Refreshing the Brain!
November 10th 2007 09:33
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Well by now you should know that the best thing you can do for your brain is physical exercise.
How?
Fitness training slows the age-related shrinkage of the frontal cortex, important for executive function.
Exercise increases the number of capillaries in the brain, which improves blood flow, and therefore energy, to neurons.
Exercise improves cardiovascular health, preventing heart attacks and strokes leading to brain damage.
Exercise causes the release of growth factors increasing the number of connections between neurons and the birth of neurons in the hippocampus, a brain region important for memory.
Now, after exercise comes 'brain exercise'. Of course you can stick with sudoku and crosswords but computer programs for improving brain performance are a burgeoning business.
Environmental enrichment does improve mental function.
Most of us get plenty of everyday stimulation in activities like finding a new address, socializing with friends and other activities.
It has been shown that elderly people can improve certain skills by practicing a challenging computer-based task.
Practice can certainly make people better at sudoku puzzles or help them remember lists more accurately. The improvement can even last for years.
For people whose work is not stimulating, having mentally challenging hobbies, like learning a new language or playing bridge, can help maintain cognitive performance.
Executive function includes basic functions like processing speed, response speed and working memory, the type used to remember a house number while walking from the car to a party.
Executive function starts to decline when people reach their 70s.
But elderly people who have been athletic all their lives have much better executive function than sedentary people of the same age.
30 to 60 minutes of fast walking several times a week can have dramatic results.
Exercise is also strongly associated with a reduced risk of dementia late in life.
So instead of spending money on computer games or puzzles to improve your brain’s health, invest in a gym membership.
Or just turn off the computer and go for a brisk walk.
From where I sit, far too often, both physical exercise and programs to help the brain seem promising. That's why I pay so much attention to all of this.
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Comment by Miswanderlust
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