Copyright (c) 2007 The Brain Code LLC
Stress is too common in most people's lives today. We live
in a fast-paced world with many demands on our time. How we
react to stress sets the stage for much of our health.
Exercise battles stress
We have known for a long time that exercise combats stress.
Regular exercise gives people better control over stress
and this creates a positive cycle.
How does exercise help you keep stress at bay? It turns out
that exercise increase brain cell growth in a part of the
brain called the hippocampus. This brain region is a major
player in controlling stress. The hippocampus helps focus
your attention on what is important in your environment and
needs your attention.
So it makes sense that this part of the brain would be
involved in stress. If you get caught up focusing on
problems and are unable to move toward focusing on
solutions and opportunities then you will feel more
stressed. The Chinese have a saying that on the flip-side
of every problem is an opportunity. When you exercise and
increase the ability of your hippocampus, you help yourself
get past the stress of problems and focus on how to solve
them.
Hippocampus size buffers against stress
Some very cool studies have looked at the relationship
between the size of the hippocampus and the degree that
people suffer from stress-related disorders. It is well
established that a smaller hippocampus is associated with a
greater degree of stress.
The question remains, though, as to whether a smaller
hippocampus makes you more susceptible stress, or whether
stress itself actually shrinks your hippocampus. The answer
appears to be both.
Studies show that war veterans get more severe cases of
PTSD if they had a small hippocampus before going to war.
Other studies show that stress itself can damage or even
kill brain cells in the hippocampus and cause it to shrink.
The hippocampus happens to be the one place in the adult
human brain where we continually make new brain cells. So
the rate at which we make brain cells has an affect on the
size of the hippocampus. Well, exercise increases the rate
of making new brain cells and increases the size of the
hippocampus protecting you against stress.
Exercise improves productivity
As stated above, the other benefit of improving the
hippocampus is increasing your ability to focus, which
increases your productivity. So if you think that you don't
have time to exercise then you probably don't have time to
not exercise. A small amount of daily exercise will
increase your focus, increase your productivity, protect
you from too much stress and free up more time.
If you are not currently exercising, I challenge you to
work with your doctor to develop a sustainable exercise
routine that you enjoy. This part is important. If you
don't enjoy it, you won't stick to it. Find something
physical that elevates your heart rate and gets you
sweating a little even if it's just playing an active
game on the Wii!
----------------------------------------------------
Boost your Family's Brain Fitness in 30 days with Natural
Strategies used by an Expert Brain Scientist and Sports
Coach. Learn how at http://www.thebraincode.com
