We are all getting older, it's a process we can't stop, no matter how hard we try, it will just carry on. There are of course, certain things, like actions, routines, eating, etc, that can help make it easier.
One of those things is keeping your mind as sharp as possible, which is one of the reasons I
actually do what I do online. It helps me to use my wits, to create, and learn, as well as not get stagnant.
Stagnation is the bane of our lives.
Normal, cognitive changes as you age are completely normal.
This may include mild cognitive impairment, which is quite common in humans
after midlife.
Usually this "dulling of the mind" starts around
middle age. Since the average person lives to about 80 years old, this means
that if you’re 40, you are middle age. Even if you are nowhere near 40 right
now, this age comes sooner than you think because time passes very fast while
you’re living it.
Working on keeping your mind sharp as you age can and should
start from a young age. The younger you start, the better. However, even if
you’re over middle age right now, and even if you feel as if you have less
mental dexterity than when you were younger, you can still implement what you
will read in the pages that follow. If you do, you may avoid suffering too much
decline, keeping your mind as sharp as possible and even improving where you
can.
The Importance of Keeping
Your Mind Sharp as You Age
It’s normal to experience changes in your brain throughout
your life. As you go through middle age and beyond, your brain will slowly
shrink. This is all completely normal and while it sounds frightening, you
don’t have to be scared. With the right plan, you can - if you work on it -
actually grow your brain even if it’s already started shrinking.
Keep Your Independence Longer
If you can take care of yourself and remember to pay your
bills, turn off the stove, and that type of thing, you will be able to be
independent a lot longer than if you can’t do those things. Working on
improving your memory and brain function now, even if you have no mental or
cognitive decline at all, will ensure that you will put it off even longer.
Ward off Dementia
Even though a large percentage of people over 70 have some
form of dementia, you can certainly lessen the effects by working on your
mental and physical health. Eating right, keeping your mind sharp by reading,
doing new things, and living an active life is your best defense against any
illness and costs less than medical intervention.
Improve Your Memory
Being able to remember to take your meds, or even remember
what day it is, is an important factor in being able to live on your own. If
you cannot remember what day it is, it’s hard to remember to pay your light bill
or buy the right amount of food to eat. Don’t worry, though; even if you have a
hard time remembering things now, you can learn methods to make it easier.
Experience Better Health in General
Taking care of your brain health will naturally rub off into
creating a situation where your entire body is healthier. The main reason is
that the same thing that keeps your brain healthy will maintain your general
health. Eating right, drinking plenty of water, getting exercise, resting, and
reducing stress are good for you all the way around.
Enjoy Your Retirement More
When you can be independent, remember your scheduled evening
out with friends, and remember to pay your bills, you will obviously enjoy your
retirement more. It's more pleasurable if you’re healthy and your mind is
sharp. You’ll have a lot more fun because you will be free of other worries
once you retire, and you’re likely to earn more money longer due to having a
sharp mind.
Keeping your mind sharp pays off in more than one way. Being
independent as long as humanly possible is also a massive benefit to the rest
of your family. The less your family worries about you, the more independent
you can be, for longer. It’s a lot less expensive for you to stay independent.
So, let's move on to look at things you can do to make your
life better and to keep your mind sharp as you age.
Eat Right and Keep Moving
When it comes to your general health, there is not a much
more effective plan than to eat right and to keep moving. The eating component
is a lot more important than doing any type of planned exercise but adding in
daily walking or other types of exercise will make it all that much more
effective.
Eat Right and Mind Your Diet
It sounds simple to eat right, but with all the fad diets
and questionable plans out there, the best thing you can do is just to eat
right for your needs. No matter what type of diet you go on, eating fresh local
produce is better for you than any other type of food. Try making half your
plate veggies and a fourth of it fruit, and you will automatically feel
healthier. Your mind will become sharper too. The reason is that your brain
needs glucose to work best, and the easiest way to use glucose in a healthy way
is from fresh produce like fruit and veggies.
·
Eat More Fruit – Some people are afraid of fruit
but if you don’t have diabetes, you can and should eat fruit. Don’t drink
fruit; eat it. Eating berries is especially very good for you. Fruit is
fantastic for brain health. The more colorful the fruit, the more you should
eat of it. Dementia is marked by plaque build-up in the brain, but fruit can
help reduce that.
·
Eat More Veggies – Just like fruit, veggies help
reduce oxidative stress which is thought to be one of the causes or
contributors to different forms of cognitive decline (including various forms
of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease). This makes veggies one of the most
important things you should consume.
·
Drink Lots of Fresh Filtered Water – Most of us
are walking around slightly dehydrated because we have learned to ignore our
thirst cues. In fact, your body wants water so much that sometimes it tells you
that you are hungry in hopes you’ll eat something with moisture. Your brain
cells require a certain balance of compounds, including water, to work properly.
If you are fully hydrated, you’ll be less likely to suffer cloudy thinking.
·
Avoid Processed Food and Sugar – Every diet that
exists asks that you stop eating processed food and sugar. No one is ever going
to say that it’s a good thing to eat this stuff. Therefore, regardless of the
type of diet that you choose to follow, stop eating processed food and sugar as
much as you can other than the occasional treat.
·
Eat Fewer Simple Carbohydrates – While today
there is no such thing as "complex carbs" or carb combining to create
a "complete" protein, the fact is that some carbohydrates can
contribute to weight gain as well as blood sugar issues in some people. White
rice, white noodles, white pizza crust are all examples of this. However, you don’t
need to stop eating it; just eat less and watch your serving sizes.
·
Eat Healthy Protein – When it comes to eating
protein, your body needs some protein to run properly. However, it can make
protein out of the food you consume if you are consuming enough calories. You
only need about 15 percent of your caloric intake to be from protein, but you
can go up to 30 percent if that makes you feel better. Choose from lean fish,
turkey, chicken, beef, pork, and tofu. Choose cage-free, grass-fed, organic
choices in the right serving sizes, which for most people is about the size of
the palm of your hand.
·
Eat the Right Serving Sizes – Whether we like it
or not, calories matter. You can find out what your calorie needs are by
looking at a chart, or you can even get tested to find out how much your body
metabolizes. Just go by the weight you want to be on the chart
(https://www.calculator.net/calorie-calculator.html). For example, a 5-foot
5-inch 52-year-old woman who weighs or wants to weigh 135 pounds can eat about
1223 calories a day if she only sits around and never moves. That’s the
baseline that she needs to maintain this weight.
·
Eat When You’re Hungry – You really don’t need
to eat at prescribed times. Just because the clock says it's time to eat,
doesn’t mean you need to eat. If you are not hungry, you don’t need to eat. If
you just eat when you have real stomach hunger, you usually can’t overeat. If
you need to be on top of your game brain-wise, it’s a great day for starting
the day with a fruit and yogurt smoothie bowl.
When you focus on eating right at least 80 percent of the
time and moving enough at least 80 percent of the time, guess what - you will
experience at least 80 percent of the results that you wanted before you
started. This is just a way to tell you that you don’t have to be perfect to
experience the benefits of eating right when it comes to your brain health. Add
in exercise, and you can eat more and still benefit from a proper diet.
Exercise and Move More
No matter your age or physical fitness level right now,
moving more is going to benefit you unless you have an illness where your
doctor asks you not to move. And that is very rare because the human body
simply works better when it’s in motion regularly. In fact, it’s said that
sitting more than four hours a day at a stretch is worse than smoking.
And, one of the very best things you can do for your health
is not to smoke. So, it makes sense that you need to move more. But, like most
things, it really doesn’t take much to make exercise pay off.
·
Do What You Love Doing – Don’t think that you
must do any type of exercise you don’t like. You don’t. You can find something
that will work and that you like doing and can get through without too much
discomfort. The important thing is to do something each day. Even if all you do
is go for a twenty-minute walk after dinner, that’s better than doing nothing.
·
Try Something Once – If you’re not sure about
something and you think it’s safe for you to try (ask your doctor if you’re
unsure), go ahead and try it at least once. You might love rebounding, hot
yoga, or pole dancing. Who knows what you will like until you give it a try?
Hint: trying something new can become the entire exercise when you’re being
active. You don’t have to do anything twice.
·
Try a Group Class – One way to get motivated is
to go to a group class. Group classes often have an emphasis on helping
motivate each other. It’s also fun to socialize at the same time. Try a group
water aerobics class or if you are at a higher level, try a group cycling class
so that you challenge yourself more.
·
Do It at Home – Even if you don’t want to be
around other people when you sweat, today you can do so much at home. There are
videos with any type of exercise class you want to join that you can watch
right on your television anytime you want to. These can be found on Amazon
Prime or you can rent or purchase them.
·
Find a Friend – If you have some energetic
friends already, get together to do some form of exercise. You can make it a
regular date with each of your friends to do something physical together. For
example, you can hike with Sue on Sunday and go to Jazzercise class with
Rebecca on Tuesday.
·
Learn from an Expert – When you are learning
something new, it’s also a good idea (if you can afford it) to take a class or
hire an expert to teach you the right form. You may also enjoy the movements
more when you know how to do them right to avoid body pain. For example, with
yoga, it’s essential to do the movements correctly to avoid injury and gain the
most benefits.
·
Join a Team – If you enjoy team sports, it’s a
great way to ensure that you get your exercise in. Between training, between
seasons, and practicing during the season and playing the games, you’ll get in
plenty of workouts. Plus, you’ll have a built-in social life too. And yes,
there are team sports in all kinds of games for all ages in many areas. If
there isn’t, you can organize one of your own.
Ensuring that you exercise and keep moving every single day
is essential. Regularly you only need a brisk 20- to 30-minute walk at a
minimum to maintain health. If you want to build muscle or lose weight through
exercise, you may need to plan something more intense. The trick, though, is to
mix it up and do different things each day to keep it fun and exciting.
It’s hard to overstress the importance of eating right and
moving more. But, the really cool thing is that it doesn’t have to be
super-strict to be effective. Again, just focus on doing the right thing 80
percent of the time, and you will be super-successful using diet and exercise
to improve your mind and keep it sharp.
Factors That Contribute to
a Dulling Mind
Let’s take a break from discussing diet and exercise to talk
about the things that contribute to a dulling mind. If you want to avoid having
those age-related memory loss moments, you can. Just work to avoid the things
that will not keep your mind very sharp, or at least know how to deal with it
if it happens to you.
·
Smoking – Smoking cigarettes is the leading
cause of most cardiovascular illnesses. It’s clear from the research that not
smoking is one of the best things you can do for your health. If you do smoke
now, consider finding a smoking cessation class to join because that’s the best
way you can help your brain health right now.
·
Poor Diet – Eating a poor diet with lots of
processed food, fat, salt, and sugar is the other factor most likely to affect
your brain health. Outside of smoking, this is the next most important way to
prevent issues with your brain health, not to mention your overall physical
health.
·
Bad Posture – One issue that really affects
people is chronic pain. Some forms of chronic pain are simply caused by bad
posture over the years. The sooner you can ensure that you are using the right
posture for living your daily life, the better. It might help to go to a couple
sessions with a physical therapist who can check your posture and show you how
to correct any issues.
·
Being Sedentary – As mentioned earlier, sitting
for more than four hours a day is said to be worse than smoking. Having said
that, you can improve your situation faster if you’re only sedentary rather
than a smoker and sedentary. Start small and make yourself get up and move
around for ten minutes every 90 minutes.
·
Stress and Anxiety – When you have a lot of
stress and anxiety, your cortisol levels are usually much higher. These stress
hormones play a significant role in cognitive decline. If you do have problems
with stress and anxiety, you’ll want to seek professional help with this to
ensure you can move forward.
·
Not Sleeping Enough (Or Too Much) – Sleep is an
essential component to your ability to heal yourself from within. Sleeping at
least eight hours a night is considered the best amount, but everyone is
different. The way to find out what works for you is to try to go to bed at the
same time most nights and sleep until you wake up without an alarm. However, if
you do tend to sleep over nine or ten hours a night (and are still tired), you
may want to get your thyroid checked.
·
Medication – Some medications can mess with your
brain in severe ways. A common medication for chronic pain is Gabapentin, and
it’s well known that it dulls the mind. Some other drugs are also starting to
be problems with patients exhibiting cognitive decline. If you are on meds and
having memory problems or other issues with your brain health, talk to your
doctor about going off those medications if possible.
·
Illness – Any type of illness can affect your
brain health and make you feel and act not as sharp as you’d like. However,
being aware of the illnesses you have and how they might affect your brain
health and your mind can give you information on how to combat the problems
through supplementation, medication, and so forth – as needed.
·
Drug Use – While some studies are suggesting
that cannabis use can improve the mind of elderly people, the research is still
out. If you need to use cannabis, realize that it might, like any other drug,
affect your memory or cognition.
·
Alcohol Use – While drinking alcohol in
moderation is tied to improved cognition and health, overusing is not.
Double-check your serving sizes and don’t get drunk if you’re going to drink
alcohol. If you are having issues, go ahead and stop.
·
Isolation – One of the saddest things that
happen to people when they get older is that sometimes they start to isolate
themselves. If you find that you tend to spend a lot of time alone because you
prefer it, that’s fine. But you may want to schedule some time with others to
avoid isolation, as this has been linked to the dulling of the mind due to the
lack of mental stimulation that other people provide.
Avoiding these factors that can contribute to a dulling mind
is important to keep your mind sharp as you age. Consider what you’ll do after
you retire when your kids grow, and when you are older in terms of remaining
social, eating right, moving, and being a contributing member of society.
Get Enough Rest and
Relaxation
Earlier, we talked about how stress and anxiety can play a
major role in mental decline. When you go to a psychiatrist, one of the first
tests that they give you is a memory test. They will ask you to memorize three
words they tell you something like ball, train, and hat and then at the end of
your visit they’ll want you to repeat those things to them. If you cannot
remember, it shows them that you have too much stress in your life.
One of the factors that contribute to this dulling of your
mind is not getting enough sleep, having your body in "fight or
flight" mode 24/7, and having too much stress hormone (cortisol) in your
bloodstream. If you have a bigger belly than the rest of you and you can’t
sleep well comfortably, it’s more than likely some of your issues are related.
There are things you can do to get more rest and relax more
to lower stress:
·
Learn to Meditate – Study after study is showing
that meditation helps people relax, lowers blood pressure, and contributes to a
good quality of life. If you don’t like meditating, you can choose to pray
instead. Studies show intense praying or meditating can relieve stress and
improve brain function.
·
Start a Yoga Practice – One of the best
exercises for your overall health, mind, body, and spirit is yoga. There are
different types of yoga, so find a class that is for a beginner so that you can
try it out without any pressure. There is a practice for every single age and
health issue.
·
Identify Stressors – One way to reduce stress is
to find out if the cause is something external. Hate your job? Dislike
something at home? Having issues in your marriage? Kids are not behaving? Money
problems? All these things lead to stress, which leads to lack of sleep, which
leads to brain decline.
·
Find Ways to Eliminate Stressors – When you
identify a stressor, if it’s possible to eliminate it or change something about
it to make it work for you then make a plan to do that. For example, if you
have a lousy time at work, start applying for other jobs or join a training
program to help you get promoted.
·
Get Back to Nature – Science has shown in many
different studies that humans do better when they get out in nature every
single day. Whether you look out the window at a magical view or walk barefoot
in the park is up to you. However, there are also positive studies about
"grounding" that lets you know that it is important to get out into
nature as much as you can.
·
Start a Journal – For some people, reducing
stress by writing in a journal is helpful. The type of journal you use depends
on your personality. You may like to use a bullet journal, a gratitude journal,
or something else entirely such as a regular diary. It’s up to you; if it helps
you experience less stress, do it.
·
Color or Draw – Some people find it very helpful
to take some time before going to bed to sit in the quiet and color or draw.
There are even studies that show that doodling or coloring reduces blood
pressure in patients with high blood pressure.
·
Read – When it comes to reading, it’s important
to choose the right thing to read when you are stressed out and cannot get
rest. Don’t read anything that will upset you; instead, read uplifting and
positive information that helps you reduce stress.
·
Create a Night-Time Ritual – To help you get
more regular sleep, you want to set up a night-time ritual that will help your
mind accept that it’s time for sleeping and resting. Stop eating a couple hours
before bed, turn off screens, avoid caffeine and sugar, and keep your room cool
and comfortable so you can sleep.
If you are particularly anxious and stressed out, consider seeking professional help. Some types of anxiety are related to health. For example, someone with low iron can experience high anxiety and heart palpitations, so anytime you experience something like this, make an appointment with your health care provider to ensure that everything is going well health-wise.
Activities That Sharpen
Your Mind
One way to keep your mind sharp is to participate in
activities that help your mind work better. Keeping your brain limber is a lot
like keeping your entire body healthy and limber – you must use it. As they
said, when you were younger, "…if you don’t use it, you will lose
it." These are activities you can choose from that will help you improve
your brain function.
·
Walk More – While this is mentioned in other
areas, it cannot be overstated that moving is essential. If you can walk, you
should seek to walk a minimum of 10,000 steps every day to maintain your
current physical fitness level.
·
Read Hard Things – At least once a day, read
something for 20 to 30 minutes that makes you really think and challenges your
ideas or requires that you also look up a little information on the topic for
full understanding. Using parts of your brain that you don’t use as much now
since graduating from school will help keep your mind limber.
·
Take Up a New Hobby – Again, learning something
new is very stimulating to your brain. By making new connections, you improve
the old connections.
·
Listen to Music and Dance – When you’re
listening to music and dancing around your house, you’re improving your mood,
your health, and reducing stress all in one. Plus, by singing the songs while
you listen and dance, you will also stimulate another area of your brain,
making it all work together better to improve your cognitive performance.
·
Take a Class – If you’re not very good at
learning things on your own and need more structure to do it, take a class. You
may, depending on your age, qualify for free tuition or be able to sit in on a
class (an audit) for free or at a lesser charge. If you want credit, though, it
can also be worth it for more reasons than mind development.
·
Do Puzzles – Doing a puzzle every day, whether a
word, number or shape puzzle, can help you work out parts of your brain that
you don’t normally work out daily. It helps keep your mind sharp and your
memory intact.
·
Do More Math – Even if you don’t normally like
math, doing math is helpful in keeping your brain sharp. Consider math puzzles,
or just doing your times tables in your head. Any math you can do in your head
can help. It’s a good thing to do when you’re waiting in line too.
·
Eat New Food – Doing things that heighten your
senses is a great way to improve brain function. Eating is a fun thing to do
that can also be good for you. Instead of eating the same chicken, rice, and
veggies for dinner tonight, try cooking something (or going out) to eat -
something brand new and different from your normal food.
·
Learn a New Language – A really great way to
stimulate your brain is to try to learn a new language. Learning a foreign
language engages all parts of your brain as you picture what the words mean,
pronounce them, and write them.
These activities will stimulate your brain in a new way. If you think of your body, we know that physical activity will increase blood flow. Doing an activity that challenges your mind and is harder than what you did yesterday will also increase blood flow in your brain and thus help you improve your cognitive ability.
Systemize Your Life to
Improve Your Memory
There is no point in trying to remember everything. Instead,
create habits that allow you to use your brain to remember more important
things than where your keys are. For example, you can systemize the following
and more:
·
Chores – Everyone has tasks that need to be done
every single day. If you set up a schedule for when you are going to do them
and do them the same way each time, you will have less trouble remembering. For
example, if you put into your calendar to clean your AC filter, you won’t
forget.
·
Where Your Stuff Goes – Work toward everything
you own having a special place to live. Your keys, your brush, your wallet,
shoes, magazines, makeup – whatever it is — it should have a home to hang out
in when you’re not using it, and it should go directly back when not in use.
You’ll spend less time looking for stuff if you make this a habit.
·
How and Where You Shop – While shopping can be
fun, for the things you buy the most you already know where the least expensive
places are. And if you shop at those places more often, you’ll get used to
where items are and finish faster. Better yet, order your groceries for
delivery, and you won’t forget a thing.
·
Automate Your Bills – Set up your bills to pay
automatically. Don’t use the bill’s system unless you have to; instead use your
bank’s bill-paying system. That gives you more control over the payments. Some
bills give you a discount if you set up auto-payments with them, so ensure that
you check that.
·
Habituate Self-Care – Washing your face, daily
walking, exercising, and doctor appointments are all important parts of your
life. If you make self-care a habit, you’re going to be less likely to skip
breakfast, your vitamins, or walking every day.
·
Trick Your Mind to Remember – Sometimes it’s
hard to remember things but the more you practice, the better your memory will
work. For example, when you meet a new person and they tell you their name,
make it a habit to repeat their name to them, and look right at them to find
something about them that will remind you of them. For example, let’s say you
met a new woman with red hair named Rachel. You would say in your mind,
"Redhead Rachel is a nurse from Boston" or whatever you need to
remember.
If you set up your life to be as automated as possible,
you’ll have a lot more brain space for more exciting activities like reading
books, taking up a hobby, or traveling.
Keep Learning and Trying
New Things
One of the most important aspects of keeping your brain
sharp as you age is to keep learning new things. The more new things you learn,
the more parts of your brain will be active. And your brain might even grow,
causing it to be even more responsive.
·
Be Active with Friends – If you don’t have
enough friends, you can make new ones. You will automatically make friends when
you are out learning and doing new things. Be open, say hello, and ask people
about themselves.
·
Take a Class – You can take academic, art,
exercise, dance, and even gardening classes. Whatever you want to learn, you
can probably take a class about it. You can take classes online and offline.
·
Read a Hard Book – One way to learn new things
if you cannot be super-active is to read hard books. Find a book about a topic
you know nothing about but are interested in, and then start reading. Keep your
dictionary close by so you can look up new words.
·
Learn a New Word Every Day – Speaking of the
dictionary, get it out and learn one new word every single day. Write down the
word, use it in as many sentences as you can in writing, then use it in your
normal day with others if you can find a way. It’s fun, and you will learn so
many new things.
·
Try to Do Something New Monthly – We all get
into our habits and that’s great, but it's good to stretch yourself and find
something new to learn or do every single month. You can often sign up for
alerts for your local area for educational and fun events near you.
The more you expose yourself to new things and new ideas -
while also systemizing the life you have so that you can focus on the new
things you want to do and see and learn, the sharper your mind will become.
Your brain does get smaller as you age, but that’s only if you do nothing to
stop it. Instead, grow your brain by experiencing life to the fullest, being
social, and never giving up learning new things.
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