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This is certainlly not new ground, but I just read an article in the Huffington Post/aol and I thought perhaps a reminder would be in order because this is a pretty important subject. People's memories seem to be harmed or helped by certain behaviors:
What to avoid:
1. Heavy consumption of saturated fat
2. Smoking
3. Not getting enough sleep
4. Being a couch potato - exercise is golden
5. Over-consumption of alcohol
What to do:
Give your brain some challenges, something new to work on or figure out.
That's good information, Escort. I was watching a program on PBS a few weeks ago. They gave another good tip for keeping the brain working at optimum efficiency. For instance, driving to the store. Take a new and different route instead of the same old way. Of course, your list of do's and don'ts are really the most important since our mental health starts and ends with our physical health.
took a course in aging once (should have "clepped" it - doing it well naturally)
the biggie that kept surfacing from the instructor (geriatric doctor) was doing sudoku - better than crossword puzzles etc as you cannot use past experience/knowledge to complete - each one draws on something new and unused and thus pushes your brain - his contention was that we can grow new neurons or something along those lines (ok, so i forgot some of it - lol) - and we should stress the brain to continue to develop -
i like to think there is some truth in that - i liked how he said if someone offered a pill that would keep our brain active/that would ward off alzheimers/dementia, the whole gamut, we would stop at nothing to get hold of that pill. but some very simple things such as abstract puzzles etc don't cost much but require effort and so many people steer clear of them.
took a course in aging once (should have "clepped" it - doing it well naturally)
the biggie that kept surfacing from the instructor (geriatric doctor) was doing sudoku - better than crossword puzzles etc as you cannot use past experience/knowledge to complete - each one draws on something new and unused and thus pushes your brain - his contention was that we can grow new neurons or something along those lines (ok, so i forgot some of it - lol) - and we should stress the brain to continue to develop -
i like to think there is some truth in that - i liked how he said if someone offered a pill that would keep our brain active/that would ward off alzheimers/dementia, the whole gamut, we would stop at nothing to get hold of that pill. but some very simple things such as abstract puzzles etc don't cost much but require effort and so many people steer clear of them.
I've been adicted to logic problems for years. I still play them but now I need to have complete quiet because I'm easily distracted.
i think we need to avoid older women.. isnt the saying we we are only as old as the women we feel? at least i think thats the saying lol ha ha ha. or was that larry the cable guy ha ha ha
I'll bet if you took identical twins and one played crosswords or math games or whatever for two hours a day, and the other didn't, they'd both forget where they placed their car keys when they hit 80. These types of tricks probably have less than 1% improvement. Just like diets. If you got good genes you don't need to diet. If you have bad genes no diet will work.
I'll bet if you took identical twins and one played crosswords or math games or whatever for two hours a day, and the other didn't, they'd both forget where they placed their car keys when they hit 80. These types of tricks probably have less than 1% improvement. Just like diets. If you got good genes you don't need to diet. If you have bad genes no diet will work.
There are epidemiological studies which contradict you, not the part about genes being important, but the part about nothing else making much of a difference.
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Interesting and would like to add
I was watching a program on PBS a few weeks ago. They gave another good tip for keeping the brain working at optimum efficiency. For instance, driving to the store. Take a new and different route instead of the same old way. Of course, your list of do's and don'ts are really the most important since our mental health starts and ends with our physical health.
