Research results that even if you don't like exercise, motivation will naturally spring up just by adjusting the intestinal environment
We all know that exercise is good for our health, but we all have the experience of feeling unmotivated. A new study published in Nature points out that simply adjusting the intestinal environment may increase the motivation to exercise.
A microbiome-dependent gut–brain pathway regulates motivation for exercise |
To Hack Your Motivation to Exercise, You May Just Need to Tweak Your Gut Microbiome
https://singularityhub.com/2022/12/20/to-hack-your-motivation-to-exercise-you-may-just-need-to-tweak-your-gut-microbiome/
Lenka Donarova of the University of Pennsylvania and others focused on the various bacteria `` intestinal flora '' that live in the intestines. Previous studies have shown that specific microorganisms in the intestinal flora excrete chemical substances when digesting food, activating major nerves that connect the intestines to the brain and improving depression. Many studies have focused on the relationship between the gut and the brain as something that is inseparable.
Mr. Donarova and colleagues conducted a survey using more than 200 mice to explore the effects of the intestinal flora on the body. Mr. Donarova and his colleagues first examined the body of the mouse and collected various data such as gene sequences, the state of the intestinal flora, and whether they liked or disliked running.
Next, we also conducted an experiment in which the mouse was run in the wheel. It seems that many mice ran a lot because mice basically move well, but it seems that there were also lazy mice who hardly touched the wheels.
When we examined these individual differences from a genetic perspective, we were surprised to find that genetic traits had little effect on whether they ran or not. Therefore, Mr. Donarova and his colleagues decided to analyze molecules in the blood of mice and intestinal bacteria using machine learning to investigate the relationship between individual differences and running performance.
As a result, it turns out that the only factor that stimulates the mouse's motivation to run is the gut bacteria of the mouse. To dig a little deeper into these results and explore causal relationships, Donarova and his colleagues wiped out the intestinal bacteria in highly athletic mice with antibiotics, and found that the mice became much lazier than before. He said. On the other hand, when mice raised in a sterile room were transplanted with intestinal bacteria from healthy mice, the mice began to exercise actively.
Donarova and colleagues speculate that these changes in mice may be due to dopamine produced by the action of the intestinal flora. Dopamine can be secreted by changes in brain neurochemicals due to exercise, and it is known that the pleasure brought by dopamine is a factor that increases motivation to exercise. There was a possibility that it was done.
When Donarova et al. investigated the intestinal flora of mice, they found that mice with high exercise capacity have an intestinal bacterial population that is particularly good at secreting a substance called `` fatty acid amide ''. This chemical acts as a 'key' and activates a receptor that becomes a 'lock'. When fatty acid amides act on a receptor called the CB1 receptor, an electrical signal is sent to the brain and a large amount of dopamine is released. said to be released.
On the other hand, mice without the above-mentioned intestinal bacteria did not show a rapid rise in dopamine, and in addition, it was found that the effect of 'runner's high' was lost due to the presence of many enzymes that rapidly degrade dopamine. That's what I'm talking about.
``These findings point to the possibility that the intestinal flora influences individual differences in exercise motivation,'' said Donarova and colleagues. Neurologist Gulistan Aguirman, who was not involved in the study, said, ``If the results of this study are applicable to humans, targeting the gut bacteria will encourage exercise, whether you're an elite athlete or not. It raises the question of whether decision-making could be improved, and while it is tempting to consider the human impact of this study, a broader evaluation is needed to gauge the relevance of these findings.' said.
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in Science, Posted by log1p_kr