The Checkup: Exercise Reverses Brain’s Aging Process, Study Says

• Here’s some great news to kick off your fitness-filled weekend: New research shows that working out is like a powerful anti-aging treatment for your brain. Using older mice as study subjects, researchers in Australia found that exercise boosts the activity of the brain’s stem cells, activating more of them than in sedentary brains and prompting them to generate new nerve cells. The key is the growth hormone, a.k.a. GH, which turns on and ramps up output when you start working out. This overdrive mode not only keeps your brain chugging along, it actually reverses decline normally observed as animals age, researchers discovered. Pretty cool, no? Read more about the study here.

• Do you listen to books on tape when you run? I’ve done it; I mean, when else would I have found the time to read the Harry Potter books? Looks like I’m not alone: the Wall Street Journal reports that nearly a quarter of audiobook users say they’ve listened to a book while exercising. Unfortunately, multitasking like this might not be great for your PRs. Here’s why.

• Is Granny getting too old to live by herself? No need to sniff out the best nursing home—just get a ‘Granny pod,’ a high-tech, stand-alone cottage specially equipped for the elderly that can fit in your backyard. According to the New York Daily News, “The 288-square-foot MedCottage features technology found in most modern hospital rooms, including safety rails, lighted flooring, built-in cameras and a defibrillator machine.” Read more here.

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