How Inactivity Changes the Brain | Hacker News Reader

How Inactivity Changes the Brain

well.blogs.nytimes.com

63 pointsprostoalex28 comments

Direct link to the study for the lazy: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/cne.23464/abstrac...

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.

So it does not judge whether this effect is due to an actual physical activity or just the fact that the rats had some stimulation and were not dying from boredom like the control group. Not to mention that this data is from only single experimental and control cages holding 11 rats total, so there may be some social structure biases.

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

Does this mean that the experiment was done in simulation?

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.

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.

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.

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.

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!

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?

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 :)

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.

You could, but who actually does? You'd have to be awfully committed to set timers each and every day.

Eventually, I want to pair it with a physical desktop hardware companion to close the feedback loop and really integrate it deeper into office culture. Wellness programs right now are a joke because 1) they lack feedback to prove effectiveness and 2) exercising after work does not fix the damage of sitting all day.

That was Michelle Obama's photo-bomb on the Miami Heat from earlier this week. I think she was trying to convey the same thing I'm trying to convey: there's no shame in moving around and stretching in the office, although it might look a little weird to others.

I assume you're familiar with WorkRave[1] and Time Out[2], both of which are free? How is what you're offering different?

[1] http://www.workrave.org/ [2] http://www.dejal.com/timeout/

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.

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

Until exercise becomes an addiction.

Hmm? What doesn't that apply to?

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

I don't get what angle your comment is coming from. Define what exercise addiction is to you and the negative effects.

I hate the paywall. WHo are you helping?

Journalism.

not really. Managers bonuses for "brilliant" idea

Times have a five article cutoff, isn't that right? You're paying for consuming a relatively large amount of news on a weekly basis after hitting that limit.

It's not like this is an essential piece of information you cannot Google to find elsewhere.

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

It is - I just open Chrome dev tools and disable it.

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.

http://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?newwindow=1&out...

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.

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.

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