Scientists at the German Centre for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) and the University Medical Center Greifswald (UMG) led by Professor Hans-Jörgen Grabe have found evidence that cognitive performance is closely related to physical fitness. The conclusion of his latest study involving 2,103 volunteers aged between 21 and 84 years is that physical inactivity is a major risk factor for dementia diseases, including Alzheimer’s. For the time being, there is only evidence for the thesis put forward by the researchers, but no proof. However, older studies also point to a connection between the occurrence of neurodegenerative diseases in the absence of physical fitness. Preventive measures are therefore the be-all and end-all for long-term cognitive performance in old age. The mechanisms behind this have not yet been researched. However, it is relatively certain that sport and physical activity can increase brain volume. The new so-called SHIP study (Study of Health in Pomerania), in which people from Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania are participating on a large scale, thus provides indications of the positive interaction between sporting activity and an enlarged brain volume, which was determined by means of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Exercise tests on the bicycle ergometer to sound out cardiorespiratory stress were also carried out for the latest study by the participants, who are on average 52 years old. It was shown that not only the total brain volume increased, but also certain brain regions that play a major role in memory, emotions, and reward-related behavior. The area of the brain known as the hippocampus, which is associated with Alzheimer’s disease, also becomes larger the fitter the subjects become. However, it is not known whether the increased brain volume is not the trigger for the motivation to do sports, because then the sporting activity would be the cause for an increased brain volume. The DZNE and UMG researchers are still researching precise evidence for the theory they have put forward. However, one thing is clear: sport and physical fitness can counteract the loss of nerve cells or stimulate their regeneration.
