The human gut has over 100 trillion microorganisms, and, according to a recent study published in Immunology and Cell Biology, exercising at a young age can change this microbial community to promote a healthier brain and metabolic activity over a person’s lifetime.
The research, conducted by the University of Colorado Boulder, shows that a window of opportunity exists during early human development to improve health over the long term.
Science Daily published the following quote from Monika Fleshner, the senior author of the new study and a professor in CU-Boulder’s Department of Integrative Physiology: “Exercise affects many aspects of health, both metabolic and mental, and people are only now starting to look at the plasticity of these gut microbes. That is one of the novel aspects of this research.”