Exercise may help protect your brain as you age, and new research suggests how that might happen.

Previous research has shown that physical activity helps protect brain cells.. This article indicates that it can do so through lower levels of insulin and body fat, according to Drugs..

“These findings may help us understand how physical activity affects brain health, which could help us develop strategies to prevent or delay age-related decline in memory and thinking skills,” said study co-author Geraldine Poisnel of the Inserm Research Center in Caen, France..

The study involved 134 people, average age 69, who did not have memory problems.. They completed questionnaires about their physical activity over the past year.

The researchers also collected information about participants' body mass index (BMI - an estimate of body fat based on weight and height), insulin levels, cholesterol levels, blood pressure, and other health factors..

Brain scans showed that the participants with the highest levels of physical activity had a higher total volume of gray matter in the brain (about 550,000 cubic millimeters on average) than those with the least physical activity (about 540,000 cubic millimeters).

When the researchers focused only on the areas of the brain that would be affected by Alzheimer's, they found similar results..

Those participants who were the most active also had a higher average brain glucose metabolic rate than those who were the least active.. Reduced brain glucose metabolism can be seen in people with dementia, study says.

The results were published in the online journal Neurology..

Higher levels of physical activity were not related to how much amyloid plaque people had in their brains. Amyloid plaque is a marker of Alzheimer's disease.

“Older adults who are physically active experience cardiovascular benefits, which may lead to greater brain structural integrity,” Poisnel said in a magazine press release..

The study does not prove that exercise protects brain volume, it only shows a link, the authors said, noting that more research is needed..

However, “maintaining a lower BMI through physical activity may help prevent the impaired insulin metabolism that often occurs with aging, thereby promoting brain health,” Poisnel said..

medical-heal. en.