Want to Improve Your “Brain Fitness?” Give It a Mental Workout With These Tips

What does the term “brain fitness” mean? When we talk about “fitness” we are usually referring to anatomy below the neck. But research is revealing the importance of “brain fitness” – stimulating and exercising our brains to slow down the age-related declines in memory, mental speed and decision making that affect most people.

Even more exciting is the research showing that staying mentally “fit” may give us protection against possible diseases that affect our brains. The more information you feed your brain, the more you are developing a cognitive reserve against dementia.

The human brain is a miraculous thing. There is a term called “plasticity” which refers to the brain’s ability to change or reorganize itself. If we are talking about successful aging we may be referring to challenging the brain by learning a new skill. Research has shown that brains grow when learning something novel.

Or we may be talking about brain damage and recovery. The brain compensates for damage by reorganizing or rewiring and forming new connections between intact neurons. However, in order to reconnect, the neurons need to be stimulated through activity. As noted above, the brain is able to adapt and change during normal aging or even after a brain injury.

What are some things we can do to keep our brains fit?

• Eat well. Omega-3 fatty acids (which are found in salmon, kiwi and walnuts), folic acid (spinach, orange juice and yeast), flavonoids (cocoa, green tea, citrus fruits and wine) and antioxidants (broccoli, nuts, berries) are some ideas.
• Exercise your body. If we’ve heard it once, we’ve heard it a thousand times! Thirty minutes a day, five times a week appears to be the recommended amount. Some say this is the single most beneficial activity you can do for your brain.
• Learn new activities.The point of having a brain is to learn and adapt to new challenges in the environment. Novel experiences challenge the brain. Learning a new language, playing an instrument, taking a course or learning a new hobby are good activities.
• Laughter. Sounds funny (no pun intended) but when we laugh, we bring oxygen to our brains that “freshens” up our thinking. Tension, on the other hand, inhibits learning.
• Software, high-tech games and Web sites. There is software such as: Mindfit, Posit Science, Brain University and Brain Spa. Nintendo’s Brain Age/WII Big Brain Academy, Mattel’s Radica Brain games are examples of high-tech games. And there are plenty of Web sites: My Brain Trainer, Braingle, Lumosity, Brain Matrix and Mind Machine to name a few.
• Games and puzzles. There are numerous books and games that target brain fitness, such as table puzzles, crossword puzzles, Sudoku, brain teasers, board games and card games.
• Other activities to do. Sing, dance, eat/write/brush your teeth with your non-dominant hand, travel, read, watch less TV, listen to audio tapes, meditate, do yoga, cook a foreign dish and get plenty of sleep. The list goes on and on.

The bottom line is: the brain craves stimulation. Feed it.

--Cindy Irish, MS, CCC/SLP
Lead Speech Pathologist