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A Cerebral
Dance
By Jim Tobin
Sylvia Commisso and Chuck Watt at the Ballroom Dance Club’s ‘Spring Fling’ PHOTO BY JIM TOBIN
Sun City Texas provides broader continue to die off as a natural part of ag- other physical activities, compounding
venues for learning, creating and ing. However, we can slow this process by the health benefits.
exercising than most large college engaging your brain in activities which
campuses, but only one pursuit – danc- both create new memories and call upon Another perk to dancing is the music.
ing - combines all those interests into a existing ones. Examples include learning Listening to music causes the brain to
single activity. new languages, adopting new hobbies, release serotonin, preventing fatigue
doing crossword puzzles and above all, and allowing you to exercise longer. In
To stave off old age and dementia, ac- learning to dance. addition, listening to music while learn-
tivities which regularly challenge your ing assists in memory retention. Music
brain are now considered as important as Dancing simultaneously engages all of combined with memorization has been
exercise for keeping your body in shape. your brain with all the motor controls shown to be up to fives times as effective
Recent scientific studies demonstrate that in your body. Partner dancing requires as learning without. Even the Greeks
dancing provides the same anaerobic and both the left brain’s discipline and strat- learned that by singing their dramas,
aerobic exercise benefits as swimming and egy as well as the creativity of the right they could more accurately and easily
weightlifting while also exercising your brain. MRIs have shown that when we memorize them.
brain. In fact, these studies found only dance, the cerebellum, the part of the
three activities which continually rein- brain responsible for planning, releases Experts recommend dancing several
force existing brain functions while also a protein (BNDF) that stimulates the times a week to confer the maximum
increasing the number of neurons in the brain to create new neural connections. physical and mental benefits. But, where
brain: ping-pong, pickleball and dancing. In addition to these brain benefits, danc- to start, and how to dance that often?
ing also improves strength, flexibility, Everyone has their own interests and
A few decades ago, the brain was as- bone density, endurance and balance. abilities, but in Sun City Texas, the most
sumed to be fully complete at birth. But Just an hour of rumba or bolero can in- popular dance is the country western
in 1998, a landmark study revealed clude thousands of steps – several times two-step. If the two-step (similar to
that not only does your brain create new as many steps are taken during faster the foxtrot) doesn’t strike your interest,
pathways between existing neurons, it dances, such as polkas or salsas. This swing dancing is the easiest dance to
could actually grow additional neurons to overall physical strengthening of your learn, with steps which can be applied
store new memories. Neurons, along with body also encourages you to engage in across all genres. Waltzes are also a good
their associated memories and abilities, option, as one is played at almost every
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