11 Ways to Improve Your Brain Health

Whether you’re thinking, remembering, feeling, or moving, your brain controls everything you do. Like any organ, your brain must be cared for to stay healthy.

To improve brain health, you can do many physical and mental things. Check out these 11 evidence-based tips:

1. Exercise regularly.

Your heart, body, and brain all benefit from exercise. In addition to improving blood flow to the brain, it may also help to prevent cognitive decline. Several studies show that physically active people are less likely to lose their mental function and are less likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease.

Try to exercise between 30 and 60 minutes several times per week. You can walk, swim, or play tennis to increase your heart rate. However, any other moderate aerobic activity works.

2. Keep your brain in shape.

Maintaining your brain health is just as important as exercising your body. Health experts recommend brain training with real-world activities instead. Further, brain exercises should be challenging and novel.

“Almost any silly suggestion can work,” says Dr. David Eagleman, a neuroscientist at Stanford University’s Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute and adjunct professor of psychology and population health. “Drive home via a different route. Brush your teeth with your opposite hand. The brain works through associations, [which is why it’s easier to memorize lyrics than trying to remember the same words without music], so the more senses you involve, the better.”

Furthermore, if you have a morning newspaper, you should start there. “Simple games like Sudoku and word games are good, as well as comic strips where you find things that are different from one picture to the next,” explains John Morley, MD, professor of geriatric medicine at Saint Louis University.

For sharpening your mental skills, Dr. Morley recommends the following exercises in addition to word games:

• Test your recall, like memorizing your grocery list.
• Learn something new, like playing an instrument, a new language, or cooking a new type of cuisine.
• Do math in your head instead of using a calculator.
• Draw a map from memory.
• Refine your hand-eye coordination through racquet sports, tai chi, knitting, drawing, painting, or playing video games.

3. Consume a healthy diet.

Lean protein, fruits, vegetables, and whole grains are essential to a healthy brain diet. Keeping a healthy weight also means limiting processed foods, sugary drinks, and unhealthy fats. Memory, concentration, and mood can all be improved by eating a healthy diet.

Study results show that people who follow a Mediterranean diet closely have a lower risk of Alzheimer’s disease than people who do not. However, it will take more research to determine which foods help the brain function best.

Nonetheless, omega-6 fatty acids found in extra-virgin olive oil and other healthy fats are essential for cellular function. In older people, they prevent coronary artery disease, increase cognitive function, and slow cognitive decline.

4. Get enough sleep.

A lack of sleep can lead to reduced concentration and memory. Sleep is thought to boost your overall memory and brain health by clearing abnormal proteins from your brain and consolidating your memories.

It is recommended that adults sleep between seven and nine hours a night to maintain their cognitive peak. It is best to get uninterrupted sleep per night rather than fragmented sleep over several hours. Your brain can consolidate and store memories more effectively if you sleep consecutive hours.

5. Become stress-aware.

Mental and physical health, as well as your brain, can be adversely affected by stress. Spend time with loved ones, exercise, or find healthy methods of managing stress.

In particular, daily meditation can reduce stress and anxiety by relaxing your body, slowing your breathing, and calming your mind. In addition, it may boost your brain’s ability to process information and fine-tune your memory.

6. Socialize.

Keeping socially active can prevent depression and stress, two contributing factors to memory loss. If you live alone, try to engage with family, friends, and others.

What’s more, the effects of solitary confinement on the brain may be reversed if you keep socially active. Solitary confinement is linked to brain atrophy, so staying socially active may help to keep the brain healthy.

Schedule time in your calendar for friends and family, and be active in your community.

7. Be altruistic.

A selfless act of altruism can positively affect an individual’s physical and mental health. There are various benefits from this, according to the Cleveland Clinic. This includes lower blood pressure, increased self-esteem, lower depression rates, lower stress levels, and even longer life and greater happiness.

Of course, giving back isn’t just limited to volunteering or making monetary donations. An ‘act of service’ could be walking your neighbor’s dog, going to the grocery store for your…