Reader’s Digest India – July 2019

Reader’s Digest

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Cycling Can Give You

the Immune System

of a 20-Year-Old

Researchers studied 125

active cyclists aged 55 to

79, analyzing their blood

for markers of T-cells,

which are known to

help the immune

system fight infec-

tions. Not only did

the cyclists show

higher T-cell activ-

ity than inactive

men and women in

the same age-group,

but they also pro-

duced the same level

of T-cell activity as

adults in their 20s.

WITH INPUTS FROM V. KUMARA SWAMY

FEELING GOOD COULD

SLOW TUMOUR

GROWTH

From savouring a piece

of cake to hugging a friend,

many of life’s pleasures trig-

ger a similar reaction in the

brain—a surge of dopamine,

the ‘feel-good’ chemical. Recent

research suggests this reward circuit may do

much more than make us smile.

Researchers implanted skin and lung cancer

cells in mice, then stimulated the dopamine-

releasing neurons in the ventral tegmental area

(V TA) of their brains. The rush of dopamine

disabled a group of cells that promote tumour

growth. This allowed the immune system to re-

spond more effectively to the tumours, which

were 40 to 52 per cent smaller and lower in

weight in mice that received V TA stimulation

than in those that didn’t. “By artificially acti-

vating [the V TA],” says the study’s co-author,

Asya Rolls of Technion-Israel Institute of Tech-

nology, “we can affect the nervous system and,

in turn, the immune system.”

Moreover, the researchers explain, once

the immune system is activated in this way,

it appears to create a ‘memory’ of the foreign

agents to which it has been exposed, allow-

ing it to respond more efficiently to them in

the future. Rolls doesn’t believe that positive

thinking alone can cure cancer. But the study’s

authors hope that cancer patients might some-

day receive brain stimulation as an add-on

therapy that could, in turn, reduce the need for

traditional treatments such as chemotherapy

and radiation.

The Right Amount

of Carbs

People who derive between

40 and 70 per cent of their

calories from carbohydrates

have a lower mortality risk

than those on low- or high-

carb diets, according to a re-

cent study. Carb restriction

can aid weight loss in the

short term. But it usually

means filling up on fats.

Consuming too many carbs,

though, can lead to blood-

sugar problems.

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