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11-10-2020-Worksheets-Maturing Minds

->One thing we say repeatedly during our BrainFlex sessions is that age doesn’t matter when it comes to learning. Although it may take us a little longer to learn things, we are still able to learn throughout our lifetime. (Repetition is key!)

->Researchers across the globe agree that we are able to learn throughout our lifetime, which is what the term Brain Plasticity means. (We can grow new neural pathways as long as we are committed to doing so.)

->Most researchers also agree that we must make a concerted effort and remain committed to all of the components important to brain health if we are to experience the best outcomes from life-long learning.

These are: Exercise, Healthy Diet, Brain Stimulation, Social Connection, and in recent years, we’ve learned the importance of Good Sleep Patterns and having a Positive Attitude.

Although each of these important components are required to ‘age well’, for the purpose of bog chat, I’d like to focus on just one.

Exercise: This is one area of research where the positive impact on brain health is the most consistent and undeniable.

->Exercise improves our flow of oxygen throughout our body, which in turn, benefits both the body and the brain, including memory.

->Exercise has been shown in repeated studies to provide our brains with ‘fight’, some researchers describe this fight as ‘reverse aging’.

->Exercise creates an overall feeling of well-being through the release of ‘feel good’ chemicals. (neurotransmitters)

->Exercise increases the number of dendrites in the brain. Dendrites are extensions of our nerve cells.  Their job is to receive electrical impulses from other cells and then communicate those messages to other parts of the brain cell.E

Article By: Alvaro Fernandez

Let’s review some good lifestyle options we can follow to maintain, and improve, our vibrant brains.

• Learn what is the “It” in “Use It or Lose It”. A basic understanding will serve you well to appre­ci­ate your brain’s beauty as a liv­ing and constantly-developing dense for­est with bil­lions of neu­rons and synapses.
• Take care of your nutri­tion. Did you know that the brain only weighs 2% of body mass but consumes over 20% of the oxy­gen and nutri­ents we intake? As a gen­eral rule, you don’t need expen­sive ultra-sophisticated nutri­tional sup­ple­ments; just make sure you don’t stuff your­self with the “bad stuff”.
• Remem­ber that the brain is part of the body. Things that exer­cise your body can also help sharpen your brain: phys­i­cal exer­cise enhances neurogenesis.
• Prac­tice pos­i­tive, future-oriented thoughts until they become your default mind­set and you look for­ward to every new day in a con­struc­tive way. Stress and anx­i­ety, no mat­ter whether induced by exter­nal events or by your own thoughts, actu­ally kills neu­rons and pre­vent the cre­ation of new ones. You can think of chronic stress as the oppo­site of exer­cise: it pre­vents the cre­ation of new neurons.
• Thrive on Learn­ing and Men­tal Chal­lenges. The point of hav­ing a brain is pre­cisely to learn and to adapt to chal­leng­ing new envi­ron­ments. Once new neu­rons appear in your brain, where they stay in your brain and how long they sur­vive depends on how you use them. “Use It or Lose It” does not mean “do cross­word puz­zle num­ber 1,234,567″. It means, “chal­lenge your brain often with fun­da­men­tally new activities”.
• We are (as far as we know) the only self-directed organ­isms in this planet. Aim high. Once you grad­u­ate from col­lege, keep learn­ing. Once you become too com­fort­able in one job, find a new one. The brain keeps devel­op­ing, reflect­ing what you do with it.
• Explore, travel. Adapt­ing to new loca­tions forces you to pay more atten­tion to your envi­ron­ment. Make new deci­sions, use your brain.
• Don’t Out­source Your Brain. Not to media per­son­al­i­ties, not to politi­cians, not to your smart neighbor… Make your own deci­sions, and mis­takes. And learn from them. That way, you are train­ing your brain, not your neighbors’.
• Develop and main­tain stim­u­lat­ing friend­ships. We are “social ani­mals”, and need social inter­ac­tion. This, by the way, is why ‘Baby Ein­stein’ has been shown not to be the panacea for chil­dren development.
• Laugh. Often. Especially to cog­ni­tively com­plex humor, full of twists and sur­prises. Bet­ter, try to become the next Jon Stewart

Now, remem­ber that what counts is not read­ing this article-or any other-, but prac­tic­ing a bit every day until small steps snow­ball into unstop­pable, inter­nal­ized habits…so, pick your next bat­tle and try to start improv­ing at least one of these 10 habits today. Revisit the habit above that really grabbed your atten­tion, and make a deci­sion to try some­thing dif­fer­ent today!  [end of article]

Call BrainFlex™ Wellness Club and get started today!  

The information provided is for general informational purposes only and is not intended to be medical advice or a substitute for professional health care. You should consult an appropriate health care professional for your specific needs and to determine whether making a lifestyle change or decision based on this information is appropriate for you.

The information provided is for general informational purposes only and is not intended to be medical advice or a substitute for professional health care. You should consult an appropriate health care professional for your specific needs and to determine whether making a lifestyle change or decision based on this information is appropriate for you.

The information provided is for general informational purposes only and is not intended to be medical advice or a substitute for professional health care. You should consult an appropriate health care professional for your specific needs and to determine whether making a lifestyle change or decision based on this information is appropriate for you.

A FEW FACTS:  SOCIALIZATION and SENIOR WELLNESS

“Strong social ties can preserve our brain health as we age.”
(The American Journal of Public Health, Harvard School of Public Health study).

“Social isolation may be an important risk factor for cognitive decline in the elderly.”
(Tara Parker-Pope, Socializing Appears to Delay Memory Problems, The New York Times, Well, June 4, 2008)

“Elderly people who are socially isolated and lonely may be at greater risk of early death”

–March 25 (HealthDay News)

“Lack of social contact might be an even bigger risk factor than loneliness.”

–March 25  (HealthDay News)

“Social contact is a fundamental aspect of human existence.  Being socially isolated may lead to the development of serious illness and a reduced life span”
(Andrew Steptoe, director of the Institute of Epidemiology and Health Care at University College London.)

 

The information provided is for general informational purposes only and is not intended to be medical advice or a substitute for professional health care. You should consult an appropriate health care professional for your specific needs and to determine whether making a lifestyle change or decision based on this information is appropriate for you.