It looks like you can grow new brain cells even into late old age. A recent study said that neurogenesis (growth of new brain cells), while happening mostly in embryos, can still happen even into your 80s.
Couple that with the concept called neuroplasticity (the brain's ability to adapt and change), and you have a nice recipe for maintaining higher levels of cognitive ability than you might have realized.
Nordic walkers will be interested in learning that researchers want to deepen their understanding of how exercise facilitates neurogenesis and neuroplasticity.
The best may be yet to come, but exercising can give us a glimpse of what's possible.
