6 Important Steps to Maintain Brain Health – Are you a forgetful person? Maybe you do not often do activities that are actually useful for keeping the brain healthy. The older you get, the more often this forgetfulness appears. Research conducted by neuroscientists at Harvard Medical School says that the structure and function of the brain related to memory can change with age. In addition, it also depends on how many brain cells have been used by a person. In fact, we only use 10% of the total brain cells we have. The use of brain cells is related to cognitive function, thinking, reasoning, and human IQ.
There are many things you can do to keep your brain healthy
Increasing brain cells can actually be done by always doing the following things regularly:
1. Doing physical activity
Scientific evidence that examines a healthy brain is doing sports, especially aerobics and fitness. Many studies have proven that aerobics can reduce the risk of dementia in adults. A study shows that people who do an average of 30 minutes of aerobics per day and do it regularly at least five times a week, can improve their reasoning ability and increase brain mass. In addition, experiments doing aerobics on people who have cognitive impairment, prove that cognitive improvement occurs slowly.
Maintaining a healthy brain through exercise, among others, because exercise can help smooth blood circulation, reduce stress, stimulate hormones that can improve mood and make sleep better. Other sports such as dance sports, sports that train flexibility and muscle strength, have been shown to be better for keeping the brain healthy than simple exercises such as walking or jogging. It is recommended to do 3 to 5 times per week with 30 minutes each per session.
2. Eat healthy food
Remember that you are eating for your whole body, including brain health. Therefore, eat according to your needs, reduce sugar, salt, and high saturated fat. Increase the consumption of fiber from vegetables, fruits, and complex carbohydrates such as wheat. Eat foods that contain folic acid, B6, and B12 which can prevent memory loss. Dark green vegetables usually contain lots of vitamins B6 and B12.
3. Get involved in social activities
The results of research conducted on people who have dementia, show that by engaging in social activities, building connections, and communicating with others, they can reduce their dementia rate. Interactions with family, friends, or other relatives have been shown to be able to slow memory decline in adulthood. In addition, socializing with the surrounding environment can prevent us from stress and depression, increase a sense of comfort, and increase intellectual capacity.
4. Doing exercise for a healthy brain
Activities such as playing musical instruments, playing chess, or doing crossword puzzles are simple things that can make your brain ‘exercise’. By doing so, you can improve your reasoning and memory skills, increase the number of brain cells, and can reduce the risk of dementia. Apart from playing, you can also read novels, learn a foreign language, or learn new things. This requires the brain to remember repeatedly, thereby making the brain continue to do ‘exercise’ and make it healthy.
5. Ensure adequate rest and sleep
The recommended sleep duration in a day is 6 hours per day-for adults. By sleeping at least 6 hours per day, can restore your body condition, improve mood and immune system, and can reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer’s.
In addition, a study conducted over two years on 1,260 elderly, stated that by having a good diet, exercise and doing brain exercises regularly, not only reduced the risk of heart disease in that group, but also reduced the risk of cognitive decline, thus making brain stays healthy.