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" I Forgot What I Was Doing...."

Copyright © 2012 Lynne Hagan

Republish: EasyPublish™ Published: 18Oct2008 Word count: 506 Viewed: 570 time(s) Get Free Content For Your Site

So, you forgot what you were doing? And you think that you are possibly losing your mind. Sound familiar? I know I'm not the only one that walks into a room to get something and then have no idea what I went into the room for. Let's face it; losing mental acuity can be very frightening.

As we get older there are the obvious changes going on. The fine lines and wrinkles, the sagging butt and eyelids, the chicken neck, flabby arms - ok - I'll stop. But even more unsettling about aging is that our mind starts to go too. Just as there are things that we can do to slow down the physical changes, there are also things we can do to keep our minds younger.

What Was I Talking About?

Oh yeah,

Keeping Our Minds Younger

Brain Food
One of the most important things we can do for both body and mind is to eat the right kinds of foods. Fruits and vegetables are rich in antioxidants. Eating enough fruits and vegetables that are rich in antioxidants has other benefits too. They increase blood flow to the brain and help our bodies produce more acetylcholine which helps with mental function. Blueberries are one of the berry good brain foods. According to research, eating a little more than a cup of blueberries a day can improve your memory in a matter of months - if you can remember to eat them.

Stress
Stress can be a big factor in our mental decline. Research tells us that those of us who are prone to being "stressed out" have a higher risk of cognitive impairment. Identifying the source of our stress is the first step in managing it. I find that certain types of stress keep me a little sharper. Tough deadlines and performance incentives have kept me a little more on my toes. I also have found that exercise, yoga and meditation help me stay focused and keep the stress level manageable.

Sleep
Research shows that getting a good night's sleep strengthens memory recall. While we sleep our brain is busy storing and sorting through information from the day. Not sleeping enough encourages those blank moments and lack of focus. Lack of sleep also affects your mood and performance.

Stay Active
One of the reasons that we suffer mental decline as we age is not staying active, both physically and mentally. Our memory, like our muscle strength is a "use it or lose it" proposition. The more you work out the body and the mind the better you'll be able to process and remember things. Tackling unfamiliar tasks for example boosts short term memory and builds up the part of the brain that encodes information. And regular exercise increases oxygen to the brain and is just all around good for mental and physical stamina.

Many of us have some bad habits which doesn't help our ability to process and retain information. The good news is that barring some terrible disease or serious injury, we can improve our memory.

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