Answers.Body: <p><a href="https://chess.stackexchange.com/questions/13698/does-chess-improve-our-intelligence">&quot;Does chess improve our intelligence?&quot;</a> is about most commonly studied long term effect.</p>
  <p>&quot;<a href="https://chess.stackexchange.com/questions/1366/are-certain-foods-or-drinks-better-to-consume-than-others-when-playing-chess">Are certain foods or drinks better to consume than others when playing chess?</a>&quot; has suggestions for preparation.</p>
  <p>Studies measuring physiology of people playing chess found the following. Effect usual depends on engagement. Theta power increases with time pressure <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physbeh.2018.10.017" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Santos Villafaina 2019</a> and with concentration <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/16/24/5021" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Fuentes-García Dec 2019</a>. Theta power adapts to difficulty in successful players. Alpha increases with difficulty. <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6981879/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Fuentes-García Jan 2019</a> HRV lowers with concentration <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/16/24/5021" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Fuentes-García Dec 2019</a> / internal load <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10916-018-0890-0" rel="nofollow noreferrer">J. P. Fuentes  2018</a>, difficulty <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00409" rel="nofollow noreferrer">J. Fuentes-García Feb 2019</a> and hopelessness <a href="https://doi.org/10.1097/01.psy.0000075975.90979.2a" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Schwarz, Alfons M. MD 2003</a>.</p>
  <p>&quot;In addition, pre-activation was detected in pre-game measure, suggesting that the prefrontal cortex might be preparatory activated.&quot; <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10916-018-0890-0" rel="nofollow noreferrer">J. P. Fuentes  2018</a></p>
  <p>Heart rate fluctuates based on exciting events <a href="https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2012.00273" rel="nofollow noreferrer">María J. Leone 2012</a> and increases during game. &quot;These results suggest a stimulation of the sympathetic nervous system with no changes in the parasympathetic system.&quot; &quot;The respiratory exchange ratio was rather elevated (over 0.89) at the start and significantly decreased during the game (0.75 at the end), indicating that energy expenditure progressively switched from carbohydrate to lipid oxidation.&quot; <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-008-0908-2" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Troubat (2009)</a></p>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
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Answers.LastEditDate: 2020-10-25T04:35:42.000Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: ran8
Answers.Body: <p>I found a study from 2015 that seems to go into a lot of various aspects of chess and how it affects us physically.</p>
  
  <p><a href="https://www.hilarispublisher.com/open-access/biochemistry-and-psychology-of-chess-and-classical-physical-exercise-concurring-or-conflicting-evidence-2161-0673-1000158.pdf" rel="nofollow noreferrer">"Biochemistry and Psychology of Chess and Classical Physical Exercise:Concurring or Conflicting Evidence?"</a></p>
  
  <p>I am going to block-quote their "Abstract", which gives an overview, but you might want to read the full paper, which is only 10 pages long. It is fairly interesting.</p>
  
  <blockquote>
    <p><strong>Abstract</strong></p>
    
    <p>Chess is a competitive sport in the classical meaning of the word. One
    of the most important factors for chess and sport competence is the
    accumulated time of training. In order to obtain a high level of
    competence, chess layers and athletes alike must spend up 10 years of
    specific training.</p>
    
    <p>In chess and classical sport energy needed for brain activity is first
    derived from glycogen stores in brain, muscles and liver and later
    from adipose tissue. Both, chess and classical sport rely on shared
    energy from glycogen and fat.When  the  brain  needs  additional 
    energy,  muscles  and  liver  share  energy  with  the  brain.  When 
    muscles  need additional energy, brain complies with the request of
    muscles. Energy expenditure, O2 uptake and CO2 production during chess
    games are similar to those obtained during a marathon. Mental and
    physical fatigue begin with similar metabolic states: deprivation of
    glycogen. During competitive chess, athletes must be in good physical
    condition.</p>
    
    <p>Mental profiles of chess players and other athletes correlate with
    processes such as attention, conflict control,memory, motivation and
    recognition.</p>
    
    <p>In chess there exists no gender-specific excellence; glycogen
    availability, however, is less developed in female chess players.</p>
    
    <p>In chess and in classical sports, the brain, spinal cord, nerves and
    muscles cooperate in complete harmony. The brain commands everything:
    in chess the figures, in sport the cellular receptors (baro-,
    lactate-, gluco-, metabo-,chemo-, thermo-, respiratory-) “send”
    signals via eyes or metabolic changes to the brain. The brain then
    decides,what to do: in chess, the player moves a figure; in sports,
    muscles react according to demand.</p>
    
    <p>Physical exercise or chess must be defined by a motor activity
    completely controlled by the central nervous system (CNS) in
    combination with a specific competence. In chess as well as in
    physical exercise, physical stress prepares brain to cognitive
    stimulation.</p>
    
    <p>With respect to biochemical, physiological, neuronal and psychological
    aspects, chess is equals classical physical exercise and must be
    recognized as sport.</p>
  </blockquote>
  
  <p>Here is another article, <a href="https://thechessworld.com/articles/healthpsycology/7-surprising-health-benefits-of-playing-chess/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">"7 Surprising Health Benefits of Playing Chess"</a>, that lists various benefits that can are certainly physically related, and cites the sources.</p>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2020-02-22T16:33:39.997Z
Answers.Text: Here is one last study, but it is not quite right on the money, but you might find it related: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5322219/
Answers.UserDisplayName: PhishMaster
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2020-02-22T16:34:26.563Z
Answers.Text: Interesting to see what chess does to us physically and emotionally.
Answers.UserDisplayName: edwina oliver
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2020-02-22T16:29:28.700Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2020-02-22T16:29:28.700Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: PhishMaster
Body: <p>In the 50s Eliot Hearst printed the results of a study in "Chess Life and Review" (A private publication by I A Horowitz editor later merged into the USCF's monthly magazine, and later renamed "Chess Life") that showed the impact playing chess had on things like BP and heart rate. </p>
  
  <p>Are there any more current studies that elaborate on those and extend the study to other ways chess affects humans?</p>
  
  <p>Especially interested in more long term items as well as game time impacts that one could prepare for in advance.  </p>
  
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2020-02-22T15:58:50.830Z
Comments.Text: What is "CL&R" ?
Comments.UserDisplayName: Darren H
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2020-02-22T16:01:17.333Z
Comments.Text: chess life and review =  an earlier chess mag that changed its name to chess life and perhaps that got changed again later on
Comments.UserDisplayName: edwina oliver
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2020-02-22T16:10:47.003Z
Comments.Text: Just a reminder: After your question the other day, I created the studies-published-report tag, which Rewan edited the tags for. The "studies" tag is for chess problems. Its tag definition is: "Questions relating to learning about chess or analyzing positions on the chessboard. Not to be confused with the concept of an "endgame study", a kind of chess puzzle which doesn't have it's own tag yet."
Comments.UserDisplayName: PhishMaster
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2020-02-22T16:12:39.053Z
Comments.Text: I plead senior moment:)  thanks for the reminder.
Comments.UserDisplayName: edwina oliver
Tags: <studies-published-report>
Title: Are there any current studies on the physical effects of playing chess?
ThreadText: # Are there any current studies on the physical effects of playing chess?
  
  (Asked by: username_0 on 2020-02-22)
  
  In the 50s Eliot Hearst printed the results of a study in "Chess Life and Review" (A private publication by I A Horowitz editor later merged into the USCF's monthly magazine, and later renamed "Chess Life") that showed the impact playing chess had on things like BP and heart rate.
  
  Are there any more current studies that elaborate on those and extend the study to other ways chess affects humans?
  
  Especially interested in more long term items as well as game time impacts that one could prepare for in advance.
  
  **Tags:** studies-published-report
  
  > **Comments:**
  > **username_1**: What is "CL&R" ?  
  > **username_0**: chess life and review =  an earlier chess mag that changed its name to chess life and perhaps that got changed again later on  
  > **username_2**: Just a reminder: After your question the other day, I created the studies-published-report tag, which Rewan edited the tags for. The "studies" tag is for chess problems. Its tag definition is: "Questions relating to learning about chess or analyzing positions on the chessboard. Not to be confused with the concept of an "endgame study", a kind of chess puzzle which doesn't have it's own tag yet."  
  > **username_0**: I plead senior moment:)  thanks for the reminder.  
  
  ---
  
  ## 2 answers
  
  ### Answer by username_2 on 2020-02-22. Score: 4 | Accepted answer
  
  I found a study from 2015 that seems to go into a lot of various aspects of chess and how it affects us physically.
  
  ["Biochemistry and Psychology of Chess and Classical Physical Exercise:Concurring or Conflicting Evidence?"](https://www.hilarispublisher.com/open-access/biochemistry-and-psychology-of-chess-and-classical-physical-exercise-concurring-or-conflicting-evidence-2161-0673-1000158.pdf)
  
  I am going to block-quote their "Abstract", which gives an overview, but you might want to read the full paper, which is only 10 pages long. It is fairly interesting.
  
  > **Abstract**
  >
  > Chess is a competitive sport in the classical meaning of the word. One
  > of the most important factors for chess and sport competence is the
  > accumulated time of training. In order to obtain a high level of
  > competence, chess layers and athletes alike must spend up 10 years of
  > specific training.
  >
  > In chess and classical sport energy needed for brain activity is first
  > derived from glycogen stores in brain, muscles and liver and later
  > from adipose tissue. Both, chess and classical sport rely on shared
  > energy from glycogen and fat.When the brain needs additional
  > energy, muscles and liver share energy with the brain. When
  > muscles need additional energy, brain complies with the request of
  > muscles. Energy expenditure, O2 uptake and CO2 production during chess
  > games are similar to those obtained during a marathon. Mental and
  > physical fatigue begin with similar metabolic states: deprivation of
  > glycogen. During competitive chess, athletes must be in good physical
  > condition.
  >
  > Mental profiles of chess players and other athletes correlate with
  > processes such as attention, conflict control,memory, motivation and
  > recognition.
  >
  > In chess there exists no gender-specific excellence; glycogen
  > availability, however, is less developed in female chess players.
  >
  > In chess and in classical sports, the brain, spinal cord, nerves and
  > muscles cooperate in complete harmony. The brain commands everything:
  > in chess the figures, in sport the cellular receptors (baro-,
  > lactate-, gluco-, metabo-,chemo-, thermo-, respiratory-) “send”
  > signals via eyes or metabolic changes to the brain. The brain then
  > decides,what to do: in chess, the player moves a figure; in sports,
  > muscles react according to demand.
  >
  > Physical exercise or chess must be defined by a motor activity
  > completely controlled by the central nervous system (CNS) in
  > combination with a specific competence. In chess as well as in
  > physical exercise, physical stress prepares brain to cognitive
  > stimulation.
  >
  > With respect to biochemical, physiological, neuronal and psychological
  > aspects, chess is equals classical physical exercise and must be
  > recognized as sport.
  
  Here is another article, ["7 Surprising Health Benefits of Playing Chess"](https://thechessworld.com/articles/healthpsycology/7-surprising-health-benefits-of-playing-chess/), that lists various benefits that can are certainly physically related, and cites the sources.
  
  > **Comments:**
  > **username_2**: Here is one last study, but it is not quite right on the money, but you might find it related: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5322219/  
  > **username_0**: Interesting to see what chess does to us physically and emotionally.  
  
  ---
  
  ### Answer by username_3 on 2020-10-24. Score: 1
  
  ["Does chess improve our intelligence?"](https://chess.stackexchange.com/questions/13698/does-chess-improve-our-intelligence) is about most commonly studied long term effect.
  
  "[Are certain foods or drinks better to consume than others when playing chess?](https://chess.stackexchange.com/questions/1366/are-certain-foods-or-drinks-better-to-consume-than-others-when-playing-chess)" has suggestions for preparation.
  
  Studies measuring physiology of people playing chess found the following. Effect usual depends on engagement. Theta power increases with time pressure [Santos Villafaina 2019](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physbeh.2018.10.017) and with concentration [Fuentes-García Dec 2019](https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/16/24/5021). Theta power adapts to difficulty in successful players. Alpha increases with difficulty. [Fuentes-García Jan 2019](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6981879/) HRV lowers with concentration [Fuentes-García Dec 2019](https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/16/24/5021) / internal load [J. P. Fuentes 2018](https://doi.org/10.1007/s10916-018-0890-0), difficulty [J. Fuentes-García Feb 2019](https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00409) and hopelessness [Schwarz, Alfons M. MD 2003](https://doi.org/10.1097/01.psy.0000075975.90979.2a).
  
  "In addition, pre-activation was detected in pre-game measure, suggesting that the prefrontal cortex might be preparatory activated." [J. P. Fuentes 2018](https://doi.org/10.1007/s10916-018-0890-0)
  
  Heart rate fluctuates based on exciting events [María J. Leone 2012](https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2012.00273) and increases during game. "These results suggest a stimulation of the sympathetic nervous system with no changes in the parasympathetic system." "The respiratory exchange ratio was rather elevated (over 0.89) at the start and significantly decreased during the game (0.75 at the end), indicating that energy expenditure progressively switched from carbohydrate to lipid oxidation." [Troubat (2009)](https://doi.org/10.1007/s00421-008-0908-2)
  
  
  ---
  
  