Stronger People Have Sharper Brains: Study
Fakhir Rizvi Published April 24, 2018 | 12:19 AM
A new study of nearly half a million people has revealed that stronger people perform better in brain functioning tests. Muscular strength, measured by hand grip, is an indication of how healthy our brains are, said the study published in the journal Schizophrenia Bulletin.
ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 23rd Apr, 2018 ) :A new study of nearly half a million people has revealed that stronger people perform better in brain functioning tests. Muscular strength, measured by hand grip, is an indication of how healthy our brains are, said the study published in the journal Schizophrenia Bulletin.
"Our study confirms that people who are stronger do indeed tend to have better functioning brains," said study co-author Joseph Firth from NICM Health Research Institute, Western Sydney University, Australia.
Using data from the 475,397 participants from all around Britain, the new study showed that on average, stronger people performed better in brain functioning tests that included reaction speed, logical problem solving, and multiple different tests of memory.
The study, which used UK Biobank data, showed the relationships were consistently strong in both people aged under 55 and those aged over 55. Previous studies had only shown this applies in elderly people.
The findings also showed that maximal handgrip was strongly correlated with both visual memory and reaction time in over one thousand people with psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia, Medical Xpress reported.
"We can see there is a clear connection between muscular strength and brain health," Firth, who is also an honorary research fellow at the University of Manchester in Britain, said. Previous research by the group has already found that aerobic exercise can improve brain health.
"These sorts of novel interventions, such as weight training, could be particularly beneficial for people with mental health conditions," Firth said. "Our research has shown that the connections between muscular strength and brain functioning also exist in people experiencing schizophrenia, major depression and bipolar disorder all of which can interfere with regular brain functioning," he added.
"This raises the strong possibility that weight training exercises could actually improve both the physical and mental functioning of people with these conditions," he said.
Related Topics
Recent Stories
Mired in crisis, Boeing reports another loss
Session Awarding Ceremony 2024 held at Cadet College Muzaffarabad
Austrian ski great Hirscher to make comeback under Dutch flag
Pakistan, Japan agrees to convene 'Economic Policy Dialogue'
FM Dar conveys deepest sympathy on torrential rains devastation in UAE
Spain PM Sanchez says weighing resignation after wife's graft probe
Tennis: ATP/WTA Madrid Open results - 1st update
Long-lost Klimt portrait auctioned off for 30 mn euros
Osaka seals first win on clay since 2022 in Madrid
Earthquake jolts Karachi
Sindh minister orders operation after attack on police in Ghotki
TikTok to fight US ban law in courts
More Stories From Science
-
China's Mars rover finds water evidence on the red planet: study
2 years ago -
China's top 10 advances in life sciences in 2021 unveiled
2 years ago -
Not quite $1: US chain Dollar Tree announces price hike
2 years ago -
Australian astronomers help solve galaxy "murder mystery"
3 years ago -
US-European Solar Orbiter Spacecraft Makes Venus Flyby - ESA
3 years ago -
Chinese scientists discover ultrahigh-energy cosmic accelerators in Milky Way
3 years ago
-
Universe becomes hotter over billions of years
3 years ago -
Researchers discover high-speed jet closest to black hole
4 years ago -
Scientists find gas on Venus linked to life on Earth
4 years ago -
Scientists find 'life harbouring' gas on Venus
4 years ago -
Scientists find way to track space junk in daylight
4 years ago -
Solar Orbiter gives scientists unprecedented look at Sun
4 years ago