I learned a new word today, so it was a good day! That word is ‘cerebrate’. It simply means to think, to use the mind, and it comes from the Latin word ‘cerebrum’ which, in Latin, means brain.
We use the word ‘cerebrum’ to refer to the largest part of the human brain. You may also hear the cerebrum referred to as the ‘cerebral cortex’, or simply as the ‘cortex’.
The cerebral cortex is divided into four sections or lobes. Most of us have a ‘frontal lobe’, an ‘occipital lobe’, a ‘parietal lobe’ and a ‘temporal lobe’.
The frontal lobe is involved with reasoning, planning, parts of speech, movement, emotions and problem solving, expression of personality, and behavior. The brain’s ‘executive functions’* are mostly found here.
The occipital lobe is involved with visual processing.
The parietal lobe is associated with movement, orientation, recognition, and perception of stimuli.
The temporal lobe is associated with perception, and recognition of auditory stimuli, memory and speech.
According to a podcast of the CBC Radio 1 show, “Quirks and Quarks”, which I listened to the other day, the best way to increase/preserve the brain’s executive functioning is to take part in some form of aerobic exercise such as brisk walking, dancing, jogging, swimming, or cycling for 30 to 40 minutes, 4 to 5 days per week. In contrast, activities such as reading, learning a new language, completing crosswords or playing a game of chess, while all very good for enhancing and preserving the brain, utilize only very specific parts of the brain.
Another advantage of aerobic exercise is that it keeps the heart muscle at a good size, protecting it against atrophy (shrinkage). Better oxygenation of the brain occurs with a robust heart muscle: a healthy amount of blood can be pumped to the brain along with other vital nutrients, all of which keep brain cells healthy and the brain generally thriving.
I also read another study a couple of months ago that found that people aged 45 to 70 (those in the study group) who walk 40 minutes per day actually increase the size of the brain’s hippocampus which is located in the temporal lobe. This region is tucked just under part of the cortex and is used in order to store and retrieve memories held in the cortex. The hippocampus actually comes in two sections, one on each side of the head, and isn’t fully formed until about the age of 2. Events which happen before the age of 2 do not register as conscious memory, though any emotions surrounding the events can be reactivated later, albeit without conscious connection to the event. For example, a distressing event which provoked fear in a child may cause a person to have fear surrounding something similar which happens later in life, without the person having conscious knowledge of where the fear actually originates from. Memory of the actual event cannot be retrieved as it wasn’t stored in the first place.
Exercise would enhance the functioning of the other two lobes of the brain as well: the parietal lobe and the occipital lobe. It is not hard to imagine that any exercise that involves complex movement could enhance the functioning of the parietal lobe – dance, for instance. Sports like tennis and squash could enhance the occipital lobe.
I am sure there are many more aerobic activities to choose from that provide myriad brain benefits. So, mix it up and keep it interesting!
D.
*In a nutshell, the executive function of the brain involves our higher cognitive functioning. It enables us to plan, reason and make decisions, to draw on working memory and to execute tasks. Executive function primarily involves the frontal lobe which, as noted above, governs our ability to reason and to plan, certain parts of our speech, our movement and our emotions, as well as our ability to solve problems.
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