New Delhi: Regular exercise may help the ageing brain clear waste products linked to cognitive decline, researchers at Victoria University suggest.
Victoria University researcher Dr James R. Broatch looked at how physical activity might affect the glymphatic system, a waste-clearance pathway in the brain that is most active while a human sleeps.
“The review was published online on June 30, 2026, in the peer-reviewed journal Trends in Neurosciences.” The paper, Exercise as a regulator of glymphatic function, reviewed existing evidence from human and animal studies.
The researchers did not establish that exercise directly prevents dementia or Alzheimer’s. Instead, they identified several processes by which physical activity may support glymphatic function and overall brain health.
Benefits include better sleep, decreased inflammation, decreased blood pressure, and decreased vascular stiffness. Exercise may also enhance deep sleep and slow-wave activity, both of which are linked with the brain’s waste-clearing processes.
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Damaging waste build-up in brain
The glymphatic system helps to clear the waste products that build up during normal brain activity. With age, its role may become more important, as sleep quality and other processes that support brain health may decline.
Broatch said the relationship between exercise, sleep and brain waste clearance could help explain some of the protective effects associated with regular physical activity.
“If we don’t have opportunities for the brain to essentially clean out the junk from the day, we know that build-up is damaging, especially as we age,” Broatch said. He added that the researchers were examining whether exercise could support this process as sleep becomes more difficult with age.
However, several questions remain unanswered. Researchers still need to determine how much exercise is needed, which types of physical activity are most beneficial, and whether the effects differ among people who already have cognitive impairment or neurological disease.
The review also points out some limitations of the current evidence. Much of the research linking exercise to glymphatic function has been conducted on animals, and techniques to reliably measure the system in humans are still developing.
The findings therefore do not show that exercise can prevent dementia. Instead, they point to a possible biological pathway through which regular physical activity could contribute to healthier brain ageing.
For now, the review adds to the more general evidence that supports regular physical activity and suggests its benefits for the aging brain may extend beyond cardiovascular and physical health.
(Edited by Ratan Priya)