7 Ways to Improve Brain Function

1. Exercise & get your body moving – exercising doesn’t just exercise the body, it also helps to exercise your brain.  Obesity and the myriad of diseases that eventually set in as a result of being overweight can cause serious harm to the brain.  Furthermore, without regular exercise plaque starts to build up in your arteries and your blood vessels begin to lose the ability to effectively pump blood.  Plaque buildup leads to heart attacks, but it also reduces the amount of oxygen and nutrients that your blood carries to your brain.  When the nutrients don’t make it there, the brain’s ability to function is compromised.  To prevent this from happening, make sure you get moving every day, even if its just a brisk walk, it’ll help you maintain and increase your mental acuity. Brisk walking , swimming and dancing are all excellent activities.

2. Eliminate stressors and seek help for depression (if you have it).Anything that causes you major stress, like anger or anxiety, will in time begin to eat away at the parts of your brain that are responsible for memory.  Amongst the most brain-damaging stressors is depression, which is actually often misdiagnosed a a memory problem since one of its primary symptoms is the inability to concentrate.  If you can’t concentrate, then you might feel like you are constantly forgetting things. Depression increases the levels of cortisol in your bloodstream, which elevates the cortisol levels in the brain.  Doctors have found that increased cortisol diminishes certain areas of the brain, especially the hippocampus, which is where short-term memories are stored.  Prolonged depression can thus destroy your brain’s ability to remember anything new.  Seek professional help to combat your depression – your brain will thank you.

3. Get a good night’s sleep and take naps. Getting a consistent 7 to 8 hours of sleep each night will increase your memory. During sleep, the brain firms up memories of recently acquired information and getting enough sleep will help you get through the full spectrum of nocturnal cycles that are essential to optimal brain and body functioning during the waking hours.  Taking a nap throughout the day, especially after learning something new, can also help you to retain those memories as well as recharge your brain and keep it sharper longer.

4. Listen to music. Research shows that certain types of music are very helpful in recalling memories.  Information that is learned while listening to a particular song or collection can often be recalled by thinking of the song or “playing” it mentally.  Songs and music can serve as cues for pulling up particular memories.

5. Feed your brain. 50 to 60 percent of the brain’s overall weight is pure fat, which is  used to insulate its billions of nerve cells.  The better insulated a cell is, the faster it can send messages and the quicker you will be thinking.  This is precisely why parents are advised to feed their young children whole milk and to restrict dieting – their brains’ need fat to grow and work properly.  Skimping on fats can be devastating even to the adult brain.  Thus, eating foods that contain a healthy mix of fats is vital for long-term memory.  Some excellent food choices include fish (especially anchovies, mackerel and wild salmon) and dark leafy green vegetables.  Deep-fried foods obviously contain fat, but their lack of nutritional value is going to help your brain or your body, so think healthy foods and fats.

6. Visual concepts. In order to remember things, many people need to visualize the information they are studying.  Pay attention to photographers, charts and other graphics that might appear in your textbook, or if you’re not studying a book, try to pull up a mental image of what it is you are trying to remember.  It might also help to draw your own charts or figures, or utilize colors and highlighters to group related ideas in your notes.

7. Do crossword puzzles, read, or play cards. Studies have shown that doing either of these activities on a daily basis not only keep your brain active, but also help to delay memory loss, especially in those who develop dementia.  So pick up the daily newspaper and work on that crossword puzzle, read a book, or enjoy a game of solitaire.