Cognitive Fitness Is Important For All Of Us To Recognize
March 18, 2020 at 9:25 p.m.
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According to the World Health Organization, Alzheimer’s and other brain diseases will affect one out of every five people at some point in life, and these conditions are the main cause of lifelong disability worldwide. One out of three people older than 85 years of age will contract Alzheimer’s disease. That’s the bad news, the good news is that declining brain health and cognitive loss are not inevitable. (The word cognitive relates to thought processes.)
None of us are too old or young to adopt practices that enhance our ability to think. Thinking includes a number of skills, including memory, reasoning, learning, problem solving, communicating and decision making among others. According to a Harvard Health Report, it includes the ability to focus attention, comprehend new information, use language effectively, interact with others, control impulses, weigh options and formulate and pursue plans. The more physically active you are in childhood and adolescence, the more fit your brain will be in middle age and beyond.
Regardless of your age, cognitive fitness can help strengthen your intellectual prowess and protect against further decline.
There are six steps towards fitness.
First, A Plant-Based Diet
The Harvard Health Report lists six steps for effective brain health and cognitive fitness. They should be done together rather than in sequence. The first is to eat a plant-based diet. This includes green leafy vegetables, such as kale, spinach and collard greens. Each is rich in brain-healthy nutrients like Vitamin K, lutein, folate and beta-carotene.
The diet also includes fatty fish, the source of omega-3 fatty acids. This includes salmon, pollock, catfish and canned light tuna. If you are not a fan of fish you can substitute flaxseeds, avocados and walnuts. Berries such as blueberries and strawberries can also improve memory.
The Mediterranean diet incorporates these foods and is considered one of the healthiest. This diet includes fresh fruits and vegetables, fish, beans, nuts, olive oil and red wine which are filled with healthful fatty acids and antioxidants.
Second, Exercise
The second step is to exercise regularly. Regular exercise helps prevent weight gain and obesity. It lowers blood pressure and reduces the risk of heart disease, heart attacks and strokes. Exercise decreases the odds of contracting diabetes and certain cancers including breast and colon. The other benefit includes the fact that exercise strengthens muscles and bones and helps prevent debilitating falls. Exercise is a powerful tool to protect the brain against the detrimental effects of aging.
Exercise rushes oxygenated blood to help nourish brain cells and fosters the growth of new blood vessels to critical areas of the brain. By exercising, you can improve a variety of cognitive functions that tend to increase with age and the onset of dementia.
A number of studies have shown that people who exercise have a lower risk of Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia. Exercise has multiple benefits.
Third, Get Enough Sleep
Sleep affects virtually every aspect of good health and is essential for memory. The process in which we maintain new information into our memory banks occurs when we sleep. In recent years, studies have discovered that elevated levels of beta amyloid (a protein that accumulates in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients) occurs when sleep is interrupted or of poor quality. A good night’s sleep prevents beta amyloid buildup. A minimum of seven to nine hours of uninterrupted sleep is recommended for optimum health.
Fourth, Manage Stress
Stress is detrimental to both body and mind and it can produce changes to the brain’s structure and function. The key is not to rid your life of stress but learning how to manage it more effectively. There are a few tested methods that can help including exercise, meditation, deep breathing, more rest, music, staying positive and keeping an upbeat attitude.
Fifth, Nurture Social Contacts
Strong social interactions can have a profound effect on health and longevity. They can also protect memory and cognitive function. A study of more than 2,200 women with a large social network were less likely to develop dementia than women with fewer connections. The same should be true for men.
Sixth, Challenge Your Brain
There is evidence that the more you stimulate and challenge your brain, the more you buffer against the detrimental effects of aging. People who have led more intellectually robust lives have more cognitive reserves and appear to face a lower risk of developing dementia as they age. Although such individuals may develop Alzheimer’s plaques and tangles in their brains, they are better able to cope with the effects of the disease.
Final Thoughts
Much of the material in this column is derived from a special report from a Harvard Medical School entitled “A Guide to Cognitive Fitness.” It is well worth reading.
Max Sherman is a medical writer and pharmacist retired from the medical device industry. He has taught college courses on regulatory and compliance issues at Ivy Tech, Grace College and Butler University. Sherman has an unquenchable thirst for knowledge on all levels. Eclectic Science, the title of his column, touches on famed doctors and scientists, human senses, aging, various diseases, and little-known facts about many species, including their contributions to scientific research. He can be reached by email at [email protected].
According to the World Health Organization, Alzheimer’s and other brain diseases will affect one out of every five people at some point in life, and these conditions are the main cause of lifelong disability worldwide. One out of three people older than 85 years of age will contract Alzheimer’s disease. That’s the bad news, the good news is that declining brain health and cognitive loss are not inevitable. (The word cognitive relates to thought processes.)
None of us are too old or young to adopt practices that enhance our ability to think. Thinking includes a number of skills, including memory, reasoning, learning, problem solving, communicating and decision making among others. According to a Harvard Health Report, it includes the ability to focus attention, comprehend new information, use language effectively, interact with others, control impulses, weigh options and formulate and pursue plans. The more physically active you are in childhood and adolescence, the more fit your brain will be in middle age and beyond.
Regardless of your age, cognitive fitness can help strengthen your intellectual prowess and protect against further decline.
There are six steps towards fitness.
First, A Plant-Based Diet
The Harvard Health Report lists six steps for effective brain health and cognitive fitness. They should be done together rather than in sequence. The first is to eat a plant-based diet. This includes green leafy vegetables, such as kale, spinach and collard greens. Each is rich in brain-healthy nutrients like Vitamin K, lutein, folate and beta-carotene.
The diet also includes fatty fish, the source of omega-3 fatty acids. This includes salmon, pollock, catfish and canned light tuna. If you are not a fan of fish you can substitute flaxseeds, avocados and walnuts. Berries such as blueberries and strawberries can also improve memory.
The Mediterranean diet incorporates these foods and is considered one of the healthiest. This diet includes fresh fruits and vegetables, fish, beans, nuts, olive oil and red wine which are filled with healthful fatty acids and antioxidants.
Second, Exercise
The second step is to exercise regularly. Regular exercise helps prevent weight gain and obesity. It lowers blood pressure and reduces the risk of heart disease, heart attacks and strokes. Exercise decreases the odds of contracting diabetes and certain cancers including breast and colon. The other benefit includes the fact that exercise strengthens muscles and bones and helps prevent debilitating falls. Exercise is a powerful tool to protect the brain against the detrimental effects of aging.
Exercise rushes oxygenated blood to help nourish brain cells and fosters the growth of new blood vessels to critical areas of the brain. By exercising, you can improve a variety of cognitive functions that tend to increase with age and the onset of dementia.
A number of studies have shown that people who exercise have a lower risk of Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia. Exercise has multiple benefits.
Third, Get Enough Sleep
Sleep affects virtually every aspect of good health and is essential for memory. The process in which we maintain new information into our memory banks occurs when we sleep. In recent years, studies have discovered that elevated levels of beta amyloid (a protein that accumulates in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients) occurs when sleep is interrupted or of poor quality. A good night’s sleep prevents beta amyloid buildup. A minimum of seven to nine hours of uninterrupted sleep is recommended for optimum health.
Fourth, Manage Stress
Stress is detrimental to both body and mind and it can produce changes to the brain’s structure and function. The key is not to rid your life of stress but learning how to manage it more effectively. There are a few tested methods that can help including exercise, meditation, deep breathing, more rest, music, staying positive and keeping an upbeat attitude.
Fifth, Nurture Social Contacts
Strong social interactions can have a profound effect on health and longevity. They can also protect memory and cognitive function. A study of more than 2,200 women with a large social network were less likely to develop dementia than women with fewer connections. The same should be true for men.
Sixth, Challenge Your Brain
There is evidence that the more you stimulate and challenge your brain, the more you buffer against the detrimental effects of aging. People who have led more intellectually robust lives have more cognitive reserves and appear to face a lower risk of developing dementia as they age. Although such individuals may develop Alzheimer’s plaques and tangles in their brains, they are better able to cope with the effects of the disease.
Final Thoughts
Much of the material in this column is derived from a special report from a Harvard Medical School entitled “A Guide to Cognitive Fitness.” It is well worth reading.
Max Sherman is a medical writer and pharmacist retired from the medical device industry. He has taught college courses on regulatory and compliance issues at Ivy Tech, Grace College and Butler University. Sherman has an unquenchable thirst for knowledge on all levels. Eclectic Science, the title of his column, touches on famed doctors and scientists, human senses, aging, various diseases, and little-known facts about many species, including their contributions to scientific research. He can be reached by email at [email protected].
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