Running reduces brain size, study finds

Neuroscience has just thrown a data that is going to worry running lovers.

The other day, browsing through social networks I saw a headline that shocked me: "Running shrinks the brain". And of course, for someone like me who runs almost every day, this news immediately shocked me, this news immediately caused me astonishment and great concern..

How can running reduce the size of the brain? With all the benefits of physical exercise, is running bad for my health? Will running make me 'dumber'? I needed answers, because if running means it makes me 'shorter', I'll look for another sport. Maybe I'll practice the noble art of frisbee with my dog from now on....

Extremes are also bad when it comes to running.

I had already heard about the detrimental effects that running could have. In fact, it is very common for people to be addicted to this sport, which is known as "runnorexia".. Among the benefits of running we can find that: reduces stress, improves Cardiovascular capacity, reduces the risk of disease, and so on. But like any addiction, runnorexia has negative health consequences.

But returning to the fact that running reduces the brain, and to avoid misinterpretations, we must qualify the headline of this article. Running has many positive effects. However, long-distance running can have negative health effects..

German study claims that running very long distances shrinks the brain

Pushing the body to the extreme and running long distances can cause the brain to shrink by 6.1%, according to a study carried out in Germany.a study carried out in Germany claims. Even more surprising is the fact that the researchers found that, after eight months, the brain returned to normal size.

For this study, scientists at the University Hospital of Ulm (Germany) evaluated 44 participants of the 2009 edition of the Trans Europe Foot Race, a competition that consists of running from Italy to Norway, i.e. a distance of 4,500 km in 64 days.

The research was led by Uwe Schütz, a German radiologist, and the results were presented at the Annual Congress of Radiology. This study contradicts most of the studies carried out so far, because they claim that running brings many psychological and neurological benefits: it improves mood or reduces the risk of suffering from degenerative diseases, among others.

There is no evidence that this occurs with jogging or a marathon.

Schütz explains: "Despite the negative effects on the brain that the catabolic stress of an ultramarathon causes, this is due to an adaptive and reversible process. There are no long-term injuries. Furthermore, "It seems that this decrease in gray matter is due to the monotony of staring straight ahead for so many days in a row. It's as if the brain is relaxing."

In other words, everything points to the fact that this loss of mass affects the area of vision, what the long-distance runner knows as "tunnel vision.". But beware, there is no reason to cancel your running session this afternoon, as it does not seem to be the same for a marathon or jogging.

Runnorexia really is a problem for runners

Runnorexia is a real problem that can affect regular runners. This phenomenon causes the person to overvalue running, and make it the priority in their life, even above family, friends, work, etc.

Running is everything to a "runorexic", and not being able to perform their training for some reason means great frustration. There have been reported cases of people canceling appointments or not going to work one day in order to be able to carry out their session, because of the discomfort they feel.The discomfort that these individuals feel if they do not perform these sessions is beyond them. This is one of the signs that they suffer from an obsession.

The symptoms of runnorexia are the same as those of addiction to any type of physical exercise (for example, weight training). These symptoms appear when the person cannot perform the physical activity, and can be: anxiety, depression or irritability.

To learn more about runnorexia, we invite you to read this interesting article "Runnorexia: the modern addiction to running".