Keeping Your Brain Healthy: Brain-FX

What's for Dinner? Try the fish...

Dr. Antonio Convit, the medical director for the Center for Brain Health at the New York University School of Medicine, tells us that when it comes to memory, you are what you eat.

This post comes to us by way of Dr. Ellen Weber, Brain-Based Business Blog.

People speak often of feeding their brain and you hear people naming foods like fish as brain food. Dr. Convit illustrates how a healthy diet may help to cultivate and sustain your memory.

So if you’re looking for brain food … what should land on your plate…. Not surprisingly…  most foods we eat to strengthen our bodies are also good for the brain and for your well-being  too. Dr. Convit, described himself as a “modified vegetarian” who practices what he preaches….

His best advice is to stick to leafy greens, fish, and other foods that carry a low glycemic index.

Brain Break: Necessary for Learning

Rats do it, why shouldn't we? Scientist are learning what goes on in the brain of rats while learning to successfully complete a maze. And, this explains why all those time outs in sports pay off.

The experiment: Put lab rats into unfamiliar mazes and monitored their behaviors upon completion of their exploration.

Findings: The rats routinely rested after each 'test.' But their short-term memory neurons were busy at work repeatedly reviewing the maze's path - in reverse - at speeds up to 10 times faster than the original experience.

Interpretation: "This implies that it's not just during an experience that learning occurs," says David Foster, head of the research team. "If we're right, the period after the experience is just as important, but maybe more important."

"Don't feel guilty about the breaks you've been sneaking at work - they could be helping you learn." So reports Elise Kleeman in her May 2006 article in Discover magazine, titled, "Relax and Think Like a Rat," based on the work of some neuroscientists at MIT.

Next time you look at Roger Federer during a changeover, you know what his brain is doing during those 90 seconds: learning what he needs to do next.

(This post was originally seen in Barry Zweibel's Gottagettablog! under the title "In favor of (yet another) coffee break" .)

Barry writes, "All of those late-morning or mid-afternoon Starbucks' run might not be such a bad thing. Not only do they provide that added caffeine kick, but they might also be providing us the opportunity to integrate the day's learning into our longer-term memories."

Makes sense to me. I didn't really need another excuse for taking a break, but this will do nicely.

Thank You, Brain, the Book

Just ran across this book blurb, for those of you interested in learning memory tricks and tips:

THANK YOU, BRAIN, FOR ALL YOU REMEMBER: What You Forgot Was My Fault, by Dr. W. R. (Bill) Klemm, (BenectonPress, ISBN: 0-9755225-0-7.$24.95, trade paperback, 312 pages, April).

The author, a neuroscientist for 40 years, translates memory research findings into practical tips for improving everyday memory. The book is intended for students who want better grades, workers who need to improve their job knowledge, and senior citizens who are losing memory capability. W. R. (Bill) Klemm, D.V.M., Ph.D., "Memory Medic", Professor of Neuroscience, Texas A&M University.

Baby Boomer’s Lament?

Now where did I put my glasses? I know I had them when I sat down...

According to Daniel L. Schacter in his book, The Seven Sins of Memory, aging boomers are grumbling in record numbers about forgetting things.

Laboratory studies show that this is a problem, but declines in memory are not particularly large. In other words, older adults generally recall about 10 to 15 percent less that younger ones. And there is tremendous variances among older adults the degrees of memory loss.

Why do some older adults continue to show good memories even compared to younger people? Science hasn’t yet documented the reasons, other than the fact that those people with higher educations appear to retain memory capabilities longer.

The reasoning behind this is that the more education, the more growth of neurons; the more neurons, the longer it will take for deficits to show up.

I think in the end, science will show that those with healthier aging brains and good memories also have healthier diet and exercise habits as well.

Memory is a manifestation of the brain's neurological power; it's our mental muscles. When you see a person with well-defined biceps, there's usually a reason: either they lift weights, play tennis or do some other physical exercise. A good memory means a healthy brain that is well-nourished and well-used or exercised.

It wouldn’t surprise me that they eventually prove that memory is related to the degree of healthiness found in brain cells. Your memory depends on how well nourished and protected your brain cells are. This can only occur with good diet, generally good physical health, supplements of the right kinds of vitamins and antioxidants, as well as mental stimulation.

It just makes sense, doesn’t it?

You can do a lot to help keep your memory in good condition. Use it or lose it.

How will you exercise your brain today?