PASSIVE EXERCISE LEADS TO IMPROVED BRAIN blood flow and executive functioning. Could the passive approach provide similar cognitive benefits as active exercise? According to a new study looking at passive exercise and brain health, the answer appears to be yes.
Today we examine the first study examining whether passive exercise offers brain health benefits, with a person’s arms and legs moved by an external force.
You probably already know of the brain health benefits of active exercise. I have written about how “as little as twenty minutes of exercise can enhance your memory and ability to process information.”
https://medium.com/beingwell/how-i-keep-my-brain-ridiculously-fit-b716e8f02a3f?sk=5a1523fed726685ddb669537bc69de27
One research investigation discovered that submaximal aerobic exercise done for an hour facilitates information processing. Exercise can promote the growth of new connections between cells in critical parts of my brain.
University of California, Los Angeles (USA) investigators have shown that exercise increases growth factors in the brain, making it easier for the brain to grow new nerve connections.
Let’s turn to how passive exercise can improve our brain, such as a mechanically-driven flywheel to push the pedals around.
Passive exercise and cognition
Researchers recently offered the first study to examine if there are benefits to brain health during passive exercise.
For the research investigation, kinesiology researchers from the University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario (Canada) used cycle pedals pushed by a mechanically driven flywheel.
Healthy young adults did a 20-minute session, with researchers assessing executive function before and after the exercise. In one case, the subjects moved the bicycle pedals; in the other, the pedals moved (via a flywheel).
Here are the surprising results:
Participants had the same magnitude of improvement in executive function, whether they did active or passive bike riding.
Notably, the executive functioning improvements occurred with or without an increase in heart rate or diastolic blood pressure.
Executive functioning skills help you accomplish things. The brain’s frontal lobe controls these skills. Executive function helps us with several functions, including:
- Time management
- Paying attention
- Switching focus
- Planning and organization
- Organizing and planning
- Remembering details
- Avoiding saying (or doing) the wrong thing
- Doing things based on your experience
- Multitasking
When executive functioning is suboptimal, your behavior may be less controlled. This lower level of executive functioning can affect your ability to do things, maintain relationships, work, or go to school.
We can conveniently divide the executive functioning into two categories: 1) Organization, such as information gathering and structuring it for evaluation; and 2) Regulation, including taking stock of your environment and adjusting behavior in response to it.
Exercise and executive function — My take
Prior studies showed that active exercise, with the subject activating their muscles of their volition, improves brain blood flow and executive functioning.
Now we know that passive exercise also increases blood flow to the brain and is associated with improvements in cognitive functioning. Those with mild cognitive impairment may discover suboptimal executive functioning.
The muscle and muscle receptor stretching sends information to the brain, calling for more blood in the body’s moving area. This change results in more brain blood flow and better cognitive functioning.
Now imagine that you have limited (or no) mobility. Passive physical activity, done regularly, may improve executive functioning.
I hope future studies show the effect of muscle stretching on the brain to be long-lived. We must also confirm cognitive improvements in different groups, including older individuals. We may someday see passive exercise in rehabilitation programs for those recovering from musculoskeletal injuries.
I had a patellar tendon tear in January. Who knew that ice retains the same gravitational properties as the rest of the earth? My physical therapist began with passive exercises for rehabilitation. I hope I got a small benefit in executive functioning as a bonus.
Thank you for joining me in this look at the relationship between passive exercise and cognitive functioning. The results surprised me.
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The information I provided in this blog is for educational purposes only and does not substitute for professional medical advice. Please consult a medical professional or healthcare provider if you seek medical advice, diagnoses, or treatment. I am not liable for risks or issues associated with using or acting upon the information in this blog.
