Researchers conducted a brain study to observe the ways exercise can affect the brain and new research suggests some exercises are better for the brain than others, according to The New York Times Blog.
New research has taken lab rodents and exposed them to aerobic, high interval intensity training and weight training.
The research from the University of Jyvaskyla in Finland points toward aerobic being the most beneficial to the adult hippocampal neurogenesis, or AHN.
"Aerobic exercise, such as running, has positive effects on brain structure and function, for example, adult hippocampal neurogenesis (AHN) and learning," said the study. Compared to sedentary animals, the highest number of doublecortin-positive hippocampal cells was observed in HRT rats that ran voluntarily on a running wheel while HIT on the treadmill had a smaller, statistically non-significant effect on AHN."
The researchers injected the rodents with a particular substance that allows the tracking of new brain cells. Sedentary rodents were a part of the control group.
Miriam Nokia, a research fellow who led the study, believes that although the study dealt with rats and not people, the research could still point toward the fact that "sustained aerobic exercise might be most beneficial for brain health also in humans."
The research is published in the Journal of Physiology.
