Sign up for the 14th Annual Toronto Brain Bee today !

The Brain Bee is a knowledge-based competition, which tests high schools students’ knowledge of neuroscience. The original contest format was derived from the traditional spelling bee.

Our next Brain Bee competition will take place on Friday afternoon, 1 – 5 p.m. March 30, 2012 in the Medical Sciences Building, 1 King’s College Circle, Room 3153. Nearest subway stop is Queen’s Park.

The Registration Form is on-line. Registration closes on March 23, 2012. There will be no on-site registration.

There is no registration limit for each school. However, students may only participate in one Brain Bee per year, and must attend the Brain Bee that is being held closest to their secondary school location.

Don’t delay… have a look at the study guide and start preparing today…

Neuroscience – Science of the Brain [International Brain Research Organization]

Brain Facts [Society for Neuroscience]

And find out more about how you can register and prepare to compete by contacting

Professor Zhong-Ping Feng
Toronto Brain Bee Coordinator
zp.feng@utoronto.ca or toronto@brainbee.ca

To see what happens at the Brain Bee check out our 2011 video now.

Firefly is the sponsor of the Toronto Brain Bee and we hope to see you there !!

The Connection Between Good Nutrition and Good Cognition

A study that looked at biomarkers in the blood to correlate vitamins and brain function found very clear links between nutrition and brain health.

 
A new study goes deeper in understanding the connection between good nutrition and a healthy brain. Previous studies have linked individual vitamin deficiencies to cognitive decline. But new research looks at a wider range of vitamins, and even better, it uses biomarkers in the blood to correlate vitamins with brain health, both good and bad.

Many studies exploring the relationship between nutrition and cognitive health rely on people’s personal reports of their diets — a notoriously unreliable way to gather personal nutritional information. For this reason, the researchers behind the current study decided to use a more objective means of studying the nutrition-brain link: they looked at biomarkers in the blood to measure the vitamin levels in 104 participants. They also had participants take tests to measure thinking and memory function, and 42 participants had MRI scans to measure their brain volume.

The researchers found some striking connections between nutrition and brain health. People who had higher levels of B family vitamins, as well as vitamins C, D, and E had higher scores on cognitive tests than people with lower levels. The same positive relationship was found for omega-3 fatty acids, which have previously been linked to better brain health.

On the flipside, people with higher levels of trans fats in their blood had poorer performance in thinking and memory tests. Their MRI scans also revealed more brain shrinkage than people who had lower trans fats levels. Trans fats are found in a variety of junk foods, like fried, packaged, and fast foods.

The researchers also determined the portion of the cognitive test scores the participants’ nutrient statuses accounted for. They found that nutrient biomarkers accounted for 17 percent of the variation in the tests of thinking and memory function. Other variables, like age, education, and having high blood pressure accounted for more: 46 percent. But for brain volume, the role of nutrition was larger, accounting for 37 percent of the variation.

Author Gene Bowman said that the team’s findings “need to be confirmed, but obviously it is very exciting to think that people could potentially stop their brains from shrinking and keep them sharp by adjusting their diet.”

More and more research is showing that there’s a lot of truth to the old adage you are what you eat — and the same goes for the brain since, after all, it is an organ too. Genetic and environmental factors also play a role in the development of disease, but we can do our best to give our brains the nutrients they need for good cognitive health.

The study was carried out at the Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, and is published inNeurology.

 

This article originally appeared on TheDoctorWillSeeYouNow.com.

Use it or lose it…

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it’s true when it comes to your brain !

You’ve likely heard the advice many times before: If want to reduce your chances of getting Alzheimer’s disease, you need to keep your brain active with tasks such as reading, writing and playing mentally challenging games. It’s the old “use it or lose it” refrain.

But except for anecdotal evidence, there has been very little physical proof that this strategy works – until now.

A new study has revealed that people who engaged in cognitively stimulating activities throughout their lives had fewer brain deposits of beta-amyloid, a destructive protein linked to Alzheimer’s disease.

The results are based on 65 healthy seniors. They were asked a series of questions to determine how frequently they “exercised” their brains – from age 6 to the present.

The participants also underwent high-tech brain scans to measure amyloid deposits.

“The more cognitive engagement they had, the less of this amyloid there was in their brain,” said William Jagust, the study’s principal investigator at the University of California, Berkeley.

Although all the participants were considered to be mentally fit when they were enrolled in the study, the researchers suspect that those with the highest levels of amyloid will go on to develop Alzheimer’s as they grow older.

Dr. Jagust noted that it has been difficult to study the disease, partly because a diagnosis could not be confirmed until the patient died and the brain was examined in an autopsy. But recent advances in medical imaging make it possible to detect amyloid in the brains of living patients.

Amyloid plaques, which deposit between nerve cells, are thought to accumulate over a lifetime, eventually leading to interference in memory and other mental processes.

There is no known cure for Alzheimer’s, and scientists still don’t have a complete understanding of what causes the disease. Earlier research has suggested that certain genes and the aging process likely contribute to plaque formation.

The new study, published this week in Archives of Neurology, now indicates that a lifestyle factor – namely, mental stimulation – can affect the amount of these deposits. “This is the first time cognitive activity level has been related to amyloid buildup in the brain,” said Susan Landau, a member of the research team at the university.

And that’s good news because it suggests you can do something to reduce your chances of getting this dreaded disease, Dr. Landau added.

But starting to play Sudoku when you are already old and grey may be too late.

“Our findings suggest that it is a life-long pattern [of mental activity] that’s important,” Dr. Landau added.

by Paul Taylor, The Globe & Mail

Friday January 27th., 2012

Is early detection as important as a cure?

In a perfect world one day soon we will find a cure for Alzheimer’s Disease.  In the meantime much of the progress being made will increase our ability to treat this disease.

Scientists now know that if they could reduce the onset of Alzheimer’s Disease by 3.5 years, they would reduce the prevalence of the disease by 1/3.

But there’s a catch.  For treatment to be effective early detection is key.  That’s why the following article in USA Today is important.

Changes in cerebrospinal fluid may signal early Alzheimer’s                                (A. Mozes, HealthDay)

Searching for a better screen for early Alzheimer’s disease, researchers think they have found a marker of change in the brain that precedes the onset of the disease by five to 10 years.

The indicator of trouble to come, they say, is a shift in the levels of specific components of the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in the brain and spinal cord. Among patients already diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment, a drop in such levels appears to be a sign of Alzheimer’s years before symptoms develop.

The discovery, published in the January issue ofArchives of General Psychiatry, could potentially aid in the use of disease-modifying therapies, which are designed to work best if applied when a patient is still in the early stages of disease.

“These markers can identify individuals at high risk for future [Alzheimer's disease] at least five to 10 years before conversion to dementia,” study author Dr. Peder Buchhave, of Lund University and Skane University in Sweden, noted in a journal news release. “Hopefully, new therapies that can retard or even halt progression of the disease will soon be available. Together with an early and accurate diagnosis, such therapies could be initiated before neuronal degeneration is too widespread and patients are already demented.”

The study results stem from more than nine years of follow-up to prior research that had involved 137 patients diagnosed with mild cognitive impairment, a mental state that often precedes dementia.

Over the course of the study, nearly 54 percent of the patients went on to develop Alzheimer’s, while another 16 percent were ultimately diagnosed with different forms of dementia.

Specifically, among those who developed Alzheimer’s, the researchers found that key aspects of their cerebrospinal fluid dropped off in the years before. In addition, other fluid properties actually went up.

The study team said that they believe that about nine out of every 10 patients with mild cognitive impairment who experience such fluid shifts will eventually go on to develop Alzheimer’s disease.

Commenting on the study, one expert in the United States said that the new research “provides confirmation of the general concept that CSF can predict the progression of mild memory loss to mild dementia.”

Sam Gandy, associate director of the Mount Sinai Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City, added that the results of the European study largely echo those of a trial reported by researchers at the U.S. National Institutes of Health in 2010.

He noted that methods of early detection might prove valuable for research into the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease.

“Most new Alzheimer’s drugs are aimed at reducing amyloid 1/8protein plaque3/8 accumulation, and the general consensus is that these drugs will only work at early or presymptomatic stages of disease,” said Gandy, who is also Mount Sinai Chair in Alzheimer’s Disease Research. “The new paper strengthens the likelihood that CSF biomarkers can be useful for identifying that population of subjects with early or presymptomatic disease in order to recruit them into trials.”

Would you keep your new years resolutions ??

if you understood that when you eat healthier, manage stress, exercise and love more… your brain gets more blood flow and oxygen… and actually grows bigger?

Dean Ornish shared research, in 2008, that is still relevant today.  He shows how adopting healthy lifestyle habits can affect a person at a genetic level.   As things slow down over the holidays, spend a few minutes watching this video.

We want your brain to last a life time.

Wishing you a very healthy and prosperous new year !

Change your brain/change your holidays !

We hope that your holiday season will be filled with joy this year, but please don’t overlook the effect it can have on your brain. Your brain affects everything you do.

Help manage the pressure of the festive season with these simple tips…

1. Watch what you eat this holiday season

The fuel you feed your brain has a profound effect on how it functions. Lean protein, complex carbohydrates, and foods rich in omega 3 fatty acids (large cold water fish, such as tuna and salmon, walnuts, Brazil nuts, olive oil, and canola oil) are essential to brain function. Unfortunately, our diet is often filled with simple sugars and simple carbohydrates, causing many people to feel emotional, sluggish, spacey, and distracted.

What do you have for breakfast? Do you even have breakfast? Today, many children, teens, and adults start the day with either nothing at all or by loading up on simple carbohydrates, such as sugar cereals, Pop Tarts, muffins, bagels, waffles, pancakes, or donuts. In our fast paced society these foods are simple to prepare for the family rushed in the morning, but they cause brain fog and lower performance in many people. Start the day with a healthy breakfast that includes protein, such as eggs, lean meat, or dairy products.

Many people struggle with energy and mental clarity after lunch. Research shows that eliminating all simple carbohydrates at lunch (sugar, white bread or other products made from white flour such as bagels and white pasta, potatoes, and rice) can make a dramatic difference in energy and focus in the afternoon. An additional benefit of skipping sugar and simple carbohydrates at lunch is that most people do not feel hunger until dinnertime.  Taking a 100% vitamin and mineral supplement is important.

2. Kill the ANTs (Automatic Negative Thoughts) that invade your brain

The thoughts that go through your mind, moment by moment, have a significant impact on how your brain works. Research by Mark George, MD and colleagues at the National Institutes of Health demonstrated that happy, hopeful thoughts had an overall calming effect on the brain, while negative thoughts inflamed brain areas often involved with depression and anxiety. Your thoughts matter. Here are four ANT species…

• Mind reading - predicting you know that another person is thinking something negative about you without them telling you. Please remember that, “A negative look from someone else may mean nothing more than he or she is constipated. You don’t know. You can’t read minds. none of us can really read anyone’s mind.”
• Fortune telling - predicting a bad outcome to a situation before it has occurred. Your mind makes happen what it sees. Unconsciously, predicting failure will often cause failure. For example, if you say, “I know I will fail the test,” then you will likely not study hard enough and fail the test.
• Always or never thinking - this is where you think in words like always, never, every time, or everyone. These thoughts are over generalizations which can alter behavior. For example, you have a friend who asked out an attractive woman. She turned him down. He told himself that no one will ever go out with him again. This ANT prevented him from asking out anyone else for over nine months.
• Guilt beatings - being overrun by thoughts of “I should have done… I’m bad because…. I must do better at… I have to…). Guilt is powerful at making us feel bad. It is a lousy motivator of behavior.
• You do not have to believe every thought that goes through your head. It’s important to think about your thoughts to see if they help you or they hurt you. Unfortunately, if you never challenge your thoughts you just “believe them” as if they were true. ANTs can take over and infest your brain. Develop an internal anteater to hunt down and devour the negative thoughts that are ruining your life.

3. Work your brain

Your brain is like a muscle. The more you use it, the more you can use it. Every time you learn something new your brain makes a new connection. Learning enhances blood flow and activity in the brain. If you go for long periods without learning something new you start to lose some of the connections in the brain and you begin to struggle more with memory and learning.

New learning actually caused increased brain density and weight. Strive to learn something new every day, even if it is just for a short period of time. Einstein said that if a person studies a subject for just 15 minutes a day in a year he will be an expert, and in five years he may be a national expert. Learning is good for your brain.

4. Protect your brain

Protecting the brain from injury, pollution, sleep deprivation, and stress is the first step to optimizing its function. The brain is very soft, while the skull is really hard. Inside the skull there are many sharp bony ridges. Several brain areas are especially vulnerable to trauma, especially the parts involved with memory, learning, and mood stability. In order to be your best it is essential to protect your brain from injury. Wear your seatbelt when you’re in a car, and wear a helmet when you ride a bicycle, motorcycle, or go snowboarding. Make sure children wear helmets.

In a similar way, sleep deprivation also decreases brain activity and limits access to learning, memory, and concentration. A recent brain imaging study showed that people who consistently slept less than 7 hours had overall less brain activity. Sleep problems are very common in people who struggle with their thoughts and emotions. Getting enough sleep everyday is essential to brain function.

Scientists have only recently discovered how stress negatively affects brain function. Stress hormones have been shown in animals to be directly toxic to memory centers. Brain cells can die with prolonged stress. Managing stress effectively is essential to good brain function.

So take time to focus on what you need in order to Stay Bright over the holidays… !

Understanding how the brain works…

How can we begin to understand the way the brain works? The same way we begin to understand a city: by making a map. In this visually stunning talk, Allan Jones shows how his team is mapping which genes are turned on in each tiny region, and how it all connects up.

How to cut your risk of memory loss

(CNN) – When Darla Arni’s mother began showing the first signs of dementia 16 years ago, Arni worried she was doomed to the same fate.

So Arni began reading up on what she could do to stay mentally sharp. Turns out, plenty.

Arni, now 55, grew up on a farm where her mother fried just about everything in lard. Today, she skips the fried foods and eats plenty of fruits and vegetables, takes fish oil pills, goes for regular walks and meditates during a weekly yoga class.

“I’m doing everything I can,” says Arni, a public speaker and author who lives in Slater, Missouri.

And what’s the point?

Doctors who specialize in the aging brain say that dementia is not inevitable, even in very old age. Making positive lifestyle changes earlier in life, they say, can lessen the chances of the faulty thinking and flagging memory that often come with advancing years.

Dr. Gary Small, director of UCLA’s Longevity Center, says lifestyle may play a bigger role than genetics when it comes to who will fall into what he calls the “mental fog” of dementia.

Alzheimer’s is perhaps the best known and most feared form of dementia. Early onset Alzheimer’s disease, which often has a strong genetic component, may not be delayed with any lifestyle changes.

But late-life Alzheimer’s, affecting people in their 80s and 90s, has only a minor genetic component and can be delayed or prevented with lifestyle changes — especially if the changes begin in midlife, says Dr. Majid Fotuhi, chairman of the Neurology Institute for Brain Health and Fitness and a neurology professor at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

I say, ‘Dance’

Fotuhi began ballroom dancing when he was a student at Harvard Medical School. It was a break from all the studying. More than that, it was fun.Now a neurologist, Fotuhi still dances. He and his wife, Bita, have mastered the tango.

 

As an expert on how the brain ages, Fotuhi sees another benefit:  Dancing is the perfect activity to keep the brain young.

“When people say, ‘What’s the one thing I can do?’ I say, ‘Dance.’ ” Fotuhi says.

The answer to keeping the brain sharp, neurologists agree, is not sudoku or crossword puzzles — despite the conventional wisdom.

Staying physically fit is the most important element to keeping the brain young later in life, they say. Remaining socially engaged and mentally active in new and challenging ways are the two other components to long-term brain health.

Fotuhi says ballroom dancing is perfect because it combines physical activity, social interaction and the mental challenge of remembering the steps.

Growing the brain

Using new, more powerful MRI scanners, researchers have shown how even moderate exercise can actually increase the size of the hippocampus, the part of the brain responsible for forming memories, essentially turning back the clock and making the brain younger.

“We have found this treasure, this amazing phenomenon that the brain can grow,” Fotuhi says.

After 50, the brain — and the hippocampus — typically begins losing volume. The hippocampus loses 1% of its volume every two years and accelerates up to 2% per year later in life. But this loss is not set in stone.

Dr. Arthur Kramer at the University of Illinois and his colleagues took 120 older adults and put half of them into an exercise group, which walked three days a week, and the other half on a stretching regimen.

After a year, the group that walked had better memory than at the start of the study. More than that, MRI scans showed that hippocampal volume increased, on average, by 2%, effectively making their brains a year or two younger. The brains of the group that stretched continued to age.

“This is cutting edge. We can reverse the atrophy that happens to the brain with aging, particularly the hippocampus,” says Fotuhi, author of “The Memory Cure.”

A study at the University of Pittsburgh showed that exercise improved the thinking speed of previously sedentary people in their 80s. Staying in shape helps maintain a healthy blood flow to the brain, critically important because blood vessels make up one-third of the brain’s volume.

But Caterina Rosano, the study’s lead author, says the benefits to the brain of such modest exercise as walking three times a week appear to exceed the small improvement in overall fitness that exercise offers, though she’s not sure why. One hypothesis: Walking is often a social activity, which engages the brain. It also may elevate the mood of the walker.

Begin early

Exercise doesn’t help just the elderly. Another University of Illinois study found an association between aerobic fitness, hippocampus size and memory performance in preadolescent children.

UCLA’s Small says the focus on keeping the brain healthy should begin early.

“My opinion is we should begin in school,” says Small, author of “The Alzheimer’s Prevention Program,” scheduled for publication in January. “The earlier you get started, the more you’re going to benefit from it.”

Fotuhi uses the analogy of saving for retirement. The more “savings” you build up with a brain-healthy lifestyle, the better off you’ll be in your 60s and beyond.

A model life

If Fotuhi was looking for someone who has done everything right, he’d have trouble finding anyone more on the ball than 91-year-old Angela Little.

“I’ve lived a fairly healthy life. I’ve been active. I exercise. I eat moderately. I try to keep my mind as tranquil as possible, not get too upset about anything,” says Little, a retired professor of biochemistry at the University of California, Berkeley.

Little belongs to the Bay Area History of Medicine Club, attends a class on Italian literature and discusses the classics — in Italian — and attends a weekly conversation circle, also in Italian. She does tai chi and goes to the gym three times a week for weightlifting, core strengthening and stretching.

“I keep myself busy, and I keep my mind engaged,” Little says. “These are the things that keep me happy.”

Mothers and daughters

In Missouri, Arni’s mother, Dorothy, went on blood thinners more than 11 years ago. Doctors were worried about a massive stroke because the arteries leading to her brain were dangerously narrowed by plaque.

Even so, Darla Arni says, her mother’s condition has progressed to the point where she no longer recognizes her during visits. But Arni, who has a daughter of her own, says she no longer fears dementia.

“I have a lot of friends. They’re scared to death,” Arni says. “I’m not so scared. Education and awareness make a difference.”

 

By David S. Martin, CNN HEALTH

Happy Halloween ~ scary movies and real life risks…

The young girl’s face twists in terror.

The stalker’s shadow advances, ax held high. Your heart is pounding along with the music as you squirm in your theater seat.

The silhouetted ax starts to descend …

Is this your idea of a fun night at the movies?

Psychologists have long theorized about why some people revel in scary movies and have identified “thrill-seeking personalities” who are drawn to roller coasters, gambling and extreme sports. Many also gravitate toward adrenaline-charged jobs as day traders, test pilots, brain surgeons and bomb defusers, some studies find.

Now, neuroscientists are finding distinct biological differences in the brains of people who love new sensations and those who shrink from them.

“Humans have a unique situation where we will seek out things that scare us. We’ve got to ask, what could make this exposure rewarding?” says David Zald, a professor of psychiatry and psychology at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn.

One 2008 study by Dr. Zald and colleagues found key differences in how the brains of thrill-seekers and thrill-avoiders handle dopamine, the brain chemical of pleasure and reward. They had 34 volunteers answer a questionnaire assessing how much they liked novelty and then conducted brain scans. Those who avoided thrills had more autoreceptors for dopamine, which act like built-in brakes for the pleasure chemical. The thrill-seekers had few such receptors.

 

Evolutionary Roots

Dr. Zald speculates that this novelty-seeking tendency was important to evolution; humans who sought out new experiences might have been more likely to survive and pass on their genes.

And the tendency is often apparent in early childhood. Dr. Zald says he frequently hears from parents of thrill-seeking children asking his advice about how to satisfy them. (He recommends rock-climbing with close supervision.) “Mostly, those parents are hanging on for dear life,” he says.

There may be genetic differences as well. In 2008, researchers at the University of Bonn in Germany found that people with a particular variation of a gene known as Compt, which affects a brain chemical linked to anxiety, are more easily disturbed by frightening images. Those with two copies of the gene variation found it particularly hard to keep a lid on their anxiety.

At its most basic, fear is an early warning system that senses menace and buys time to flee or grab the nearest frying pan. Sights, sounds—even smells—that we associate with peril register in the amygdala, the primitive, almond-shaped structure near the center of the brain. It triggers a body-wide reaction in milliseconds, pumping out stress hormones that prime the body for action. That cascade of hormones raises the heart rate, pumps more blood to muscles and shuts down non-emergency functions like immunity and digestion.

All that happens without the impulse passing through the brain’s centers of more rational thought, according to research by Joseph LeDoux, director of the Center for the Neuroscience of Fear and Anxiety in New York. In short, fear prompts humans to run first and evaluate the threat later.

Experiments monitoring moviegoers have found that their hearts race and their skin sweats during scary scenes, just as if they were experiencing fear themselves. “The mind can imagine things to a point where the body thinks it’s real,” says Raymond Mar, an assistant professor of psychology at York University in Toronto who studies fiction and neuroscience.

One company, MindSign Neuromarketing of San Diego, uses magnetic-resonance imaging to monitor how viewers’ brains react to horror movies and movie trailers for clients in the film industry. The company also uses MRIs to peer at the brains of day traders for financial-services companies interested in differences between novice and professional traders and how the brain reacts to profit and loss.

Scared to Death

Fear can be fatal. Martin A. Samuels, chief of neurology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, has collected hundreds of reports of people whose hearts have suddenly stopped during times of extreme stress or emotion.

“The heart muscles contract involuntarily in a characteristic pattern, and they don’t relax again because of the huge rush of stress hormones,” says Dr. Samuels, who thinks that many disaster victims may die from fear rather than injuries, although obtaining proof in autopsies is difficult.

Researchers have noted a spike in sudden cardiac deaths following earthquakes and other disasters. For example; there were triple the typical number of heart attacks at 11 Worcester, Mass., hospitals on Sept. 11, 12 and 13, 2001, immediately after the terrorist attacks, according to a study in the American Journal of Cardiology. People have also suffered sudden heart attacks at times of extreme joy or excitement—such as hitting a hole-in-one in golf or being acquitted of a crime.

And in rare cases, people have had fatal reactions to make-believe situations. One woman in Wichita, Kan., died of an apparent heart attack while watching the 2004 film “The Passion of Christ,” with its crucifixion depiction, and at least two children have apparently been scared to death on amusement-park rides.

Fearful, but Safe

But some scientists think that some people love scary movies precisely because it gives them a safe context in which to experience the thrilling sensations of fear. “Areas like the amygdala are responding to the input and firing away but you’ve got this extra overlay from the prefrontal cortex,” says Dr. Zald. “We have enough control to know that we are not in danger ourselves and balance the adrenaline.”

Still another explanation for the appeal or horror movies may be the so-called “snuggle theory.” In a famous 1986 experiment, Indiana University psychologist Dolf Zillmann interviewed 36 pairs of students after showing them excerpts of slasher film “Friday the 13th.” The more distressed the woman was by the movie, the more attractive her date found her. The less distressed the man was, the more attractive his date found him.

Mary Beth Oliver, co-director of the Media Effects Research Laboratory at Penn State University, concurs: “Going to the scariest movie in town gives him the opportunity to be the protector and gives her the opportunity to show her empathy and need for companionship,” she says.

“Though I’m not particularly proud to admit it, that’s exactly what I did on my first date,” she laughs.

 

______________________

Fear Factors

If you love a good scare, you may have some of these personality traits:

• Thrill-seekers tend to be easily bored and pursue ever-more intense stimulation.
• Some find the rush of adrenaline and other fear-induced chemicals pleasurable—even addictive.
• Adolescence is just the time when males typically want to test their limits.
• While it can be a lifelong characteristic, the trait tends to drop off sharply after age 50.

 

 

—Source: Melinda Beck — WSJ reporting

It’s never to late…to think about your brain

Firefly is implementing programs for young people, but we are never too old to make a positive impact on the health of our brain.

 

“Long before you really start to notice you’re more forgetful or having trouble learning new things, your brain is experiencing changes that lead to the plaques and tangles that typically occur in Alzheimer’s,” says Daniel G. Amen, M.D., a psychiatrist and author of Change Your Brain, Change Your Body (Three Rivers Press).

Plaques are clumpy deposits of proteins that develop between brain cells in Alzheimer’s patients. They can block the brain from sending important messages. When nerve fibers that nourish the brain become twisted, they’re called tangles, another symptom of Alzheimer’s disease.

Because you’re not likely to get diagnosed early when this damage is just starting, adopt a healthy brain lifestyle now to stop symptoms before they start.

Some surprising strategies can ward off Alzheimer’s disease, such as losing weight, breaking up your workload – even brushing your teeth. Read on for brain health tips for nearly every phase of life.

In Your 30s

You’re busy starting a family, launching a career and establishing a home. If you’re like most women, you’re probably feeling frazzled. Still, habits you set now will boost brain health for decades to come.

Brain Health Tip #1: Get your heart pumping.

Aerobic exercise triggers the secretion of brain growth factor (BGF), a neuronal growth hormone, says Pierce J. Howard, Ph.D., author of The Owner’s Manual for the Brain (Bard Press) and director of research for the Center for Applied Cognitive Studies in Charlotte, N.C.

Exercise is “like fertilizer for the brain,” he says.

That’s because it creates new connections “for learning and strengthening what you already know,” he adds.

Aim to do slightly strenuous exercise, such as brisk walking or bicycling, 30 minutes a day, five days a week.

“If you’re not a little winded at the end, [your activity] hasn’t been brisk enough,” Howard says.

Brain Health Tip #2: Cut back on saturated fats.

Found in animal products such as meat, butter and cheese, saturated fats are the artery-clogging culprits behind cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure and high cholesterol, which starve blood flow to your brain.

“Brain function is improved by having good circulation,” says William Thies, Ph.D., chief medical and scientific officer for the Alzheimer’s Association.

“What’s good for your heart is good for your brain,” he explains.

Brain Health Tip #3: Steer clear of cigarettes.

If you smoke, quit. Smoking nearly doubled the risk for Alzheimer’s disease, according to a 2010 study in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease.

That’s because nicotine disrupts oxygen flow to the brain, reducing its ability to use glucose, leading to memory loss and problem-solving difficulties, Howard says.

It also raises cortisol, the stress hormone that keeps your body in a constant fight-or-flight state, he says.

“Cortisol affects the [brain’s] hippocampus, which affects the formation and retention of memory,” Howard says. “[It] literally shrinks the hippocampus over time.”

Brain Health Tip #4: Organize your priorities.

Many women try to do too much and end up stressed and exhausted, says Gary Small, M.D., director of the University of California – Los Angeles’ Center on Aging at the Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior, and author of The Memory Prescription (Hyperion).

“The problem is that we take on too many [responsibilities]” and that affects the brain’s ability to focus and remember, he says.

So start by assessing your priorities, learn to say no to demands on your time and ask for help.

Brain Health Tip #5: Brush and floss.

Your dentist’s advice may do more than clean your teeth – it may also protect your brain.

Adults in their 60s with gum disease were more likely to do poorly on cognitive tests involving memory and calculations, according to a 2010 study at Columbia University.

So follow these tips from the American Dental Association: Brush at least twice a day and floss every day.

In Your 40s

No wonder they call this the sandwich generation. You’re working a full-time job, raising children and caring for aging parents.

At the same time, hormones are shifting as you enter perimenopause, the period before menopause, when menstrual cycles cease. All these changes cause tremendous stress and rob you of time to eat well and exercise regularly.

Brain Health Tip #6: Eat fish.

Certain fish, such as salmon, tuna and mackerel, contain omega-3 fatty acids that keep the membranes supple, Amen says.

“The brain’s cell membranes need omega-3s, especially DHA [docosahexaenoic acid] to function properly, he explains. “It increases fluidity and function.”

Don’t like seafood? Take fish oil capsules instead: 1,000 milligrams (mg) daily. Make sure the supplement has both EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA, the most beneficial of the fatty acids, he advises.

Brain Health Tip #7: Stop multitasking

Feel more efficient when you’re trying to do more than one thing at a time? In fact, it takes a toll on your brain, causing stress and possibly long-term memory loss, Small says.

Interruptions are particularly damaging to memory in older adults, a 2010 study at the University of California in San Francisco suggests.

It’s also inefficient and time-consuming to constantly switch from one task to another.

“The key to ending multitasking is to know you’re doing it,” Small says. “When you catch yourself doing it, eliminate at least one task. Focus on just one thing.”

Brain Health Tip #8: Watch your weight.

Overweight, middle-aged adults are more vulnerable to dementia, according to a 2011 study in the journal Neurology.

Researchers found they were 80% more likely to develop dementia than peers with a normal body mass index (BMI).

“Fat produces inflammatory chemicals that damage the brain,” Amen says. “As your weight goes up, the function of the prefrontal cortex [which controls decision making and social behavior] goes down.”

Brain Health Tip #9: Get a good night’s sleep

Researchers have long known that sleep is essential for memory, and a 2011 study at Stanford University found that uninterrupted sleep is what counts.

It’s important for recharging the brain and forming memories, Howard says.

But sleep isn’t easy when hormones are shifting and you’re juggling multiple responsibilities. To boost odds for sound sleep, Howard recommends these tips:

-           Limit caffeine intake, especially in the six hours before bedtime.

 

-           If you wake to go to the bathroom, try restricting fluids after dinner.

 

-          If necessary, try taking melatonin, a naturally occurring hormone that causes sleepiness.

 

Brain Health Tip #10: Try meditation.

Daily meditation reduces stress and amounts of the brain-sabotaging hormone cortisol, Small says.

People who did mindfulness-based stress reduction meditation increased gray matter in areas of the brain involved in learning and memory, according to 2010 Harvard University study.

Meditation also induces feelings of relaxation and greater mental clarity. Whether you focus on your breath, a mantra or prayer, the key is to do it consistently, Small says.

“Any healthy brain strategy works best when practiced over time,” Small says. “One five-minute meditation session once a month is unlikely to do that.”

In Your 50s and Beyond

With kids out of the house, you may be breathing easier. Now you have time to focus on your own health.

Brain Health Tip #11: Learn something new.

New knowledge and skills can protect you from dementia by creating synapses and connections in the brain, Howard says.

“You may have tangles in the brain, but when you form connections, they bypass those.”

But what you learn should be different from what you already know.

For example, “if you know French and decide to [learn] Italian, it’s not going to be as effective [on your brain health] as Chinese,” Howard says.

At the same time, keep doing things you enjoy, he advises.

Brain Health Tip #12: Eat 4-6 servings of fruits and vegetables a day.

Fresh produce contains antioxidants that “help reduce the oxidative stress of brain aging and memory loss,” says Michael Wald, M.D., C.C.N., director of nutritional services at Integrated Medicine & Nutrition in Mount Kisco, NY.

It’s especially important to include berries in your diet, Wald says. Berries have anthocyanins, antioxidants that shield the brain from cell-damaging free radicals.

Vegetables high in antioxidants include beans, artichokes and russet potatoes.

Brain Health Tip #13: Get support

One key to a healthy brain is having a supportive network of people, whether relatives, coworkers or new acquaintances.

“The more quality relationships an individual maintains and nurtures, the better chance of staving off dementia,” Howard says. “Friendships reduce stress, which lowers cortisol.”

Brain Health Tip #14: Eat healthy proteins.

All proteins contain amino acids tyrosine and tryptophan, which help the brain produce neurotransmitters essential for proper brain function, Wald says.

Good sources include raw nuts, pumpkin seeds and egg whites, he adds.

Brain Health Tip #15: Take up ping-pong or ballroom dancing.

These activities challenge mind and body simultaneously, requiring skills such as anticipating the next move and good coordination.

They “activate the cerebellum in the bottom of the brain, which helps with thinking, organization and impulse control,” Amen explains.

Brain Health Tip #16: Get into nature.

Too much time in sealed homes and offices saps your brain of fresh oxygen, which is essential to clear thinking, Howard says.

So get outside for frequent breaks or at least open a window. Just spending time in nature and sunshine can boost brain health by improving mood and creating calm.

It also provides vitamin D, and people with low levels of the “sunshine vitamin” have a greater risk for cognitive decline, according to a 2010 study in the Archives of Internal Medicine.

 

 

Source: Lifescript