The Exercise Neuroscientist: NEW RESEARCH, The Shocking Link Between Exercise And Dementia!
23 May 2024 (4 months ago)
Intro
- Wendy Suzuki is a neuroscientist and professor at New York University who studies the brain and how to improve memory, learning, and cognitive abilities.
- Exercise is important for brain health, and the more you exercise, the more changes you will see in your brain.
- The best type of exercise is what you enjoy and will stick to.
The Importance of Healthy Brain
- A big, fat, fluffy brain is a healthy brain.
- Having a healthy brain is important for overall happiness and well-being.
- The human brain is the most complex structure known to humankind and should be appreciated for all that it does.
Why People Need To Look After Their Brains
- Many people do not appreciate the importance of their brains and focus more on other body parts, such as muscles.
- Wendy Suzuki's goal is to shift the focus to brain health and what people can do to improve it.
How To Keep Your Brain Healthy
- Meditation and exercise are beneficial for the brain, particularly the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex.
- The hippocampus is crucial for forming and retaining long-term memories, while the prefrontal cortex is involved in shifting and focusing attention, decision-making, and personality.
- The hippocampus is located deep within the temporal lobe and is essential for forming and retaining new long-term memories.
- Each person has two hippocampi, one in each hemisphere of the brain.
Learning This About The Brain Changed My Life
- The author had an epiphany about the brain while on a river rafting trip in Peru.
- After the trip, the author started going to the gym regularly and noticed an improvement in their mood and cognitive function.
- The author realized that exercise was the only thing that had changed in their life and became interested in the effects of exercise on the brain.
My Father's Dementia Journey
- The author's father started showing signs of dementia, including memory loss and disorientation.
- The author realized that the cognitive decline in their father was the opposite of the improvements they had experienced with exercise.
- This revelation prompted the author to switch their research focus from memory function to understanding the effects of physical activity on the brain.
You Can Grow New Brain Cells
- Brains can change shape based on what a person does and consumes.
- Marian Diamond discovered brain plasticity in the late 1960s.
- Brain plasticity was discovered by comparing the brains of rats raised in enriched environments (Disney World of rat cages) to rats raised in impoverished environments (shoe boxes).
- The brains of rats raised in enriched environments had thicker outer coverings (cortex) with more synaptic connections in certain brain areas.
- Physical activity, such as running, can also induce similar changes in the brain.
- Exercise has been shown to reduce the risk of dementia by 50%.
- Exercise increases the production of neurotrophic factors, such as BDNF, which promote the growth and survival of neurons.
- Exercise improves cardiovascular health, which is linked to a reduced risk of dementia.
- Exercise reduces inflammation, which is a risk factor for dementia.
- Exercise improves cognitive function and memory.
How Learning Changes The Structure Of Your Brain
- Learning can change the structure and function of the brain.
- London taxi drivers who successfully pass "the Knowledge" test have a significantly bigger posterior hippocampus compared to those who fail.
- The posterior hippocampus is involved in spatial learning.
- Intense learning in a particular part of the brain can change its structure and function.
You Can Improve Your Brain Health At Any Point - Here's How
- Physical activity can reduce the probability of developing dementia in the next six years by 30% for people aged 65 and older.
- Regular physical activity over a lifetime can delay the onset of dementia.
- Exercise releases neurochemicals like serotonin, dopamine, noradrenaline, and endorphins, which improve mood.
- Exercise also releases growth factors that help brand new cells grow in the hippocampus, which is one of the two brain areas where new cells can grow.
- A larger hippocampus can delay the onset of Alzheimer's disease and dementia.
- Physical activity can also help the prefrontal cortex grow new synapses, which are connections between cells.
- Age and neurodegenerative diseases can damage cells and synapses, but exercise can help mitigate these effects.
What's Causing Dementia & Alzheimer's
- The exact cause of dementia and Alzheimer's is still unknown.
- There are links between lifestyle choices and the risk of neurodegenerative diseases.
- Regular physical activity, such as walking, can significantly reduce the probability of developing Alzheimer's.
How Does Memory Work?
- Working memory, a type of short-term memory, is crucial for tasks like remembering phone numbers.
- Long-term memory formation, which stores facts and events, relies on the hippocampus.
How To Improve Your Bad Memory
- Different individuals have varying strengths and weaknesses in their memory abilities.
- Memory is influenced by both nature (genetics) and nurture (experiences and environment).
- While memory can be improved through training and practice, there may be inherent limitations to how much it can be enhanced.
The Different Types Of Memory
- The hippocampus is crucial for our memory of facts and events (declarative memory).
- Motor memory, which is used to learn physical skills, is dependent on the striatum.
- Working memory, or scratch pad memory, is dependent on the prefrontal cortex.
How To Remember Things Better
- Repetition: Remembering things through repetition.
- Association: The hippocampus associates one thing with another, aiding in memory formation.
- Emotion: Emotional events or information are more memorable.
- Novelty: New and unusual things are more likely to be remembered.
The Memory Palace Technique
- The hippocampus aids in memory retention by associating things together.
- Novelty and emotional resonance, such as the happiest and saddest moments, make things more memorable. The amygdala, located in front of the hippocampus, plays a role in emotional resonance.
- Betty, a preserved human brain, is used as a teaching tool to enhance novelty and stimulate thinking about the brain.
- Men and women's brains have subtle differences that are not easily discernible from the outside.
- The human brain's folded cortex increases its surface area, allowing for higher computational capacity compared to animals with flat brains.
- The human brain is responsible for perception, experiences, thoughts, feelings, and memories.
- The cerebellum, located at the back of the brain, is crucial for fine motor movement and coordination.
- The brain contains a vast amount of information about a person's life, including their experiences, memories, and emotions.
- Seeing a human brain for the first time can inspire individuals to pursue careers in neuroscience and further understand the brain's complexities.
The Best Exercise For Your Brain
- Optimal exercise for the brain involves aerobic activity that increases heart rate.
- Aerobic activities such as power walking and soccer are effective.
- Exercise releases growth factors that stimulate the growth of new brain cells in the hippocampus.
- Low-fit individuals who start exercising 2-3 times a week for 45 minutes of aerobic activity can experience improvements in mood, memory, and attention.
- For individuals who already exercise regularly, the more they exercise, the greater the brain changes they experience.
- Exercise can positively impact mindset, making it easier to prioritize physical activity as a means of self-care and brain health.
- Regular exercise provides a mood boost due to the release of serotonin, dopamine, and noradrenaline.
How To Be Better At Speaking And Memory
- Exercise can improve mood, focus, attention, and reaction time.
- These improvements can benefit speaking and memory.
The Effects Of Coffee On Our Brains
- Caffeine can be a stimulant, but overstimulation can impair speaking ability.
- Self-experimentation can help determine the optimal caffeine level for cognitive performance.
- Hot-cold contrast showers can stimulate adrenaline and improve alertness.
What Lack Of Sleep Is Doing To Your Neurons
- Lack of sleep can impair cognitive function and even lead to death in extreme cases.
- Sleep is crucial for memory consolidation and the removal of waste products from the brain.
- Insufficient sleep can lead to the accumulation of waste products and impair cognitive function.
The Best Diets For An Optimal Brain
- The Mediterranean diet is recommended for optimal brain health.
- It consists of unprocessed, colorful, and organic foods.
The Shocking Benefits Of Human Connections
- Lack of strong relationships, loneliness, and fewer social connections can lead to brain shrinkage and increase the risk of dementia and Alzheimer's.
- Social interactions, even small ones like greeting a barista, contribute to longevity and brain health.
- Strong social connections promote happiness and reduce stress, which is beneficial for brain health.
Neuroscientist Recommends This Morning Routine For Optimal Brain Function
- Tea meditation: a 45-minute silent meditation while brewing and drinking tea.
- 30-minute workout: a mix of cardio, strength training, yoga, or mobility exercises.
- Hot-cold contrast shower: provides an adrenaline boost and energizes the brain.
What Are The Worst Habits For Your Brain?
- Lack of sleep.
- Sedentary lifestyle.
- Lack of social connections.
- Smoking.
- Excessive alcohol consumption, even in moderation, disrupts sleep quality and harms brain health.
- Processed diet.
- Lack of novelty and learning new things.
Does Mindfulness Help The Brain?
- Mindfulness, such as meditation, has been shown to induce brain plasticity in areas crucial for focused attention.
- Meditation enhances the function of the prefrontal cortex, enabling better focus and concentration.
- Long-term meditators exhibit beneficial brain changes that improve cognitive function.
What Social Media Is Doing To Your Brain
- Excessive social media use, especially among young individuals, correlates with increased depression and anxiety levels.
- Social media can lead to reduced face-to-face interactions and diminished social connections.
- The constant dopamine hits from social media stimulation resemble those experienced in addictive behaviors like gambling.
- Social media addiction can negatively impact various aspects of well-being, including sleep, social connections, exercise, and overall brain health.
- Young individuals are particularly vulnerable to the negative effects of social media on brain development and mental health.
What To Do About Social Media And Phone Addiction
- Phone addiction can limit brain growth, plasticity, and joy in life.
- Real person-to-person social interactions provide a different kind of joy that social media cannot replace.
- A two-week phone detox can help break the addiction and improve overall well-being.
- Many people prefer to give themselves an electric shock rather than sit alone with their thoughts, highlighting the extent of phone addiction.
- Phone addiction affects creativity and imagination, which are dependent on the hippocampus.
- Social media stimulation can hinder the hippocampus' ability to put together memories in new and interesting ways.
Anxiety Levels Are Increasing
- Dr. Wendy Suzuki noticed her students and friends becoming increasingly anxious before the pandemic.
- Everyday anxiety, not clinical anxiety, is the focus of her book.
- Factors contributing to higher anxiety levels include global warming, wars, and social media.
- Anxiety levels increased by approximately 20% worldwide during the pandemic.
- Social media anxiety is rising even more among girls.
- Young women are experiencing increased anxiety and suicidality due to factors such as social comparison and high levels of information.
Where Do We Experience Anxiety In The Brain?
- Anxiety is a full-body experience strongly linked to the stress response.
- Anxiety-provoking situations trigger the stress response, which is dependent on the sympathetic nervous system.
- The stress response causes physical changes such as increased heart rate, respiration, and blood flow to the muscles.
- The body's stress response is not very smart and does not differentiate between physical threats and social media posts.
How To Turn Down Our Stress Levels
- Exercise immediately decreases anxiety and depression levels, even just 10 minutes of walking.
- Breath meditation, or deep breathing, activates the parasympathetic nervous system, which calms the body down.
- Taking three deep breaths is the most effective way to activate the parasympathetic nervous system and slow down the stress response.
What Do Emotions Do To Our Brain And Body?
- Sadness can be linked with anxiety.
- Anxiety is a warning system that focuses us on things we should pay attention to.
- Anxiety tells us about what we hold most dear in our life.
- People pleasing is a response to anxiety that reminds us of the value of interaction with people we care about.
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Does The Brain Change When We're In Love?
- Brain scans of people in romantic love show activation in reward and social interaction areas of the brain.
- Lack of love or social connections may lead to decreased function in the 'love' part of the brain, making it more difficult to love in the future.
- Different types of love, such as romantic love and maternal/paternal love, activate different patterns in the brain.
- Long-term romantic relationships transition from a romantic phase to a more maternal/paternal pattern over time.
- Love evolves over time and there are many different kinds of love beyond the romantic, Hollywood, or Disney type of love.
What You Learn From Going Through Grief
- The author experienced profound grief after losing her father to Alzheimer's and her brother to a heart attack, leading her to explore the connection between deep love and intense emotions.
- She transformed her book on anxiety to focus on finding wisdom and strength within difficult emotions, drawing from her personal experiences.
- The author's perspective has evolved, embracing the limitations of scientific explanations and finding comfort in religious beliefs despite their lack of scientific proof.
- She expresses concern about societal trends such as increased screen addiction, loneliness, and decreased social connections, emphasizing the importance of finding greater meaning and purpose in life.
- The author highlights the significance of brain health, motivated by personal experiences, and expresses gratitude for those dedicated to improving others' lives.
What Is The Best Quality Of Humanity
- The best quality of humanity is compassion.
- Compassion means feeling for the experience of others, both good and bad.