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04/13/2005: "entertaining activities"

I thought it was warm enough and ran out with just a t-shirt this morning. But it was just above 40 degrees and rather chilly. Sunshine felt good against my skin though. I was soon warmed up running around the track on East River. We have a new face at SOY; Nana is my new front help. It was the girls' night with Yuri in the back.

Interesting story from my running team's website: (this is why I enjoy running and other entertaining activities.)

"Just Don't Try Them All at the Same Time
April 7, 2005

From Reuters:

Fight dementia with sex, crosswords and a run

CANBERRA (Reuters) - Sex, cryptic crosswords and a good run could help ward off dementia and other degenerative conditions by stimulating new brain cells, an Australian researcher said Thursday.

Perry Bartlett, a professor at the University of Queensland's Brain Institute, said mental and physical exercise helped create and nurture new nerve cells in the brain, keeping it functional and warding off diseases such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's.

"Perhaps one should run a long distance and do the cryptic crossword, " Bartlett told Australian radio.

He said a chemical called prolactin appeared to promote new cells in the brain and could be found in high levels in pregnant women.

"Prolactin levels also go up during sex as well. So one could think of a number of more entertaining activities than running in order to regulate the production of nerve cells," Bartlett said."