Your brain is the
most important organ in your body, yet you probably do the most damage to it
without realizing it.
We all get caught up
in the busyness of life and forget to take care of ourselves and when this
happens, our brain pays the price.
If you’re like most
people, you don’t realize you’re doing your brain any damage until it’s too
late.
That’s because our
brains don’t show immediate effect. When you start feeling fatigued, unable to
focus, or just drained, it’s usually because you weren’t taking care of your
brain and the damage occurred.
Fortunately, you can
often reverse the damage caused, but why let it get that far?
Instead, learn which habits you should give up
today so that you can take care of your brain. Let’s dive in.
EATING TOO MUCH SUGAR
Sugar feels and
tastes good at the moment. Your mouth loves the sweet taste and your energy
levels feel amazing in the moment. But what happens after a few hours?
You get that sluggish
feeling and suddenly you feel worse than you did before. Why? Sugar elevates
your bloodstream’s glucose levels.
High glucose levels
mean your brain produces fewer brain-derived neurotrophic factors.
This is what your
brain needs to learn and even make new memories. Eat too much sugar and your
brain can’t do either, which causes that frustrating brain fog many of us
suffer from.
Before you go off the
deep need and think you have early-onset dementia, quit the sugar
habit and see what happen.
Chances are you’ll
have more energy and be able to think clearer. Learning new things won’t feel
so hard and you won’t have to blame it on ‘aging.’
NOT GETTING ENOUGH SLEEP
Sleep is the most
important thing you can do for your body and brain, yet it eludes most of us.
As much as 35% of
adults don’t get enough sleep at night, and it causes damage to the brain.
When you sleep, your
brain gets a ‘cleaning’ as your brain wipes away the toxins from the day.
Think of sleep like a
housekeeper that comes in and refreshes everything. If you don’t sleep, the
toxins build up and you have less energy and room for healthy cells.
This makes it hard
for your brain cells to talk to one another, making it hard to function on a
daily basis.
If you go on too long
with little sleep and constantly bombarding your brain with information overload,
you could cause permanent damage.
Instead, find ways to
get more sleep. Set up a regular routine so your body knows when it’s time to
unwind and sleep.
Create a bedtime
ritual and make sure you go to bed and wake up at the same time every day.
Eventually, your brain will catch on, and sleep won’t seem as hard to get.
NOT EATING BREAKFAST
You’ve heard
breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but do you know why? When you
don’t eat for 8 – 12 hours after sleeping, your glucose levels drop.
If you continue not
eating until late afternoon, your brain has trouble waking up and functioning.
When you eat
breakfast, you replenish your body of important nutrients including water.
Most of your brain is
made up of water and if you don’t replenish it, your brain can’t function on
all cylinders.
The best breakfast to
eat for brain function is one high in complex carbohydrates. This doesn’t mean
refined breads and sugars, but instead, whole grains, eggs, and fruits.Give
yourself a good mixture of protein and complex carbs.
This will get your
brain fired up, making it easier to focus, and will fight that nagging sluggish
feeling, we all feel when we skip the most important meal of the day.
NOT EXERCISING ENOUGH
You think of exercise
for your body – mostly your muscles and fat. You move your body to retain a
healthy weight and get your blood pumping.
But did you know it
helps your brain too? While you’re exercising to get your blood pumping for
your heart, it’s helping your brain too.
Exercise gets more
oxygen to the brain which helps your brain release hormones and promote brain
cell growth.
Studies done by
researchers at U.C.L.A showed that exercise helps brains create neuronal connections,
which are important for thinking and learning.
If that’s not enough
reason, exercise also helps decrease stress hormones, which can lead to fewer
occurrences of depression.
While it may not
replace the need for traditional therapies, exercise can be a way to prevent depression
or work alongside other treatments.
TRYING TO DO TOO MUCH AT ONCE
We are all programmed to do it all. There aren’t
enough hours in the day to get everything done, right? Wrong.
Your brain needs you
to rest. There is always tomorrow. A British study shows that working too much
can cause a decline in your memory and thinking abilities.
It can become more
difficult to do abstract problem solving, remember important things, or even
pass basic assessment tests.
When you try to do
too much at one time, you think you’re multitasking, but you’re actually
overworking your brain and causing damage.
When you make your
brain switch quickly from one thing to another, you cause a cognitive decline.
Instead, focus on the
task at hand, finish what you’re doing and then move onto the next thing.
It’s time to stop
playing superhero and to start taking care of your brain.
SMOKING
You know smoking is bad
for your lungs and heart, but did you know it damages your brain cells too?
Smoking causes a
thinner cortex, which is where most of the important brain function occurs
including memory, language, and how you perceive things.
Studies also show
that if you stop smoking, it’s possible for that portion of your brain to
reconstruct itself.
While it can’t
completely recover, you can get some of the brain function back. Since your
brain cortex naturally thins as you age, smoking speeds up the process, making matters
worse.
If you smoke, get
help from your medical professional so you can quit the healthy way and not
endanger your health in any other ways.
While quitting cold
turkey may feel like the fastest way, it can cause damage to other aspects of
your health if you aren’t careful. Always work with your doctor when making
major health changes.
EXCESSIVE SCREEN TIME
You had to know this
one was coming – we all hear how about screen time is for us, yet none of us do
anything about it.
We are addicted and
it’s a hard habit to break. While you hear a lot of warnings about how screen
time hurts a child’s growing brain, what about adults?
Just because we are
fully developed doesn’t mean excessive screen time can’t hurt our brains too.
Studies show that too
much time in front of a screen damages the frontal lobe and causes the ‘grey
matter’ in your brain to slowly weaken.
Screen time causes
your brain to become more impulsive and less organized. Screen time can also
affect the white matter in your brain.
The white matter
helps the right and left brain communicate. When the communication is lost, it
affects both your cognitive and emotional functioning.
If you get to where
you’re addicted to your screen time, it can even make you act like a drug
addict, unable to function unless you have your ‘fix.’
If you think you’re
addicted to screen time, slowly break away from it. Set up timers and routines
so you know how much time you’re on your phone or computer and limit it,
especially at night.
Too much blue light
exposure at night can make it hard to sleep, which damages your brain even
further.
BOTTOM LINE
Your brain is one of the most important organs in your body. Without a fully functioning brain, it’s hard to function properly.
If you do any of
these habits, it’s time to make changes. Don’t do anything drastic, though.
Take it one step at a
time. Baby steps can lead to lifelong changes whereas drastic changes can lead
to devastation and desperation – neither of which you want to feel.
The more you take
care of your brain now, the more graceful you’ll age and the clearer you’ll be
able to think long into your senior years.
Dementia is a real
risk for anyone, but that doesn’t mean you need to help it along by not taking
care of your brain.
Give your brain what
it needs and feel your best today!
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