11 Brain Boosters - Print - 1

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Brain Boosters

Brain Boosters

hile there is no fountain of youth for the brain, neuroscience provides evidence for the next best thing.here are lots of things you can do right now to preserve, protect and enhance your gray matter. Onent: If you're already a devotee of a heart-healthy lifestyle, you're way ahead of the game. What's goodr the heart is probably good for your head. That's twice the motivation and payoff.

ods for thoughtand memory. We are what we eat, the old adage goes. When it comes to brainness, eating certain types of food can improve and preserve our sharp-as-a-tack selves.

he strategy: Keep unhealthy fats to a minimum (no more than 20 percent of calories). Sticking to aediterranean style dietlots of fresh fruits and vegetables, a minimum of red meat, plenty of fish,ily wineis paramount.

esearch shows cellular stress caused by oxidation can lead to cognitive declines. Choose dark-coloreduits and vegetables, including apricots, cantaloupes, watermelon, mangos, kale, chard, spinach andoccoli. Eating these foods increases the production of acetylcholine, a vital chemical released fromrve cells that improves communication between cells.

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lmon, mackerel, tuna, sardines and herring also give your brain a boost. What's key about these typesfish is their omega-3 fatty acids, specifically one called DHA, which is an essential component of ural cell membranes that helps to transmit information into and out of those membranes.

ains are made up of about 60 percent fat, but the fuel they rely on is glucose, a simple sugar. To giveur brain ample energy, eat complex carbohydrates such as brown rice, bulgur, quinoa, whole-wheat

sta and couscous. Whole grains are superior because they break down more slowly and don't cause bigswings in insulin production, which can cause a number of health problems associated with poorental performance.

y Scott McCredie for MSN Health & Fitness

Brain Boosters

pplemental strategy. Because few among us consume sufficient quantities of healthful foodshowany eat sardines or even salmon three times a week?most people need dietary supplements to ensuretimum mental function. Make sure your high-potency multivitamin has a sufficient amount of thebstances your brain needs most to stay in top shape (or buy additional supplements). Among them:



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late: A member of the B vitamin group, this nutrient is found naturally in legumes, kidneys, orangesd leafy green vegetables. Few Americans get enough in their diet, so make sure your intake is at leaste recommended daily dose of 400 micrograms. One recent study showed that this level of folateovides a 55 percent reduction in the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. Another study found thatople who took 800 micrograms a day did significantly better on memory tests.

her B vitamins: Vitamins B6 and B12 are believed to be involved in the formation of the sheathsound nerve cells that contribute to communication between these cells. People with Alzheimer's oftenve reduced levels of B vitamins.

tamins C and E together: A Johns Hopkins University study published in 2004 demonstrated thatbjects who had the highest levels of these two antioxidants had a greatly reduced chance of ntracting Alzheimer's. The most effective doses were 400 to 1,000 International Units of vitamin E,d 500 to 1,500 milligrams of vitamin C.

mega-3 fats: Eat at least two servings of tuna, salmon or sardines a week, but consider taking applement, too. Though there's no recommended amount, most fish oil pills provide plenty. Make sureat a third party has verified the oil is free from contaminants, such as mercury.



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Brain Boosters

inking and thinking. Sip, don't guzzle, and ask for pinot noir.

cohol kills brain cells, and the more you drink the more brain cells are destroyed. So it's a no-brainerkeep your consumption in checkno more than a couple of drinks per day for a man or one drink for

woman.

these amounts, alcohol in any formbeer, wine or spiritsis beneficial to the brain. But if you'reiving for optimum brain health, red wine should be your drink of choice. That's because it contains anundance of a potent antioxidant called resveratrol, a type of polyphenol.

esveratrol, also found in berries and peanuts, is a compound produced by plants to ward off disease, insponse to such stressors as fungus invasions, injury or infection. Reportedly, the wines with the mostsveratrol are those made from pinot noir grapes. White wines, by contrast, contain less than 5 percentthe average amount of resveratrol found in red wines.

ne recent study presented convincing evidence that resveratrol prevents the buildup of plaques in theain that snarl intercellular communication. These plaques are a signature of Alzheimer's disease. So indition to reducing the risk for cancer and heart disease, red wine may also slow (but probably notevent) the degeneration of neural processes. To your health!

Brain Boosters

tting the pillaspirin and ibuprofen . The daily use of a non-steroidal anti-inflammatoryaspirind ibuprofen are two of the most commonis considered by some researchers as a promising therapy



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r keeping the brain healthy in certain groups of older people. But they're not for everyone.

vidence for the brain benefits of aspirin and ibuprofen comes from arthritis studies of people whogularly take significant doses of anti-inflammatory drugs. Researchers found an unanticipated affect: aduction in the risk of Alzheimer's.

ne study from the Netherlands, published in 2001, tracked 7,000 people for almost seven years. None

d dementia at the start of the study. At the end, those who hadn't regularly taken an anti-inflammatoryere six times more likely to be diagnosed with dementia than those who had.

hronic inflammation is known to damage nerve tissues, and examinations of the brains of people withzheimer's have shown large areas of inflammation. So there appears to be a correlation betweenflammation and dementia, though no one knows if the former causes the latter.

hile anti-inflammatories may be useful in maintaining brain health, it's too early to recommend theirholesale use. More research needs to be done. Doctors now advise daily aspirin therapy for people atgh risk for heart disease, to prevent clotting that could lead to a heart attack or stroke. But serious sidefects, such as bleeding ulcers and interference with other medications, can occur. Before starting suchprogram, you must discuss the pros and cons with your doctor.



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Brain Boosters

inding your meditation. You don't have to join a monastery or hire a guru to reap the substantialwards of daily meditation. As little as 15 minutes a day may be enoughwhether it's sitting in the caraiting to pick up your child from school or in a quiet room at lunchtime.

r several years now, western doctors have extolled the virtues of meditation in treating a number of

edical conditions, including chronic pain and high blood pressure. The evidence for its effectivenessmes from several studies, including one showing that people with normal to high blood pressure whoacticed daily meditation were 23 percent less likely to diefrom any causethan those who didnt.mazingly, meditation was more effective at preventing death than other more conventional non-drugerapies, such as exercise, weight loss and salt restriction.

esides counteracting the kinds of cardiovascular ailments that can lead to poor brain function,editation may also reduce levels of the stress hormone called cortisol. This chemical can wreak havocth cognitive abilities such as memory recall.

ut that's not all. A group of U.S. researchers recently found an association between meditation and ancrease in the thickness of the cortex, the part of the brain that handles a variety of higher functions.his growth in density suggests that meditation, performed regularly, may put the brakes on the naturalnning of the cortex that takes place as we age.



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Brain Boosters

et on the laugh track. It's long been said that laughter is the best medicine, and science keepsaffirming the concept. Laughter reduces the stress hormone cortisol in your body; it relaxes yourteries so that cholesterol is less likely to build up; and it even engages you in a bit of exercise (bellyughs activate hundreds of muscles throughout your body).

one study, scientists at the University of Maryland performed an experiment in which subjectsatched either a violent war film or a comedy. Before and after the film, the blood flow through thebjects' arteries was carefully measured. Increased flow, called vasodilation, is considered healthful, asminimizes or prevents blockages that can cause heart attacks or strokes. Those who watched the stress-ducing war film had their blood flow rate drop by an average of 35 percent. But in the comedy-

atching group, blood flow increased by 22 percent.

his expansion in flow is equivalent to what you'd expect to find in someone who's exercised for aboutminutes, the researchers reported. Scientists believe laughter may release endorphins, the "feel good"rmones associated with rigorous exercise. These hormones are known to cause blood vessel dilation.

laugh. It's a balm to your brain.



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Brain Boosters

ou snooze, you win. Although scientists still puzzle over why sleep is necessary, one thing is certain:e cannot survive more than a few weeks without it. When we are denied good, restful, sustained sleep

a regular basis, our brains falter in concentration, learning, memory and alertness. That's no matterw much coffee you might guzzle.

he best explanation science has come up with for the healing power of sleep is that brain cells use theme out" to close down and repair damage. Without sufficient sleep, neurons may not have time topair all the damage, and so could malfunction during the day. Sleep also may give the brain a chanceperform a workout of sorts among important neuronal connections that might go dormant, explainsearchers. Imagine exercising your brain while lying in bed dreaming. What could be better?

ost adults require seven to eight hours of sleep each night.

you have trouble sleeping, here are a few tips:

q Don't eat a heavy meal late in the day.q Avoid caffeine and alcohol late in the day.q Get regular exercise, but not close to bedtime.q If you can't fall asleep or wake up in the middle of the night, get up and read or watch TV until



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you feel drowsy.q If you lie awake worrying about things, make a to-do list before going to bed.

Brain Boosters

mping jacks for the brain? Well, sort of. By stimulating your mind, you may be able to improvegnitive function, and perhaps delay or even prevent mental disorders such as dementia.

ores of large-scale studies have shown that brain training works. The trouble begins when we fall intoutines that seldom challenge our mental faculties. We may be masters at what we do, but we aren'tarning new things. And that seems to be key.

he mind, according to neuroscientists, is a machine that thrives on learning. "The brain requires activentinuous learning," Michael Merzenich, a neurobiologist at University of California, San Francisco,id in an interview with the AARP. "It requires change, and that change requires that you acquire newills and abilities, new hobbies and activities that require the brain to remodel itself."

hat kind of activity is best? Scientists aren't sure yet, but agree that anything that expands yourowledge will be effective. The emphasis is on new, as in learning a new language, dance step or sport

he more social the setting the better, as this increases the effect due to the brain benefits of humanteraction). Or read a new book or do crossword or sudoku puzzles (which constantly expose you tow information). All these activities build more connections between neural cells, which recentsearch indicates may even forestall dementia and Alzheimer's.



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Brain Boosters

mp up the hippocampus. How can a rousing, sweat-inducing physical workout benefit your greyatter? By improving blood flow, releasing stress-reducing endorphins, strengthening the connectionstween brain cells and increasing the number of brain cells themselves. That's just for starters.

egular, cardiovascular exercisethe kind that sends your heart rate up, like walking, bicycling,wimming or even aerobic gardening or house cleaningis a powerhouse of benefit for both your heart

d brain.

udies of fit people show that their attention and concentration are superior to those who don't exercise.nd that their gray matter is thicker, suggesting that exercise could protect against the natural decline of ental faculties as we age.

ne part of the brain that's known to be directly influenced by exercise is called the hippocampus. It'srt of a "clearing house" for the brain, deciding which information sent to it by the senses gets stored

way into memory, and then retrieving it when necessary. It's vital for learning and making associations.esearch has shown that physical exercise stimulates the production of new brain cells, called neurons,the hippocampus.



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nses you engage, the better. If you normally go to work using the same route, try a different one. At aop light, roll down the window and close your eyes, listening to the sounds, feeling the air on yource. Your brain is forced to work with a new set of sensory inputs, which builds connections in youruronal network.

umans are hardwired to seek novelty, yet in our tame modern environment, thats more difficult to do.y consciously exposing your brain to novel situations, it responds like a long underused muscle to a

eight training program: It grows!

ott McCredie is a Seattle-based health writer and author of the book Balance: In Search of a Lost Sense.

RL: http://health.msn.com/health-topics/alzheimers-disease/slideshow.aspx?cp-

cumentid=100155390
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