Boost Your Brain: 5 Healthy Habits to Keep Your Brain Fit

When we think about “health,” we usually think about how we eat, or how much exercise we incorporate into our lives. Rarely, if at all, do most people think about “brain health,” and yet this is another key component of overall health and wellness.

Think about it – your brain determines every aspect of your life. It works non-stop, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, to control the functions of your body.

As with healthy eating and physical fitness, your lifestyle has a profound impact on your brain health. I wrote recently about How to Live to 100: Seven Secrets to a Long, Healthy Life. Since we’re living longer, healthier lives, we want to make sure our brain health matches our longer life.

Here are a few healthy habits you can develop to help maintain, or even improve, brain function. You’ll notice some overlap with the “secrets to a long, healthy life.” That should be an indication of the importance of those areas in particular. 

1. Exercise regularly. Research shows that regular physical activity is beneficial not only for your body, but also for your mind. Exercise increases blood flow to the brain, and also increases connections between brain cells. This helps to improve cognitive function, and slows down or even reverses some of the effects of aging. Exercise also lowers blood pressure, improves cholesterol levels, and reduces mental stress – all of which are good for both your heart and your brain. In order to maximize these benefits, exercise several times per week with any aerobic activity that increases your heart rate.

2. Eat a healthy diet. Nutrition is important for both your mind and body. Since the brain consumes more than 20 percent of all oxygen and nutrients we consume, what we eat dramatically affects brain function. Consider adopting a Mediterranean diet, which emphasizes fruits and vegetables, whole grains, fish and healthy fats (such as nuts and olive oil). Studies have shown that people who adopt this way of eating are less likely to develop cognitive impairment and dementia, and also have a reduced risk of heart disease. 

3. Get plenty of sleep. When you sleep, your body and your brain are able to rest and recover. In addition to promoting better physical and mental performance, adequate rest also boosts overall memory. Conversely, lack of sleep, or poor-quality sleep, causes cognitive impairment in the short-term, and is linked to longer-term cognitive decline, including the development of dementia.

4. Stimulate your brain. Research has shown that stimulating your brain through activity creates new connections between nerve cells and may even cause new cells to be generated. Activities such as reading, taking a class, playing games, and doing word puzzles all help stimulate your brain. Learning a musical instrument or a foreign language have been found to be particularly effective. Parlez-vous français?

5. Stay connected socially. Maintaining strong social ties not only provides a source of emotional support, but has also been shown to reduce stress, and lower risk of both depression and dementia. Social interaction and long-term relationships slow the rate of memory decline, and protect against cognitive impairment.

Brain health is a critical piece of your overall health. The choices you make about how you live your life will greatly impact your quality of life, and will also help you to live longer – at least to the extent you can control longevity.