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MECHANISMS AND CORRELATES OF A HEALTHY BRAIN: A COMMENTARY
Author(s) -
Cheatham Carol L.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
monographs of the society for research in child development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.618
H-Index - 63
eISSN - 1540-5834
pISSN - 0037-976X
DOI - 10.1111/mono.12135
Subject(s) - psychology , disease , public health , cognition , obesity , sedentary behavior , developmental psychology , chronic disease , neuroscience , medicine , nursing , family medicine , pathology
ABSTRACT In this monograph, the message is that early inactivity and obesity lead to later chronic disease, and, as such, physical inactivity should be recognized as a public health crisis. Sedentary behavior, to some extent, serves a purpose in our current culture (e.g., keeping children indoors keeps them safe), and, as such, may not be amenable to change. Thus, it is important that we understand the underpinnings of later‐developing chronic disease as this complex public health issue may have roots that go deeper than sedentary behavior. In this commentary, I speculate on the mechanisms for physical activity exacting positive changes on cognitive abilities. Three potential mechanisms are discussed: glucose transport, postnatal neurogenesis, and vitamin synthesis, all of which are inextricably linked to nutrition. This discussion of mechanisms is followed by a discussion of tractable correlates of the progression to non‐communicable disease in the adult.