WebMD has published an article reviewed by their Chief Medical Editor – Dr. Michael W. Smith
Fibromyalgia is a condition that affects over 5 million Americans and approximately 500,000 Canadians.
The decreased brain activity … suggests that the brain is working more efficiently,” says study researcher Brian Walitt, MD, in a news release.
“We also see less brain activity in areas responsible for pain processing, which might be aiding that efficiency,” says Walitt, the director of the Fibromyalgia Evaluation and Research Center at the Georgetown University Medical Center in Washington, D.C.
While it was a very small study, the results are encouraging and do make sense. They performed the study on only 18 female subjects:
The women were asked to stop using their medication for six weeks. After that they had a second brain scan and took another round of memory tests. In the last stage of the study, the women exercised three times a week with a personal trainer.
During their half-hour workouts, the women could choose from several different kinds of aerobic activity. These included walking, cycling, swimming, and using a treadmill or an arm bicycle.
After participating in the fitness program for six weeks, the women received a final brain scan, memory testing, and a self-evaluation of their symptoms.
Initially, the women had more pain and memory problems when they stopped their medication. But after following a fitness program, memory returned to the levels seen at the start of the study. They also felt better physically and mentally, and they had less pain.
Their brain scans showed noticeable changes, too. Researchers observed a decrease in brain activity in areas that process pain and memory. This means the brain was more efficient and used less energy during a mental task.
The researchers suggest that one of the benefits of exercise for fibromyalgia patients is that it may streamline brain functioning. It may help free up brain resources involved in perceiving pain and improve its ability to hold on to new information.