Exercise and social activities cause the brain to age more slowly

Exercise and social activities ensure that an important part of the brain ages more slowly. Researchers from the University of Zurich were able to show that in people who are more physically and socially active, the so-called entorhinal cortex loses less thickness as they age.

The entorhinal cortex is a brain region that plays an important role in memory, as the University of Zurich (UZH) explained in a statement on Thursday. The cortex, which is about 3.5 millimeters thick, is part of the cerebral cortex and acts as an interface between the hippocampus and other brain areas involved in forming and retrieving memories.

The thickness of the entorhinal cortex is closely related to memory performance, as the UZH researchers were able to demonstrate in a study in the journal “Neuroimage”. The more the entorhinal cortex thins, the greater the memory loss.

The scientists spent seven years investigating the links between the thickness of the entorhinal cortex, memory performance and leisure activities in cognitively healthy adults over the age of 65.

In people who were more physically active at the start of the study and met friends and family more often, the thickness of the entorhinal cortex and thus memory performance decreased less over the course of the seven years. “Physical exercise and active leisure activities with friends and family are therefore important for brain health and can prevent neurodegeneration later in life,” says study leader Lutz Jäncke in the UZH announcement.

It was also shown that higher memory performance at the start of the study was also associated with smaller decline. The brain can be trained like a muscle, the UZH explains. (saw/sda)