With the growing awareness of and concern about degenerative diseases like Alzheimer's, people are becoming more educated about how to keep cerebral health robust well into the twilight years. The reality of brain atrophy over time has never been more obvious. According to Michael Merzenich, neuroscience professor emeritus at UCSF, if you do nothing, your brain will naturally decline in a negative direction.
Though we still have a lot to learn, we know enough about brain health to formulate a plan to stave off the ravages of age, time, and toxicity, and inflammation. You must actively work to keep your brain healthy or you will inevitably pay a price. The good news, says Merzenich, is that there is no aspect of your brain function that can not be improved by engaging it in an appropriate way.
So what are the keys to keeping your brain healthy?
There are four areas that research has identified as being fundamental to proper brain function and sustained health. By making sure you are engaged in these, you should be able to keep a powerful mind and memory well into old age, and certainly do your best part at preventing diseases like Alzheimer's.
1. Physical Exercise.
Studies clearly support the fact that aerobic exercise promotes neurogenesis, the healthy growth of new brain cells. A recent report in the New York Times presented further evidence that there is a direct relationship between exercise and not only the health of your brain but also its ability resist shrinkage. Tests on rats were conclusive: rats given access to the running wheel scored significantly higher on cognitive tests than rats that were not given the exercise option. The ones who exercised grew smarter.
According to the article: "Animals that didn't run, no matter how enriched their world was otherwise, did not improve their brainpower in the complex, lasting ways that Rhodes's team was studying."
Rats actually gravitated instinctively to the side of the cage where exercise opportunities were available. We are starting to understand the mechanisms behind this critical relationship. Proteins called neurotrophic factors are released by nerve cells during exercise, with some activating brain stem cells to convert into new neurons, as well as producing other chemicals that promote neural health.
Exercise also increases critical blood flow to the brain, improves both the growth and survival of neurons, reduces the risk of heart and blood diseases, and slows the development of Alzheimer's by changing the way damaging proteins exist in the brain.
Exercise is the absolute key to optimal brain health!
According to study done in 2009 by PLoS One:
"Exposure to exercise ... increases the generation of new neurons in the adult hippocampus and promotes certain kinds of learning and memory."
So here we have yet another reason to love movement. It appears that a broad and well rounded exercise regimen is ideal, so include strong cardio, stretching, lifting, and core work, but remember that cardio is the most important.
A study reported in the British Journal of Sports Medicine stated that "regular aerobic exercise, the kind that gets your heart and your sweat glands pumping, appears to boost the size of the ...the brain area involved in verbal memory and learning."
Incidently, studies also showed that exercise triggers genes and growth factors that rejuvenate your brain and muscle tissues in the same way that fasting and caloric restriction does. Read more on caloric restriction in this post.
2. Mental Exercise.
This is not the same as aerobic exercise. The brain is just like your bicep muscle, in that if you want to build it up and have it operate at peak capacity, you need to work it. Challenges the brain every day with tasks that really require serious mental effort and even gymnastics is the only way to maintain health.
You probably started seeing the ads for Luminosity, the brain training program. These kinds of approaches are gaining popularity as people recognize how it is critical to exercise your most important muscle (figuratively speaking.) There are still a lot of misconceptions though.
The key to brain training is challenge and variety. In order to see benefits, studies show that the brain must be significantly challenged in novel ways that force it adapt and find new solutions. Try to change your training program up as much as you can and keep it regular. Things like learning to write with your other hand, driving a different route than usual, learn a new language, or an instrument, or any new skill, do memory challenges, and play games that test your hand-eye co-ordination. The more variety, the more senses you employ, the better the results.
The bottom line is use it or lose it!
There is ample evidence that atrophy occurs with disuse. Many researchers believe that people are more vulnerable to dementia when they pay less attention to the world around them. Plenty of studies correlate low levels of education with increased risk of Alzheimer's. Keep your brain engaged and active for as much of the waking day as possible and you will keep your memory and sharpness for much longer. Here's a link to the NYT daily crossword puzzle.
3. Nutrition.
While this may seem obvious, it cannot be understated. A proper diet is critical to good brain health and function. The fuel you feed your brain dictates the quality of its output. I have gone into this in quite some detail about brain foods in this previous post, so I won't repeat it again, but suffice it to say that eating the right foods is a big part of good brain health. Antioxidants are also of great value to brain health, along with resveratrol, and many phytonutrients.
4. Lowered Stress Levels.
The final piece might seem a bit out of left field at first read, but it is actually a major factor in brain health. With all the research into anxiety, depression, PTSD, and other mood disorder, we have developed a very good understanding of how these affect our brains. What may be more surprising is that stress at any level can and does directly impact your brain health.
Have you ever noticed that when you are stressed and under pressure your memory is foggier and you get easily distracted? This is stress at work doing damage to your brain.
In 2008, one study on rats showed that even low levels of short-term stress affects communications among brain cells in regions associated with memory and learning, and attacks a molecule that responsible for regulating synaptic activity. Further studies corroborate the idea that stress actually reduces the volume of gray matter in key regions of the brain. Moreover, severe stress or depression can cause lost volume in the medial prefrontal cortex, which is associated with emotional and cognitive abilities (so degenerative issues ensue.)
Stress interferes with the normal process of neurogenesis in the hippocampus, thus impacting various higher functions. A study done at the University of California at Berkeley found that stressed brains produce more myelin-producing cells and fewer neurons than normal, resulting in excess myelin in the hippocampus. Combined with the effects of increased cortisol levels, they do real damage to brain health, and most particularly to critical areas like memory and learning. As we know, cortisol is released during stress, which not only interferes with the hippocampus, but also ramps up the amygdala (fight or flight), wreaking havoc such that even a single stressful event can kill brain cells and result in serious issues.
So we now know that managing stress is exceedingly important to good brain health. While you may not be able to avoid all stressors, there are plenty of ways to reduce the occurrences and the impacts. Meditation works wonders, as does any relaxation technique like Yoga, Tai Chi, and the like. Massage works well, and exercise is excellent. We have a whole post on the importance of relaxation for reducing stress.
While we may still be developing our picture of how the brain works, we can say with complete confidence that if you address the four areas discussed above, you will ensure your brain is operating at peak function today and for many years to come.
The opinions expressed in this article are of the author. Content and other information presented on the site are not meant to be medical advice or any substitute for professional advice, counseling, diagnosis, or treatment. Never delay or disregard professional medical or mental health advice from your physician or other qualified health provider.
