by M Dee Dubroff

Created on: September 02, 2006   Last Updated: April 18, 2007

Whether we want to admit it or not, jogging has become a part of every day culture and vision, even if it is only peripheral at best. Even if we don't do it ourselves, I am sure that all of us pass joggers on our way to doing almost anything every morning. Then again, we may do it ourselves when no one is looking. I once had a boss who told me that one morning he was sleeping on the grass outside his home. When a concerned neighbor asked if he had fallen and if he was okay, he replied, "yes, I am fine. My wife thinks I am out jogging."

Although not recommended for women particularly, this exercise method now claims unexpected rewards. According to a recent Ananova news article, German scientists from the University of Ulm in Germany have claimed that jogging does indeed affect the intelligence of the jogger (joggee?) They studied the mental abilities of a group of joggers over the period of a few weeks. All participants had to complete two 30-minute jogging sessions a week and take several difficult tests afterwards.

The scientists concluded that while memory for numbers showed little improvement, there was a substantial rise in the concentrative powers and visual memory of all of the joggers involved in the study. The most improvement was seen in the performance of visual tasks, such as map work. Still, no one can explain this phenomenon.

One psychologist, Sanna Stroth, has an idea of why this happens. She says "the hippocampus region of the brain, which is responsible for a number of memory functions is the key. "Activity" she says, "is thought to increase the manufacture of new hippocampus cells as well as to protect the existing ones."

Do YOU jog? And do YOU feel more intelligent afterwards? Please share.

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