[LET YOUR BODY GET YOUR BRAIN SMARTER!]

[How exercising helps you

IMPROVE in the classroom!]

            It's a well known fact that physical activity is beneficial to physical health; there is a direct correlation between the two. However, not as much is known about the connection between physical activity and mental health. Studies have been shown that a lack of physical activity is associated with mental disorders and behaviors. In a large study that involved 8098 people from the ages of 15-54, only 60% of respondents said that they got a regular amount of exercise (S. Saxena, 446). Those people were less likely to suffer from anxiety, panic disorders, depression, agoraphobia, specific phobias, and other mental diseases than those who did not get a regular amount of exercise. Overall, it seems that instead of being a cure for mental disorders, physical activity is more of a preventative measure to keep a person's brain well. In a TED lecture done by John J. Ratey, he gives examples of highly intelligent people who suddenly went without physical activity for long periods of time (Tedx Talks). These people were from MIT who were injured in the Boston Marathon bombing, and after they were unable to run and be physically active as they always have, they ended up self-diagnosing themselves with mental disorders. In both the experiment and the case studies, it was shown that mental disorders are definitely warded off by physical activity. Although physical activity is not a cure, it has been proven to help treat depression and anxiety. Additionally, exercising in a group promotes social interaction, thus increasing the effects of the physical activity on mental health.

After learning about this information and the effects that physical activity has as a preventative measure, go find something that you love to do to keep both your body and mind in the best shape possible. It's always best to do something you feel motivated to do, or else it won't have a completely positive effect on your mind. For example, if you don't like mindlessly running on a track, go find a scenic route that stimulates your brain. If you don't like working out alone, find a group of friends that will come along with you. Any little thing that makes you happy in your workout can make your body and brain happy overall.

       Now we move on from physical activity to the bystander effect. The bystander effect states that when there are more people present and/or passing by, it is less likely that a person will intervene (Fischer, P., 2). Although that is often the case, there is evidence that bystanders don't always have a negative effect on other people. In an experiment done observing 2791 people who passed by a situation in different sequences, and in situations where there were more bystanders, more people were more likely to intervene. We will conduct this experiment in our video.