Sacramento Running News

You may have heard the old (and by old I mean ancient) expression: A sound mind in a sound body.  Or, as the Romans said, way back in Roman times, Mens sana in corpore sano. Well, according to some recent research findings, it turns out the two really are linked.  An article in Health Day states:

People with the highest cardiac output for their body size (cardiac index), meaning those with the greatest blood flow from their heart, tended to have more brain volume, which generally indicates a healthier brain.

In fact, the researchers said that people with the lowest cardiac output showed nearly two more years of brain aging than did those with the highest cardiac output.

What this implies is something most of us runners have suspected all along: people who exercise stay sharper later in life.  Studies have already linked running to increases in brain cell growth, improvements in memory and mental health.  This study shows a link between overall brain health to cardio-vascular health.

“The key message for the public is the connection between heart vascular issues and brain vascular issues. The things that affect the heart can affect brain health,” said Sacco, who is also chairman of neurology at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.

He said that controlling your heart disease risk factors — exercising regularly, eating right, maintaining a healthy weight, not smoking and managing high blood pressure, cholesterol and diabetes — will lead to better heart, blood vessel and brain health.

The message is clear: If you want a sound mind, try to keep a sound body.

Now, I can’t help but link this story to another interesting one I read today in the Denver Post, where gubernatorial candidate Dan Maes worried that Denver’s promotion of bicycling as a form of transit (and exercise) was leading to a UN takeover.  Denver is a member of the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI), an international association of local governments, that promotes sustainable development.

“At first, I thought, ‘Gosh, public transportation, what’s wrong with that, and what’s wrong with people parking their cars and riding their bikes? And what’s wrong with incentives for green cars?’ But if you do your homework and research, you realize ICLEI is part of a greater strategy to rein in American cities under a United Nations treaty,” Maes said.

Maybe if Maes got a little exercise from time to time he wouldn’t have so much trouble with the crazy?

Update: Exercise doesn’t help your spelling.