world who had always believed that the number of brain cells in the human body was fixed at birth. "We always knew that our brains control our behaviour, but not that our behaviour could control and change the structure of our brain." Gage told a reporter from The New York Times.

 Following in the wake of Gage's groundbreaking mice study has come increasing scientific evidence that we can enhance the size and power of our brain with regular exercise.

To read the full story in Wired Science go to Exercise Regrows the Brain

Physical exercise is great for the brain because it increase the blood supply - the carrier of glucose and oxygen.  However if brain cells are not used, even new cells, they become redundant.  Therefore it is vital to use them through demanding cognitive activity.  HeadStrong brain training has exercises to stimulate your brain, facilitating the development of brain cell connections and maximising the potential for new cell development.