Why swimming is so good for taking care of the brain

Swimming is not only a super complete exercise on a physical level: several research shows that it is ideal for protecting and enhancing the capabilities of our brain.

It is nothing new that exercise is beneficial for our brain. Complies with a basic principle: What is good for our heart is good for our nervous system. But is there any physical activity that has more advantages than another?

There are many reasons to go to the pool, a lake or the sea this summer: to make the weather more bearable heat, to have a pleasant time, to exercise our muscles, etc. But the best of all is that swimming constitutes one of the most complete exercises to improve our physical… and mental health.

Let's start swimming.

First of all, the physical benefits of swimming are undeniable. It is a very complete exercise that activates the main muscle groups of the body. In addition to stimulating the cardiovascular system, the work done is much greater than in other activities, thanks to the resistance of water. Another advantage is that The body, being submerged, receives less physical impact, and it is easier to move.

But physical fitness is as important as mental health.

Endorphin rush

As a good aerobic exercise – one that requires an effort from the heart and lungs to provide oxygen to the muscles –, swimming produces the release of endorphins.

These substances are the brain's natural drug, since they reduce the perception of pain, provide us with pleasure and an immense feeling of well-being and happiness. This is why swimming is so addictive, because secreted endorphins bind to opioid receptors in the brain, responsible for functions such as sedation, pain reduction or euphoria.

Let no one be scared. Endorphins are not negative at all, quite the opposite. Among other things, they have been shown to be effective in treating depression. Some studies have even shown that they are much more effective than some antidepressant drugs. In this sense, Swimming as therapy improves the mood and reduces the symptoms of those who suffer from this disorder. This would allow medication to be reduced or even eliminated in some patients.

Part of the antidepressant effect could be due to the formation of new neurons in the hippocampus, something that occurs after swimming. The hippocampus is also the area of ​​the brain responsible for memory and learning.

Brain training for all ages

We know that physical activity helps keep the mind agile as we age, but not only in older people. Some studies have discovered that swimming helps develop the child's brain. Specifically, a recent study has shown that children between 6 and 12 years old have a better ability to remember vocabulary after having swum for several minutes. This activity, therefore, seems to strengthen memory in people of all ages.

Another of its great virtues is that it stimulates brain function. This is the result reached after a study carried out on adult swimmers, who, after 20 minutes of swimming, improved this function.

Much of the blame for these benefits lies with BDNF (Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor), a brain growth factor that improves memory and cognition. Because What differentiates swimming from other cardiovascular activities is precisely that it stimulates the release of BDNF.

Relaxation and disconnection

The reason could be simpler than we think: water. On the one hand, the liquid medium produces relaxation, but, in addition, the rhythmic movement of swimming makes us enter a meditative state. Added to this is that In the water we can disconnect from the sounds around us and only hear our breathing.

The benefits don't end here. Swimming reduces emotional tension, since it reduces levels of cortisol, the stress hormone. Also increases the production of serotonin, one of the happiness hormones that helps us combat anxiety, depression and stress.

And if that were not enough, the nerve fibers of the corpus callosum – the brain wiring that allows communication between the two hemispheres – they develop more in swimmers thanks to the precision of the strokes and to the way bilateral crossed movements are used to swim.

And swimming puts both hemispheres into operation, which need a greater amount of oxygen. This increase in communication between the two sides of the brain means increased cognition and better learning abilities.

But don't go… there's still more!

Stopping cognitive decline

Recently, a study has shown that swimming suppresses cognitive decline in obese mice. The purpose of this work was to reproduce in animals what happens in humans when they gain weight as a result of poor nutrition. This results in a deterioration in learning and memory capacity, which is closely related to inflammation of nervous tissue and the decrease in neurotrophic or growth factors in the brain.

Swimming reverses these abnormal changes. Consequently, it rescues obese mice from the deterioration of learning and memory capacity, reducing obesity, decreasing hippocampal inflammation and increasing the production of neurotrophic factors such as BDNF.

If you swim regularly, you probably haven't thought about everything that this activity gives you. So from now on, after the high that comes after swimming or the addiction to the pool, think about everything that is happening in your brain after swimming.

For non-swimmers, if you need an excuse to jump in the pool this summer consider this article as a sign.

Who knows? Maybe the secret of eternal youth is found in water.

This article has been provided by The Conversation

José A. Morales García, professor and scientific researcher in Neuroscience, Complutense University of Madrid

Source: Heraldo de Aragón