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What about a healthy brain-Best ways to keep it fit!

We don’t realize the importance of our brain, and somehow we forget to keep it healthy as well as prevent its health and improve its quality of life. I invite you to start giving it the importance it has and deserves, concentrating on strengthening it by preventing disorders such as dementia, Alzheimer’s, or Parkinson’s, to help you perform better daily.

Improve your brain health following these easy guidelines:

Eat less
Feed the brain well
Physical exercise
Mental exercise
Travel as much as your body asks
Good relationships
Adapt to changes
Sleep well
Disconnect to reconnect

A healthy brain is a healthy body, be the sculptor of your own one!

1. Eat Less

Many people don´t think really that ¨we are what we eat¨, and therefore how our brain is influenced by it.

Sometimes we eat more than we need, creating an increase in the oxidative stress of the body by attacking proteins, DNA, lipids, and the brain.

Why not eat less?

By eating less, we boost the production of neurons in the hippocampus, as being a region responsible for learning and memory, favoring the mechanisms of neural repair.

2. Feed the brain well

There is a lot of talk about foods to improve the appearance of the skin, the eyesight, the intestinal flora…

But, what about brain health foods?

It´s essential to mention some recommended ones that our brain needs to improve memory and concentration:

Carbohydrate-rich foods: fruits such as grapes, bananas, mango, rice, couscous.
Essential fatty acids: bluefish or food supplements.
Protein-rich foods: legumes, tofu, eggs.
Foods rich in vitamins and minerals: berries such as Goji Berries, vegetables such as spinach, legumes such as lentils, nuts, dairy, seaweed.

Plus remember, consuming tobacco and alcohol directly affects the brain, just as it is a risk factor when it comes to developing cardiovascular disease as well.

2. Physical exercise

We already know and it´s not a novelty, that regular exercise has many benefits for our health because if we practice it regularly, we secrete a substance that contributes to greater plasticity of our brain, enhancing synapses between neurons, the key to learning and memory.

Plus it also contributes to increasing our heart rate and…

Somehow, if more oxygen is pumped to the brain, many hormones are released, creating an environment conducive to brain cell proliferation.

3. Mental exercise

It should be considered as important as the physical one if practiced daily, by stimulating the mind with different challenges such as learning a new language, a new dance, or a new activity that requires effort. Due to being stimulating, rewarding, fun, produces pleasure, and it also provokes the admiration of others.

Remember, memory and learning go hand in hand with concentration!

4. Travel as much as your body asks

Traveling makes us learn from other places, people, cultures, and circumstances experienced, gaining perceptions as well as different memories. Besides, traveling generates a series of emotions that is what moves our neurons as well.

5. Good relationships

Whether you live with someone or are alone, it’s important to have social relationships that offer you positivity and make you feel good. I encourage you to organize plans and talks with your friends and family because they are not only positive for your emotional well-being but also your brain.

Why interacting with other people!

There are more and more studies showing that loneliness atrophy the brain. Thus, keep interacting with other people, as it´s a great way to enrich yourself on an intellectual level, on an emotional one, and it´s also a cognitive challenge,

6. Adapt to changes

It really means, living within uncertainty and flowing with the world in constant change, without trying to control what is happening, but accepting what comes without resistance. Seeing it as an opportunity to learn from every circumstance, that teaches us to grow inwardly by living more detached,

Things are ephemeral and every moment is unique, where the present moment is the only thing real since the future doesn´t exist.

7. Sleep well

It´s fabulous whenever we have a good night´s sleep, and it´s known we need between 7 to 8 hours of restful sleep, so that our brain erases that unnecessary information and reinforces newly learned knowledge, repairing as well damaged tissues.

So, what happens if we don´t sleep well in the long run?

Well, chronic partial sleep deprivation could cause cognitive deficits, promote weight gain, high blood pressure, plus increase also the incidence of disorders, mainly those related to vascular risk, so nothing good…

8. Disconnect to reconnect

When we disconnect to reconnect with ourselves as we relax… the neural network of two very important parts of the brain is activated. One of them is the hippocampus (which is responsible for storing memory) and the other part is the prefrontal cortex (which is involved in decision-making).

The reason why it´s crucial to relax or at least learn how to do it, it´s due to being great for our memory. And also because learning how to manage stress is another fundamental pillar to take care of our mental health, as constant stress inhibits brain plasticity and gradually damages it.

Why not start Yoga today!

Yoga is “Union”, meaning the mental is interrelated to the physical and vice versa. An amazing millennial discipline from India, which connects the physical and the mind through a series of postures called (asanas), that integrate coded breathing movements bringing tranquility and relief to those who practice it. I highly recommend that you pick your own Yoga kit and start practicing.

When is the best time to start looking after the brain?

Well, you don´t have to start taking care of it when you retire, but from now on, the goal is to improve your habits knowing the importance of their impact on your brain every day.

In other words, the sooner you start taking care the better.

I hope you enjoyed this article and if you have any questions, you can ask me anytime!

Love always,

Mónica :-))