Build Your Brain – Learn Something New

Researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz¹ were quite surprised to see just how fast your brain can build new connections when stimulated to learn a new physical activity.  Their research places considerable emphasis on the notion that you can help preserve your nervous system by learning new things. 

As your nervous system deteriorates so goes your health and quality of life.  An array of new science is showing that nerve cells and their connections have the power to regenerate as well as making new connections.  Tapping into that power requires exercise, just as you would exercise your muscles to improve your fitness.  Brain exercise is simple, learn something new, especially physical skills that you have never learned before. 

In this experiment the researchers used mice that had been genetically altered to make a fluorescent protein within certain neurons in the brain. They were then able to use a special microscopy technique to obtain clear images of those neurons.  “We found very quick and robust synapse formation almost immediately, within one hour of the start of training,” said Yi Zuo, assistant professor of molecular, cell and developmental biology at UCSC.  “We were able to follow the same synapses over time, which had not been done before in a motor learning study.  We showed that structural changes occur in the brain at a much earlier stage than people had believed.”

This is all very good news.  The process of stimulating your brain to make new connections is likely to have multiple benefits on the overall dynamics of your brain, especially compared to a brain that is inflamed from stress and in a state of wear and tear leading to decline.