Your mind is your most powerful tool – here’s how to keep it on top form.
Declining memory ranks up there as one of the top fears that people have as they age. So if that’s you, you’re not alone! Working memory, or the ability to hold onto information for a short amount of time, peaks at age 25, holds steady until 35, and then slowly starts to decline. The good news is that there are steps you can take to slow down this process, and it’s never too late to start.
What’s bad for your heart is bad for your brain!
The same unhealthy lifestyle choices that are bad for your heart are just as bad for your brain. These include:
- Smoking
- Being overweight
- Drinking too much alcohol
- Not doing any exercise
Here’s what happens: those unhealthy behaviors cause blood vessels to become narrow. That and leads to hardening of the blood vessels and reduces blood flow to the brain. When your brain doesn’t get the blood flow it needs, it can begin to malfunction. As a result, you start to have problems with your memory.
When it comes to memory: “use it or lose it”!
The good news is that your brain is a dynamic organ, constantly adapting and changing. A healthy lifestyle will support your brain health and even encourage your brain to grow new brain cells. Given the right challenge, you can train your brain to become faster and sharper. So really, anyone can improve their brain, no matter what their age.
Exercise your brain!
Just as regular exercise flexes your muscles below the neck, brain activity flexes those between your ears. Here are some good ideas:
- Brush your hair or your teeth, or write a shopping list with your non-writing hand. This helps your brain to learn a new skill and stimulates it in ways it’s not usually stimulated (especially helpful if you then can’t read your shopping list and have to remember it).
- Say the days of the week backwards, then in alphabetical order.
- Say the months of the year in alphabetical order. Easy? Try doing it backwards, in reverse alphabetical order.
- Stop multitasking, give your full attention to a task. You need about 8 seconds to save new information to your memory. So if you’re talking on your phone and carrying in groceries when you put down your keys, you’re unlikely to remember where you left them.
- Being active encourages your brain to work at its best by causing nerve cells to grow and work better while at the same time protecting them from damage.
- Eat brain food: fresh vegetables, fatty fish, eggs and nuts.
- Sleep! This is the easiest way to boost your brainpower. Aim for 7-9 hours each night.
- Push your brain to work beyond what is easy and comfortable. Playing endless rounds of solitaire won’t be enough! Learn a new skill, learn a new language or volunteer.
Don’t forget that your brain has no pain receptors, so it literally can’t feel pain. What that means for you is that you don’t need to worry about working it too hard!