Why aerobic exercise may slow cognitive aging

It’s not breaking news that running might keep tour brain healthy. Cardiovascular fitness and mental performance have been linked in many previous studies, especially in regards to preventing cognitive aging, but a research team from the University of Montreal has recently published a study this spring looking at what may be the reason behind why a healthy heart often also means a healthy mind.

As people age, their blood vessels stiffen. The researchers thought this may have something to do with cognitive decline and cardiovascular fitness.

The researchers had 31 young participants, ages 18 to 30, and 54 older participants, ages 55 to 75, tested to find their VO2 max. They also were all given a Stroop test, where colour words are presented in a font different from the colour they describe. For example, the word “red” may be presented in a blue font. The participant is supposed to identify the colour of the font, not the word. It’s a common test of cognitive ability.

All the participants were also given three MRIs: one to test blood flow to the brain, one to measure brain activity during the Stroop test, and a third to examine their aorta.

“Our body’s arteries stiffen with age, and the vessel hardening is believed to begin in the aorta, the main vessel coming out of the heart, before reaching the brain. Indeed, the hardening may contribute to cognitive changes that occur during a similar time frame,” said Claudine Gauthier who headed the study. “We found that older adults whose aortas were in a better condition and who had greater aerobic fitness performed better on a cognitive test. We therefore think that the preservation of vessel elasticity may be one of the mechanisms that enables exercise to slow cognitive aging.”

The researcher found a positive correlation between cardiovascular fitness and brain function as well as cardiovascular fitness and aorta elasticity, making them believe the blood vessel elasticity may be a reason for aerobic exercise preventing cognitive degradation. By keeping blood vessels from stiffening with age through aerobic exercise, we’re also keeping our brains in better working order.