Below are a few of the best links I’ve come across so far this month on the web with respect to brain exercise, brain games, memory improvement, anti-aging and general overall brain health and fitness. I hope you will find them as informative and useful as I did.

Below are the links with article summaries:

7 surprising ways to keep your brain young – Around the time we hit 30, our brains begin a slow, steady downward trajectory — or so popular wisdom would have it. In fact, according to a flurry of new reports, you can counteract age-related changes in the brain with a surprisingly simple regimen of activities guaranteed to nurture and fortify your mental muscle-power.

Experts reveal best ways to save an aging brain – Most people are worried about losing their memory as they age, and a new study shows it’s a valid concern: In fact, at 53 percent — more than half of all people — have at least a minor mental decline in their 70s and 80s, and about 16 percent develop more serious problems with memory and other mental functions as they age. What’s more, when the researchers took a close look at this group, whom they call “cognitive maintainers,” they found evidence that although genes or illnesses can increase the risk of memory loss, there are still many things you can do to save your aging brain.

Workouts to keep your Brain sharp – Like physical exercise mental activities are also necessary for every human being. There are several activities within your limit which can effectively make your brain strong & sharp.

The Truth About Energy Drinks – Do energy drinks really rev up your body and sharpen your mind? To help you separate the science from the sales pitch, we analyzed the claims and ingredients of five of the most popular potions on the market, and rated them from best to worst.

Inexpensive Magnesium Proves Impressive at Protecting the Brain – The latest feather in magnesium’s cap is its newly discovered ability to protect the brain and improve the neurological outcomes of infants and adults who have had oxygen deprivation to their brains.

Games and Fun – Stress results in increased cortisol, anxiety, depression, cognitive dysfunction, and adverse bodily functions. One simple remedy for stress reduction is to increase the amount of fun in your life. Consumers indicate that two primary reasons they play online brain games are for stress reduction and mental stimulation.

Related Posts:

brain exercise, brain exercises, brain fitness, Brain Games, brain power, health, memory improvement, online brain games

Tis true.. Walking backwards may be good for your brain.  This is because it fits the criteria of a neurobic activity.  And remember, neurobic activities can causes new neural connections to grow in your brain – and that’s a good thing!

Recalling an earlier post I wrote, in order to be a brain building neurobic activity it must have one or more of the following going for it:

1) Involve one or more of your senses in a novel context.
2) Engage your attention.
3) Break a routine activity in an unexpected, novel way

I’d say walking or running backwards fits the neurobic criteria quite well.

Exercising backwards is also called retro-exercise. Retro-running has been popular for many years in Europe. In fact, they have races which vary from sprints to the 26.2-mile marathon. Additionally, I have personally witnessed numerous people walking backwards as a form of exercise in public parks in China.

Here are a few of the many benefits of walking or running backwards:

  • Running backwards burns a fifth more calories than traditional jogging
  • 100 steps backward walking is equivalent to 1,000 steps conventional walking.
  • Your balance increases
  • Your hearing increases
  • Your peripheral vision increases
  • Helps people recover from knee-joint surgery and injuries ranging from the ankle to the groin
  • Your tummy becomes your back and creates a nice reaction for your abdominals
  • An athlete who can walk forward at a given pace that enables his heart rate to rise to 106 bpm will see it soar to 156 bpm while walking backward at the same pace.
  • Running forward at a 10-minute mile pace may raise the heart rate to 151 bpm, while running backwards at the same speed raises it to 174 bpm.

The drawback, of course, is a lack of hindsight.  Because of this it’s recommended that newcomers to backward walking or running do it gradually on a flat track or treadmill to avoid potholes, signs, cars and other hazards.

Sources:

bodyresults.com

pyroenergen.com

darkwing.uoregon.edu

stopgettingsick.com

msnbc.msn.com

medicinenet.com

Resources:

Keep Your Brain Alive: 83 Neurobic Exercises Walking Backwards May be Good for Your Brain

Related Posts:

Will Writing With The Opposite Hand Strenghten Your Brain?

Neurobics and Other Brain Boosters

Juggling Can Boost Brain Power

Related Posts:

brain, brain fitness, health, Neurobics, retro exercise, retro walking

You’ve probably heard that an apple a day keeps the doctor away, right?  Well a recent study suggests that a couple of apples a day might keep the neurologist away.

“Apples have just the right dose of antioxidants to raise levels of acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter that’s essential to memory and tends to decline with age,” says Tom Shea, PhD, director of the University of Massachusetts Lowell Center for Cellular Neurobiology and Neurodegeneration Research.

Antioxidants help preserve memory by protecting brain cells against damage from free radicals. A study on mice at Cornell University found that the quercetin in apples may protect brain cells from the kind of free radical damage that may lead to Alzheimer’s disease.

A study Shea coauthored with Amy Chan, PhD, published last year in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, found that mice suffering from the equivalent of normal human age-related memory loss or early Alzheimer’s disease got a memory boost when they consumed a daily dose of apple juice. After just 1 month, those mice did a far superior job on a maze, which tests short-term memory, than the animals that didn’t get the drink.

Besides helping your memory and protecting your brain, apples have also been shown to lower your risk for many cancers.

Shea recommends consuming two-to-three apples or one-to-two 8 ounce glasses of apple juice each day.

References:

New Thinking on Memory

10 Health Benefits of Apples

Related Posts:

alzheimers, antioxidants, apple juice, apples, brain, brain fitness, brain food, fitness, health, how to improve memory, improve memory, memory

It’s the end of the year, and I’m sure many people are starting to put down on paper their New Year resolutions list.  Most people are probably putting something down on their list that has to with physical fitness, like losing weight or starting up a regular exercise program.  In terms of brain health, good physical fitness is good for the brain.  In fact, studies have shown that physical exercise can help reverse brain decline as we age.  But physical fitness is only one aspect of overall brain fitness.

So, what does brain fitness actually mean, anyway?  Well, I recently came across a great definition for brain fitness over at Mind Tweaks.  It goes as follows:

Brain Fitness is: 1. A state of general good health and well being of the brain 2. The ability to perform specific mental tasks and functions at normal or above skill levels.

Just what kind of things can you do to enhance your brain fitness level next year?  Educator Alvaro Fernandez boils it all down to 4 main items, or The 4 Pillars of Brain Health, as he likes to call them.

They are:

  1. Mental exercise
  2. Physical exercise
  3. Nutrition
  4. Stress management

Expanding upon these 4 pillars a bit, we might include things such as:

  • Regularly play a variety of good brain games
  • Eating brain healthy foods
  • Spending more time with others
  • Reducing stress
  • Getting enough rest
  • Learning a new language
  • Taking a course on something new to you
  • Learning to juggle (yes, it’s true)
  • Learning to meditate
  • Enhancing your spiritual life
  • Regular physical exercise

This list is really just a short list of the many, many things you could do next year to enhance your brain fitness.

So by all means, put something down on our New Years resolution list that has to do with enhancing your physical fitness (pillar #2).   But in addition, why not include something from pillars #1, 3 or 4?  If you do, you’ll be improving both your body AND your mind!

Have a Happy and Healthy New Year!!

References:

Mind Tweaks

The 4 Pillars of Brain Health

Brain Food

Juggle to Boost Brain Power

Related Posts:

brain fitness, brain health, exercise program, fitness, health, new years, new years resolution, phsical fitness
Improve the web with Nofollow Reciprocity.