

How Inactivity Changes the Brain - prostoalex
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/01/22/how-inactivity-changes-the-brain/

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dispense
Direct link to the study for the lazy:
[http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/cne.23464/abstrac...](http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/cne.23464/abstract)

Abstract:

Increased activity of the sympathetic nervous system is thought to play a role
in the development and progression of cardiovascular disease. Recent work has
shown that physical inactivity versus activity alters neuronal structure in
brain regions associated with cardiovascular regulation. Our physiological
studies suggest that neurons in the rostral ventrolateral medulla (RVLM) are
more responsive to excitation in sedentary versus physically active animals.
We hypothesized that enhanced functional responses in the RVLM may be due, in
part, to changes in the structure of RVLM neurons that control sympathetic
activity. We used retrograde tracing and immunohistochemistry for tyrosine
hydroxylase (TH) to identify bulbospinal catecholaminergic (C1) neurons in
sedentary and active rats after chronic voluntary wheel-running exercise. We
then digitally reconstructed their cell bodies and dendrites at different
rostrocaudal levels. The dendritic arbors of spinally projecting TH neurons
from sedentary rats were more branched than those of physically active rats (P
< 0.05). In sedentary rats, dendritic branching was greater in more rostral
versus more caudal bulbospinal C1 neurons, whereas, in physically active rats,
dendritic branching was consistent throughout the RVLM. In contrast, cell body
size and the number of primary dendrites did not differ between active and
inactive animals. We suggest that these structural changes provide an
anatomical underpinning for the functional differences observed in our in vivo
studies. These inactivity-related structural and functional changes may
enhance the overall sensitivity of RVLM neurons to excitatory stimuli and
contribute to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease in sedentary
individuals. J. Comp. Neurol. 522:499–513, 2014. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals,
Inc.

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jdc
"We then digitally reconstructed their cell bodies and dendrites..."

Does this mean that the experiment was done in simulation?

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TrainedMonkey
No, they can't actually record everything that happens in neurons. They
observe small set of changes, and based on those changes and currently
understood theory of brain they reconstructed full picture* (Kinda like
archeologists reconstruct structure of dinosaur bones based on other knowledge
such as bird bones).

* I have no idea how accurate that technique or my description of it is, but in general that is what happens. We got a model of something, we record set of measurements, and then we compute what internal state the model needs to be in for us to observe that set of measurements.

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_Adam
This is an interesting study, but I'd like to see it with four control groups:
Exercise + mental stimulation, Exercise with no mental stimulation, no
exercise + no stimulation, and no exercise + stimulation.

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timje1
Why not throw in 'social stimulation' as well? Both rats and humans are very
social creatures. It'd be interesting to see how an isolated, well exercised
rat's brain compares to a socially active, non-exercised rat's brain.

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agumonkey
anecdote : being very reclusive, going to a social event will weigh on your
brain, so much that a night feels like a week. So much randomness compared to
your own routine. Exhausting but not far from what your body feels after a
good workout.

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m52go
This is a huge problem, not only mentally, but physically well.

Shameless plug, but one that's probably highly relevant to this demographic:

My current project is desktop alerts to remind people to be more active at
work: stretches, activity tips, etc. to de-stress the back, neck, wrist,
improve circulation, reduce blood sugar, etc.

Indicate your interest at motionandcompany.com.

Stay healthy, my friends!

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RankingMember
What's the deal with the gif in the "feel weird?" block (the one with the guy
holding the microphone)?

Otherwise I get it, but couldn't I just set a timer using the multitude of
timer apps (or a physical timer) to do the same thing?

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girvo
Yes, and you can do it a whole host of other ways. But me, personally, I often
find dedicated applications for particular purposes work better :)

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m52go
The goal is to develop this into a standalone desktop application (think:
Growl notifications). Then, it'll be paired with a custom hardware peripheral
to encourage social reinforcement.

Right now, it's email-based, which is pretty terrible. Way more intrusive than
I'd like.

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semerda
Isn't this common knowledge now? Our brains developed when we moved not sat on
a couch. We know we feel better, look better and are more focused when we
Exercise. Neuroplasticity is no longer a myth.

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marban

        We know we feel better, look better and are more focused when we Exercise
    

Until exercise becomes an addiction.

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coldtea
Yes, for the 0.1% of people who have that problem, as opposed to the 80% that
has the very opposite.

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ibstudios
I hate the paywall. WHo are you helping?

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JetSpiegel
The page loads OK for me, disabling JavaScript. Looks like the "paywall" is a
CSS rule hiding the content.

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hmsimha
Actually, the javascript removes the article THEN adds some inline
"overflow:hidden" style attributes and creates an overlay as well as a few
paywall divs that also match a overflow:hidden css rule. The rest all seems
like overkill since the content is deleted from the page anyway.

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ZenoArrow
I wonder how this relates to meditation. Article suggests inactivity leads to
a more sensitive nervous system. Perhaps meditation can't be accurately
described as inactivity as such, but I am inclined to think there is more of a
link between our bodies and our minds than we currently understand.

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TrainedMonkey
I may be oversimplifying again... But what it actually says that not moving
enough lowers your metabolism? The only new thing is that it is neurological
process.

