= ARTICLES =
The Joy of Movement: Scientific Approaches to Stress Reduction
Stress is caused by the "adrenaline release system". This system is managed by the parts of the brain related to "abstract thought". Therefore, the idea that aerobics, pilates, dance and yoga reduce stress has not found a response in the scientific world.
In 2019, Peter Strick, scientific director of the University of Pittsburgh Brain Institute and neuroscientist, and two co-authors published a report showing that there is a very intense connection between movement and stress.
(The mind–body problem: Circuits that link the cerebral cortex to the adrenal medulla - Richard P. Dum, David J. Levinthal, and Peter L. Strick)
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Strick: "This connection is in controlling stress through exercises like yoga and Pilates," he says. I add dance to the words yoga and Pilates in this sentence, and even put it at the top of the list; because dance is done with music, which is called "food for the soul."
According to the report, there is a very clear connection between the parts of the brain that control physical activity and the parts that control stress. Stress is also controlled by the movement system (more than the 'thinking' part of the brain).
In scientific terms: The cerebral cortex affects the adrenal medulla.
Let me explain a little.
Adrenal medulla: The inner part of the adrenal glands.
Adrenal gland: The gland located just above our kidneys that produces hormones, including adrenaline (epinephrine), which triggers the "fight, flight or freeze" response.
Cerebral cortex: The gray-colored structure that covers the largest part of the brain.
[The organ we call "brain" in our skull actually consists of 3 parts:
- cerebrum,
- cerebellum,
- brain stem.
Cortex means membrane.
Therefore, "cerebral cortex" is the gray membrane of the largest part of the organ in our skull called "brain" (cerebrum).
]
Its function is to manage high-level processes such as memory, reasoning, thinking, learning, decision-making, emotion, intelligence and personality.
Motor system: The system that creates voluntary, automatic movements and reflexes in living beings with a nervous system. (In neurology and physiology, motor is the name given to the muscle, nerve or center that creates the movement.)
The motor system is in the section called "motor cortex" in the cerebral cortex.
The report above revealed that the motor cortex affects the adrenal medulla (i.e. adrenaline/stress system)! The areas that move the body (motor areas) are connected to the adrenal glands that create stress (or flight/fight behavior)! The motor parts that control our muscles send signals to the adrenal medulla, in a sense managing it!
This is why yoga, pilates and dance give us good feelings, reduce our stress and make us feel good.