Is there any way to make our brain age more slowly ? We have all been able to ask ourselves this question at some point, and we know more and more cases of people suffering from some type of dementia, the best known being Alzheimer’s Disease.
It is clear that as we get older, our brain ages just like the rest of our body. In fact, neuroscientists believe that Our brain begins to age from the age of 30 But don’t worry, we can also influence this process with our lifestyle.
Neuroscientist Francisco Mora offers us 12 healthy guidelines that we can establish in our lives, regardless of our age, to keep our brain active and delay possible diseases such as Alzheimer’s Disease.
1. Eat less
Eating more than we need increases oxidative stress in the brain In addition, reducing the amount of food enhances the production of new neurons in the hippocampus (the region responsible for memory and learning) and strengthens neuronal connections.
2. Exercise regularly
Physical activity increases brain plasticity, that is, the ability to regenerate neurons and change the functioning of this set of organs of the nervous system
Challenges and new learning are a good option. For example, learning a new language ; The objective is not to speak it perfectly, but the effort and satisfaction that learning it generates, also increasing our self-esteem.
4. Travel and discover new places
You don’t have to travel the world, getting to know places close to where we live is just as enriching. Being in unknown environments requires activating our brain to adapt to new stimuli, in addition to experiencing pleasant emotions. Routine is harmful to our brain.
5. Take care of your social relationships
Living accompanied and keeping our relationships with others alive increases our feeling of being supported by someone, we adapt better to changes and keeps us away from feelings of loneliness.
6. Adapt to changes
We live in constant change, adapting to new situations and the experiences we live is essential, otherwise we increase our level of stress and discomfort
7. Avoid chronic stress
Continued stress releases glucocorticoid hormones that directly affect the brain, destroying neurons in the hippocampus, affecting our memory and learning ability
8. Don’t smoke
This habit can cause small cerebral infarctions, and nicotine produces neuronal atrophy and death, which can reduce our cognitive abilities.
9. Sleep well
Enjoying a restful sleep is necessary so that our brain can erase unnecessary information, reinforce the knowledge we have learned throughout the day and repair tissues that may have been damaged
10. Avoid emotional blackout
Being motivated, excited about new projects and looking for things that excite us is part of our life engine.
Practicing gratitude with others strengthens our social bonds, helps create new bonds and forget old emotional burdens that cause us discomfort.
12. Enjoy the little things
Regardless of how old we are, we must put on magnifying glasses and be aware of the things we experience daily and that make us feel good ; a conversation with a friend, coffee in the morning, the feeling of a job well done, singing in the shower… all these things that are within our reach give us great pleasurable sensations.
Tell us if you already practice some of these habits in your life or if you have decided to start changing some!
