are short bursts of intense exercise the answer to cognitive decline?
exercising in 'bursts' may help prevent the risk of alzheimer’s, parkinson’s and other neurodegenerative disorders.
3 minute read
a way to boost the level of a protein known as brain-derived neurotrophic factor (bdnf) is through high-intensity cycling. getty
a small study has found that short but strenuous bouts of exercise may offer protection against neurodegenerative disorders, such as alzheimer’s and parkinson’s diseases, by increasing production of a protein that protects against cognitive decline.
the research, published in the journal of physiology, examined the potential of exercise and fasting to increase the lifespan of healthy brains and concluded that just six minutes of high-intensity cycling was the best way to boost the level of a protein known as brain-derived neurotrophic factor (bdnf). in addition to facilitating the survival of neurons, bdnf promotes neuroplasticity, which is the brain’s ability to form new pathways and connections.
in animal studies, increasing the level of bdnf helped with the creation and storage of new memories, enhanced the ability to learn and led to an overall boost in cognitive performance.
“bdnf has shown great promise in animal models but pharmaceutical interventions have thus far failed to safely harness the protective power of bdnf in humans,” said travis gibbons, lead author of the study from the university of otago, new zealand. “we saw the need to explore non-pharmacological approaches that can preserve the brain’s capacity which humans can use to naturally increase bdnf to help with healthy ageing.”
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as part of this focus, the team recruited 12 subjects (six male and six female) to test the benefits of various techniques. these included: fasting for 20 hours; light exercise (90-minutes of low intensity cycling); high-intensity exercise (six-minutes of vigorous cycling); and a combination of both fasting and exercise.
they discovered that engaging in a short but intense bout of exercise was the best way to increase production of bdnf compared to one day of fasting (with or without the addition of light exercise). intense exercise increased bdnf levels four to five times more than just fasting (which did not increase bdnf levels) or light exercise (which led to only a slight increase in the concentration of bdnf).
although the reason for these differences remains unclear, one hypothesis presented by the team relates to the cerebral substrate switch and glucose metabolism, which serves as the brain’s main source of fuel. the substrate switch refers to the process by which the brain stops using its preferred choice of fuel in favour of another source to ensure the body’s energy needs are met. this can include, for example, when the brain metabolizes lactate instead of glucose while exercising. according to the team, this shift from glucose to lactate initiates pathways that lead to higher levels of bdnf in the blood.
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increases to bdnf during exercise could also be the result of a boost in the number of platelets circulating the body. despite being the smallest type of blood cell, platelets store large amounts of bdnf and the concentration of platelets in the blood is more influenced by exercise than fasting, increasing by as much as 20 per cent during periods of exertion.
the team hopes further research into exercise and calorie restriction will help them maximize the production — and ensuing cognitive benefits — of bdnf.
“we are now studying how fasting for longer durations, for example up to three days, influences bdnf,” gibbons said. “we are curious whether exercising hard at the start of a fast accelerates the beneficial effects of fasting. fasting and exercise are rarely studied together. we think fasting and exercise can be used in conjunction to optimize bdnf production in the human brain.”
dave yasvinski is a writer with healthing.ca
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