Research
Hormonal
Exercise-induced secretion of myokines like IL-6, BDNF, Cathepsin B, and Irisin mediates muscle-brain crosstalk, promoting hippocampal neurogenesis, cognitive function, and potentially protecting against neurodegenerative diseases.
Exercise helps your brain by releasing factors like BDNF and Cathepsin B that support new neuron growth and cognitive function. This is particularly important for maintaining mental sharpness and potentially reducing the risk of dementia as you age.
GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
Evidence is accumulating that physical exercise has health positive effects on cognitive function and associated with learning and memory... Recent findings suggest that a muscle-brain endocrine loop exists, which at least in part may be mediating the effects of exercise on hippocampus... Moon et al (99) recently identified a novel myokine, cathepsin B (CTSB)... demonstrated in a series of elegant studies that exercise leads to elevated systemic levels of CTSB, which promote expression of BDNF in hippocampus, and stimulate neurogenesis.
Why this rating
Strong rodent data and emerging human evidence, though some controversy exists regarding human irisin levels.
Source
Muscle–Organ Crosstalk: The Emerging Roles of Myokines
Mai Charlotte Krogh Severinsen et al. · Endocrine Reviews · 2020
DOI 10.1210/endrev/bnaa016
narrative_reviewCited 1,092×
Read the paper DOI resolved against Crossref · corpus check 2026-06-10
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- Exercise-induced skeletal muscle secretion of IL-6 mediates metabolic crosstalk, specifically enhancing glucose uptake and fatty acid oxidation within muscle and stimulating hepatic glucose production during exercise.Good
- Exercise-induced myokines, particularly IL-6, mediate muscle-adipose crosstalk by promoting lipolysis, fat oxidation, and potentially the browning of white adipose tissue, thereby reducing visceral adiposity.Good
- Exercise-induced myokines, including IL-6, IL-15, and FSTL1, mediate muscle-bone, muscle-skin, and muscle-vascular crosstalk, promoting bone formation, skin health, and cardiovascular protection.Moderate
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