Daily Habits for Keeping Your Brain Health Sharp

How to Keep Your Brain Healthy

Our brains are wonderfully complicated machines, but they need a healthy dose of tender loving care to keep them working the way they’re supposed to.

Let’s take a look at some simple habits you can incorporate to promote your brain health.

Learn Something New

If getting your heart rate going makes your heart healthy, and working your muscles gets those in shape, then engaging your mind is what keeps your brain sharp.

Mentally stimulating activities like learning a new skill, picking up a new hobby, reading a book and solving puzzles are all great brain workouts and can be squeezed into even the busiest schedules.

Activities like watching TV or scrolling social media may be enjoyable, but they are passive and don’t engage the mind quite like some of the others. Limit these as much as you can to promote brain health.

Make Time with Friends

Humans are social creatures, so perhaps it isn’t surprising that socializing is associated with good brain health. While the exact relationship between the two is still being studied, something about the complexity of social interaction seems to play a part.

Think about it: During any given outing with friends, you need to listen, read body language and pick up social cues all while engaging in a shared activity. That’s a lot to keep track of at once, and it’s just that type of work our brains thrive on.

While taking up a group hobby or joining a club are great options, working those social muscles can be as simple as grabbing the phone and calling a friend or relative.

Get Enough Sleep

Just because you turn in for the night, doesn’t mean your brain does – at least not in the same way. Getting a good night of sleep is one of the most important things you can do to promote good brain health.

While you’re sleeping, your brain is working hard to:

• Clear out harmful toxins and waste products
• Consolidate memories and new information
• Repair neural pathways and other structures

While individual sleep needs will vary, aim to get between 7 and 9 hours of sleep every night. If you struggle to get your nightly shuteye, try limiting screen time in the evening, avoiding large meals right before bed, and falling asleep and waking up at the same time every day.

Exercise Regularly

Exercise improves blood flow to the brain, flooding it with nutrients and oxygen that help to promote the growth of new brain cells. All of this boosts essential brain functions like memory, cognitive performance and emotional regulation.

A brain-healthy exercise routine includes both aerobic work and strength training. Adults should aim to get roughly 150 minutes of moderate activity per week or 75 minutes of more rigorous activity.

Eat a Brain-Healthy Diet

Even a good brain-exercise routine won’t pay dividends if the diet isn’t right. Brains perform best on a mix of healthy fats, whole grains, and fresh fruits and veggies; plant proteins also tend to be better than animal ones.

In addition to those basics, the following are particularly noted for boosting brain health:

• Leafy greens like spinach, kale and collards
• Fatty fish, especially salmon, sardines, tuna and mackerel
• Berries like blueberries and strawberries
• Nuts/seeds, including chia seeds, flaxseeds, walnuts and almonds

Balance is key here. Make sure you’re consuming a diet that includes all the nutritional essentials to keep you brain in tip-top shape.

Just like other areas of your health, every brain is different. Talk to your care team about putting together an individualized plan for promoting your brain health.