title: The combined effects of exercise and foods in preventing neurological and cognitive disorders.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Exercise and select diets have important influences on health and plasticity of the nervous system, and the molecular mechanisms involved with these actions are starting to be elucidated. New evidence indicates that exercise, in combination with dietary factors, exerts its effects by affecting molecular events related to the management of energy metabolism and synaptic plasticity.
  
  
  METHODS
  Published studies in animals and humans describing the effects of exercise and diets in brain plasticity and cognitive abilities are discussed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  New evidence indicates that exercise and select diets exert their effects by affecting molecular events related to the management of energy metabolism and synaptic plasticity. An important instigator in the molecular machinery stimulated by exercise is brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), which acts at the interface of metabolism and plasticity.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Recent studies show that selected dietary factors share similar mechanisms with exercise, and in some cases they can complement the action of exercise. Therefore, exercise and dietary management appear as a non-invasive and effective strategy to counteract neurological and cognitive disorders.
authors.affiliation: Dept. of Integrative Biology and Physiology, and Dept. of Neurosurgery, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA. fgomezpi@ucla.edu
authors.forename: Fernando
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gomez-Pinilla
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001930:Brain Injuries; D019208:Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor / Q000502:physiology*; D003072:Cognition Disorders / Q000517:prevention & control*; D003474:Curcumin / Q000494:pharmacology; D004032:Diet / Q000379:methods*; D019587:Dietary Supplements; D004281:Docosahexaenoic Acids / Q000494:pharmacology; D004734:Energy Metabolism; D015444:Exercise / Q000502:physiology*; D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3 / Q000494:pharmacology; D005502:Food; D006801:Humans; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000502:physiology*; D009422:Nervous System Diseases / Q000517:prevention & control*; D009473:Neuronal Plasticity / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D019208:Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor; D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3; D004281:Docosahexaenoic Acids; D003474:Curcumin