Exercising regularly increases the number of mitochondria, the organelles responsible for supplying energy to cells, both in muscle cells and in neurons in the brain. This implies that playing sports reduces mental fatigue , according to a study by the University of South Carolina (USA).
To demonstrate this, the researchers worked with two groups of mice, one whose members ran on an incline wheel six days a week for an hour and a second group was sedentary. After 8 weeks, the researchers analyzed the muscle and brain tissue of all the rodents. Thus they verified that the mice that had exercised daily had more mitochondria in both the muscles and the brain . In addition, they had increased their endurance, so that if it took them 74 minutes before to feel fatigue after exercise, they could stay running for 126 minutes before getting tired. According to the researchers, making the brain more resistant to fatigue contributes to increased physical performance. In other words, the body and mind benefit and tire less if we practice physical exercise regularly.
On the other hand, the authors suspect that increasing the number of brain mitochondria could be beneficial in combating both psychiatric and neurodegenerative diseases.
