CNS 2021: Q&A with Wendy Suzuki About 15 years ago, Wendy Suzuki was on a mission. She wanted to lose 25 pounds and began a regular gym and diet regimen. As she worked out more, she saw a big shift in her mood and memory. At the same time, her father suffered a sudden and […]
Exercise Adds Up to Big Brain Boosts
CNS 2019 Press Release March 24, 2019 – Anyone who trains for a marathon knows that individual running workouts add up over time to yield a big improvement in physical fitness. So, it should not be surprising that the cognitive benefits from workouts also accumulate to yield long-term cognitive gains. Yet, until now, there was […]
Genetic Effects on Cognition are Stronger as We Age
No two people age the same way. Some become stereotypically absent-minded while others remain just as cognitively sharp as their younger counterparts. Shaping these differences in behavior is a complicated interplay between genes and lifestyle. A growing body of research is teasing out the relative roles of genetics and lifestyle factors in cognition in old […]
Why It Should Always Be the Season for Exercise
Guest Post by Michelle Voss, University of Iowa We all know that exercise is good for us And this past holiday season, the market was awash with activity monitors like the FitBit and Nike Fuel Band to help you reach your fitness goals from the neck down. But what about from the neck up? Although […]
Exercise Adapts the Aging Brain for Cognitive Health
Scientists are still trying to figure out exactly why exercise promotes cognitive health, especially in older adults. Some researchers posit that physical activity helps maintain youthful brain structures, but a new study instead suggests exercise changes the way seniors’ brains process information – making the aging brain more adaptable. Understanding how this adaptation occurs can […]
Exercise for the Aging Brain
We all know that exercise is good for us, and a growing body of research shows that it helps our brains age well too. Scientists are now finding that physical activity is effective both at preventing and treating cognitive dysfunction over the course of a person’s life. Researchers are still working to understand how the […]
Boost Your Brain with Aerobic Exergames
Q&A with Cay Anderson-Hanley “While exercise does not appear to be a cure-all, it is one of the strongest tools that we individually can enlist in our fight against cognitive decline and diseases of many types.” Playing video games that double as exercise can reap mental benefits above and beyond traditional exercise. In a recent […]
Exercise Affects How the Teen Brain Encodes Memories
More and more research suggests that exercise is good for the aging brain. Researchers are also now working to understand how exercise affects the brains and behaviors of adolescents. A new study shows that while exercise does not improve teenagers’ performance on certain memory tasks, it does affect how their brains adapt to perform the […]
Frequent Exercise Aids Young Adults in Complex Cognitive Tasks
Regular exercise can combat a host of age-related cognitive declines, scientists are finding. But a new study indicates that exercise benefits not only older brains but also those of young adults. The research suggests that frequent exercise helps young adults to suppress inhibitions, a skill critical during complex tasks such as driving, and that it […]
