People who exercise are known to do better on memory tests. Now researchers at Columbia University Medical Center have discovered why those who exercise have better memory retention.

Researchers used an MRI technique developed at Columbia to study the brains of people who had just exercised. They were able to identify the growth of new neurons in the dentate gyrus, a region of the brain within the hippocampus.

Exercise targets the dentate gyrus, which underlies normal age-related memory decline that begins around age 30 for most adults. The dentate gyrus is the one area of the brain where new neurons are generated, and exercise improves this process.

“Our next step is to identify the exercise regimen that is most beneficial to improve cognition and reduce normal memory loss, so that physicians may be able to prescribe specific types of exercise to improve memory,” said Scott A. Small, M.D., associate professor of neurology at Columbia University Medical Center and the study’s lead author.

Columbia Study - New Reason to Hit The Gym: Fighting Memory Loss