Exercise and Its Mediating Effects On Cognition By Leonard W. Poon, Waneen W. Spirduso and Wojtek J. Chodzko-Zajko $49 Human Kinetics

Book explores mental benefits of exercise

Exercise and Its Mediating Effects on Cognition, the second volume in a three volume series co-authored by Leonard W. Poon, UGA professor of health policy and management, discusses how exercise can affect different mental processes.

The book examines physical activity related to three different areas of the mind.

The first part studies how physical activity affects sleep quality and food intake. The second discusses how disease can be prevented or delayed by exercise and the third part reveals how anxiety and depression can be curtailed by maintaining a physically active lifestyle.

Poon said the book was written to convince the public that exercise can be beneficial for the mind. “Lots of people thought exercise could improve cognitive functioning,” he said. “But there isn’t much data to support the prescription to patients.”

Poon was the primary researcher on the team of 15 scientists who compiled the results.