JOIN USThe physical benefits of regular exercise are well documented. Now researchers in a New Zealand university say that people who routinely perform aerobic exercises are also smarter than those who do not.
Hayley Guiney and Liana Machado from the University of Otago, New Zealand unearthed evidence that highlights the importance of physical activity and its role in improving cognitive function throughout life.
A certain amount of mental deterioration is expected with advancing age. But aerobic exercise benefits cognitive function such as switching between tasks, and selective attention and working memory, the journal Psychonomic Bulletin & Review reports.
Review of studies by researchers consistently found that fitter individuals scored better in mental tests than their unfit peers.
Scores in mental tests also improved among those who were assigned to an aerobic exercise regimen, compared to those told to do stretch and tone classes, according to an Otago statement.
Both the updating of working memory and the volume of information which could be held was better in fitter individuals or those who followed an aerobic exercise regime.