Juggling & Brain Growth

This is a hobby I picked up about 9 months ago which I use now and then to destress.

Sometimes when I hit a road-block at brainstorms or when I'm cracking my head for solutions, I take a break and juggle away for a few minutes. A sense of release eases through my muscles and head. When I put my mind back to the solution later I'm sometimes surprised by different perspectives and ideas that come forth.

A 2004 report from the University of Regensburg in Germany found that learning to juggle causes certain areas of your brain to grow. So far it seems to be the only form of activity that causes brain growth.

The researchers discovered that absolute newcomers to juggling who juggled over a period of three months increased their gray matter in areas associated with visual motion.

The experiment's human test subjects' brains returned to their original size when they stopped juggling. 'The brain is like a muscle, we need to exercise it," said Dr Arne May.

"Our results contradict the traditionally held view that the anatomical structure of the adult human brain does not alter, except for changes in morphology caused by ageing or pathological conditions," their study says.

So for those who worry about decreasing brain matter as we age, here's something to try out.

http://learnhowtojuggle.info/

Reference and more information:
Draganski, B., Gaser, C., Busch, V., Schuierer, G., Bogdahn, U. and May A. Neuroplasticity: changes in grey matter induced by training. Nature, 427:311-312, 2004.