How to Keep Your Brain Healthy
As we age, brain functions begin to decline, but they can be maintained through mental challenge, proper nutrition, exercise, stress control, safety habits, and good sleep.
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As people live longer, the prevalence of brain disorders increases. The aging process typically begins to affect the brain before the age of 40, when cognitive abilities such as processing speed and memory begin to decline. Fortunately, there are several steps to slow this process and keep your brain healthy for years to come. Here are the most important tips from Dr. Zeiad Yossry, Professor of Neurosurgery and Parkinson's Disease, on how to maintain brain health.
Challenge your mind:
The more you engage your brain, the more you can slow down the aging process. In normal aging (without diseases like dementia), your cognitive abilities decline due to the loss of connective tissue. The brain, like any other muscle, needs exercises to stay strong.
It was once believed that the brain's ability to adapt peaks in childhood and then declines significantly as we age. However, recent research has shown that neuroplasticity can occur throughout our lives. Neuroplasticity refers to the brain's ability to adapt its function, allowing for the learning of new information and new ways of thinking. Therefore, when you use your brain in different ways, you can activate different neural pathways and increase neuroplasticity.
Ways to stimulate your brain:
• Take a new route when driving to a familiar place.
• Learn a new language, sport, or skill.
• Avoid using calculators.
• Replace TV with brain games or a book.
• Play games that rely on memory or future thinking (chess).
• Try to remember small details, such as last weekend’s activities.
Feed your brain with a healthy diet:
• The brain needs a balanced diet, low in cholesterol and saturated fat.
• Protein and healthy unsaturated fats are particularly important for brain development. Therefore, fish is sometimes called "brain food."
• The body converts the protein you eat into the specific proteins it needs.
• Your brain needs vitamins and minerals, and research indicates that antioxidants help protect brain cells.
• Avoid overeating, as reducing calories helps slow age-related brain changes.
• Do not smoke and limit caffeine.
Stay physically active:
• Exercise daily if possible because it reduces depression and reduces risk factors. Even a simple walk helps you think clearly.
Always follow safety:
• Head injuries are the silent epidemic of the brain.
• The main causes of head injuries in adults are car accidents, work accidents, falls, assaults, and sports injuries.
• Take proper safety precautions, including wearing seat belts and sports safety helmets.
Manage stress and depression:
• Short-term stress can improve brain performance, as the brain produces substances that stimulate many of the body's organs to accelerate and perform more effectively.
• Chronic stress damages the brain due to the effect of the elevated hormones during periods of stress. These hormones can kill cells.
• The steps you take to reduce stress preserve neurons and help maintain mental abilities.
• One of the most difficult stressors is depression. Severe depression causes a degree of brain damage, affecting memory and slowing down brain metabolism.
Tips to reduce stress:
• Meditate to lower blood pressure.
• Relax by tensing and then relaxing individual muscle groups.
• Exercise because converting internal stress into external action can relieve stress.
• Keep a balance between work and leisure in your life.
• Let go of things that are out of your control.
• Make time for yourself.
Rest and sleep well:
• During deep sleep, the brain repairs itself and boosts the immune system. Therefore, lack of sleep leads to fatigue, suppressed immunity, and impaired memory, concentration, and mood.
Patient Guide
Dystonia is a neurological disorder that causes involuntary contractions that affect movement. Deep brain stimulation can be used to control movement coordination.
Parkinson's disease is a chronic neurological disorder that affects movement due to a lack of dopamine in the brain, causing tremors, stiffness, and slowed motion, and requires deep brain stimulation.
Functional neurosurgery has witnessed tremendous progress, revolutionizing the treatment of chronic neurological disorders such as Parkinson’s disease to offer patients a better quality of life.