The brain is a complex organ of the body that controls memory, emotion temperature, etc. Research reviews that the brain weighs about 3 pounds in the average adult and it is about 60% fat. This means that the remaining 40% is a combination of water, protein, carbohydrates, and salts. There are tips that you can follow to promote a healthy brain and these are eating healthy food, regular exercises, enough sleep, staying socially connected as well seeking medical attention for health issues. This article will explain these tips on how you can keep your brain healthy.
Eating Healthy Food Promotes a Healthy Brain.
To start with, for your brain to keep functioning well you should eat healthy food. Healthy food helps to keep this crucial organ healthy and improves the ability to do specific mental tasks such as memory and concentration.
Food that Promotes a Healthy Brain
Fatty Fish
Eating food like fatty fish helps to keep your brain healthy. This type of fish has salmon, trout, albacore tuna, herring, and sardines which are sources of omega-3 fatty acids. The brain uses omega-3s to build brain and nerve cells and the fats are essential for learning and memory.
Coffee
Drinking coffee can help to support brain health. Two main components that are found in coffee are caffeine and antioxidants. The caffeine found in coffee helps to increase alertness by blocking adenosine. Caffeine also improves mood. It boosts some of your feel-good neurotransmitters such as dopamine. Caffeine helps to sharpen concentration.
Turmeric
This is a deep yellow spice in curry powder. It has several benefits for a healthy brain. Turmeric contains curcumin which can directly enter the brain and benefit the cells there. It helps to improve memory and ease depression.
Other Factors that Promote a Healthy Brain
Regular Exercise Promotes a Healthy Brain
Furthermore, physical activities benefit your brain in several ways. Exercises help the brain to retain memory and optimal functioning. Exercise helps improve the flow of blood to your brain, reduce inflammation, and lower levels of stress hormones. Physical activities promote neuroplasticity which is the brain’s ability to form new neural connections.
Exercises that Promote a Healthy Brain:
- Running
- Jogging
- Biking
- Swimming
- Dancing etc.
Getting Enough Sleep
More so, getting enough sleep helps the brain to function well. Getting enough sleep improves your brain performance, mood, and health. Not getting enough sleep regularly raises the risk of many diseases and disorders. The diseases include heart disease, stroke, dementia, etc. Sleeping helps prepare your brain to learn, remember, and create. When sleeping the brain changes function and it becomes like a kidney removing waste from the system. School-age children are recommended to get at least nine hours a night of sleep. Teens should get between eight and ten hours and adults need at least seven hours or more of sleep each night for good brain function.
Staying Socially Connected
To add on, staying socially connected is good for your brain health. A good social life helps to stimulate attention and memory and strengthen neural networks. Studies review that people with strong social ties are less likely to experience cognitive decline than people who spend most of their time alone. Studies further review for people who spend most of their time alone their risk of dementia rises by as much as 40%. There are ways to stay connected and these are rekindling relationships, going for quality not quantity, and considering a range of ways to connect.
Seeking Medical Attention for Health Issues
Medical doctors play an important role in helping to preserve brain health. They encourage healthy behaviors and address risk factors associated with cognitive decline. It is recommended to always go for medical check-ups for other health issues to reduce the chance of disturbing the functioning of the brain. You can go for checkups for high blood pressure, diabetes, and other diseases. You can also visit a neurologist to check your brain functioning and diagnose, treat, and manage conditions affecting the brain. They also check and treat disorders of the nerves and muscles that activate movement and transmit sensations from around the body to the brain.
Conclusion
The brain is the most important organ of the body and you should maintain a healthy lifestyle to keep it healthy. You should eat healthy food such as fatty fish, turmeric, coffee, and other healthy food that is good for the functioning of your brain. Regular exercise, getting enough sleep, staying socially connected, and seeking medical attention for other health issues also help to have a healthy brain. Exercises like running, jogging, biking, swimming, and dancing help to keep your brain healthy as explained in this article.
