A new study done by Western University Researchers shows that exercise provides a brain boost and early recovery from concussions and brain injuries.
“My study found that a single session of sub-symptom threshold aerobic exercise improved executive function, which is crucial for everyday tasks, like planning, making decisions, controlling our impulses in individuals that were recovering from a sport-related concussion, as it was during the acute phase (within 3 to 14 days after their injury).” Said Author of the study and first-year graduate student in the MA PhD clinical psychology program at the University of Toronto Alma Rahimi.
“Individuals that were recovering from the concussion, had an improved performance on a cognitive task that was looking at their executive function and most importantly, this was achieved without worsening their concussion symptoms.”
Rahimi and her research team recruited 16 Western Varsity athletes who were in early stages of concussion recovery, spanning the time frame of 3 to 14 days post-injury.
Sailors/Marines doing aerobics (credit: Getarchive)
“We essentially had the participants, the individuals that were experiencing a concussion, work out on a recumbent cycle ergometer, so basically a stationary bike for 20 minutes at 80% of their heart rate threshold. And what I mean by this is it’s a threshold that determines at which point they would start seeing an increase in their symptomology.”
Symptomology is a term used to describe the study of symptoms with infections and diseases.
“If they had a headache to begin with, at which point would that headache go from a score of one to a three? Maybe, a significant increase in their headache or whatever symptoms that they were experiencing at the time. Once we determined what that threshold was, we gave them a prescribed tailored aerobic exercise so that in short, they would not be experiencing those symptoms again. It seemed as if it was safe for them to exercise at that level. We had them exercise for 20 minutes on the bike.”
“This is a measure of executive function and specifically inhibitory control before and after the exercise to see if there were any changes.”
Rahimi continued to discuss what parts of the brain specifically were affected the most from the exercise, and how it all works.
“Essentially, the idea behind most of the studies that are conducted by Dr. Heath’s lab, the Neurobehavioral Lab, is that exercise boosts blood flow to the brain. Different areas of the brain certainly.”
diagram of dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (credit: Wikimedia Commons)
“The one that we’re most interested in is the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, which is an important area of the brain that governs executive function tasks, which helps us plan and make decisions, control our impulses, and basically carry out daily living functions. So, it delivers oxygen and nutrients to these areas that are involved in executive function.”
“However, I think it’s important to note that in my study, the cognitive gains that we saw, for example, the faster reaction times on this cognitive task, were not directly linked to an increase in blood flow to the brain, which suggests that other factors, maybe the release of brain and drive neurotrophic factors, which support brain cell growth, repair and enhance brain connectivity could also be at clear or even better explain the improvement in cognitive performance.”
“So, it’s a combination of all of these factors that would lead to an enhanced performance.”
As Rahimi completed her study with her new findings, she told us what the next steps were moving forward, and how this study is beneficial for citizens overall.
“It is essential that concussion recovery protocols include monitored symptom-limited exercise in the recovery process, and use the tools that are used, for example, in my study and others similar to mine, to determine safe exercise intensity for each patient rather than for an athlete having complete rest, and this could help individuals return to their work, school, or sports faster and more efficiently.”
Rahimi as well as the researchers at Western University hope that this can lead to a guaranteed way for athletes to heal faster, and brain injury patients to recover faster.
