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How does exercise affect your brain function and ADHD? Huge new study

Could that workout session sharpen your focus, memory, and more?

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How does exercise affect your brain function? Huge study highlights a connection
Tima Miroshnichenko / Pexels

I definitely get a “runner’s high,” and I feel more focused and grounded after exercise. I tend to work more productively and efficiently even after a shorter workout, especially if I really get my muscles moving and my heart pumping. 

Research on the benefits of exercise is mounting, including for your brain health. For example, researchers found that those who engage in aerobic fitness training have increased brain volumes and white and gray matter. Gray matter is crucial for mental functions, emotions, memory, and movement. Research also reveals that doing cardio exercise protects your blood-brain barrier from oxidative stress and boosts your brain health. In a huge recent study, researchers wanted to explore if exercise could help the symptoms of ADHD, varying age groups, and more. Let’s check out the research.

The study

man running jogging outdoors
Ketut Subiyanto / Pexels

In a massive systematic umbrella review and meta-meta-analysis published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, researchers looked at 133 systematic reviews involving 2,724 randomized controlled trials and over a quarter of a million participants. The goal was to assess the association between cognition or brain function and exercise in the largest umbrella review to date. The review involves both healthy participants and those dealing with health challenges.

The results

dark picture of man at desk working thinking reading
Dziana Hasanbekava / Pexels

The researchers concluded that:

  • Exercise improves brain function across all ages.
  • Children and adolescents experience the most significant benefits in memory.
  • Those with ADHD had the biggest improvements in executive function, which refers to problem-solving and planning.
  • Every age group showed a similar outcome and improvements in general cognition. The benefits did not vary or differ based on exercise frequency, duration, or intensity.

Let’s play active video games

man wearing VR headset.
Shvets Production / Pexels

The researchers noted that video games requiring physical movement yielded positive effects on the brain. Among the best results for memory and cognition came from playing ‘exergames’ like Pokemon Go.

Time for Tai Chi

man wearing white on the beach performing Qigong martial arts training tai chi movement stretching
Ulza / Shutterstock

They also concluded that mind-body activities like Tai Chi yielded impressive improvements in memory and cognition. Tai Chi is a form of exercise and martial art originating in China. Tai Chi involves gentle, slow movements, self-awareness, and coordinating your body, mind, and breath. The complex movement patterns of practices like Tai Chi and yoga showed some of the best cognitive outcomes.

Exercise for ADHD

ADHD
Tara Winstead / Pexels

If you or your loved one has ADHD, regular workouts could help with the symptoms and improve focus. For example, researchers found that just one single exercise session led to immediate improvements in cognitive function and ADHD symptoms. In other research, moderate or high-intensity aerobic exercise was shown to effectively improve the executive function of people with ADHD to varying degrees.

Steph Green
Steph Green
Steph Green (Steph Zee) is a singer-songwriter and professional writer with over 12 years of experience in healthcare and…
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