Mental Health and Longevity
Here’s How to Keep the Brain Young and Active in Ten Steps.
Practical lifestyle habits to increase neuroplasticity and rewire the brain by initiating neurogenesis
Natural Ways to Maintain a Healthy Brain
Our brain is a critical organ for survival, well-being, and longevity. Keeping it young and active by gently and incrementally challenging it without too much stress can bring many health and longevity benefits as we age.
Research into neuroplasticity indicates that we can rewire our brains by initiating neurogenesis. I see the brain as a muscle. We can grow it and keep it healthy with regular stimulation.
Creating cognitive reserves is one of the coping strategies for mental decline as we age. Aging is inevitable. However, sharpening our brains at any age is possible, thanks to neuroplasticity.
In one of my previous articles, I introduced the concept of neurobics from cognitive science, aiming to enhance our brain capacity using daily activities as brain boosters.
Our brain regions can nourish, grow, and change for better capabilities with constant stimulus and learning.
This post introduces ten practical tips to keep our brain active and young, briefly focusing only on the key points.
I present them in no particular order. This is because some points might be more important than others for different people. I leave it up to the audience to choose relevant ones for assessment.
1 — Restorative Sleep
The health benefits and criticality of sleep for survival and well-being are indisputable. Yet, while we all sleep, some of us lack high-quality and restorative sleep.
In addition, sleep deprivation has significant adverse effects on the brain. Revitalized sleep can keep our brains active and young.
Sleep serves as a restoration mechanism for the body and the brain. It affects hormones and neurotransmitters. Two hormones play a critical role in sleep quality and deprivation.
They are cortisol and melatonin. These hormones play opposite roles in the sleep cycle. For example, while cortisol keeps us awake, melatonin makes us sleepy. When one is higher, the other gets lower.
Balancing these hormones is important to have restorative and high-quality sleep. Elevated cortisol, which can be caused by sleep deprivation and chronic stress, can adversely affect the function of the brain.
The attached article provides valuable perspectives on cortisol and melatonin.
2 — Mindfulness Practices
Mindfulness practices have significant beneficial effects on the brain. Awareness, acceptance, focus, attention, task switching, empathy, and compassion are the key components of mindfulness.
By being and remaining mindful, we live in the moment. Observing our thoughts and emotions without judging them can pose many mental health benefits. For example, we feel less anxious when we live in the moment refraining from past regrets and future concerns.
In addition, regular meditation daily, around 15 to 20 minutes, can calm the brain and reduce our anxieties. The beneficial effects of meditation on the brain have been intensely studied by neuroscientists, psychiatrists, and psychologists.
Mindfulness practices like meditation can also increase our self-compassion and self-love while making our connections with others more effective.
I shared my findings and perspectives on mindfulness practices in this article.
3 — Recreational Reading and Listening
Reading and listening are two different tasks activating different brain regions. Therefore, reading is not just for learning even though it is one of the most beneficial benefits.
We can also read for recreational purposes to improve our imagination and connect with characters and ideas in fiction books and stories. Our brains love stories. Reading and listening to stories can enhance neurocircuits in the brain. In addition, listening to music can also enhance brain activities and boost our mood.
If reading is not possible at certain times, we can also listen to fiction books and stories. Audiobooks are enjoyable, convenient, and therapeutic. I shared my experience in this article.
4 — Therapeutic Writing
My years of research into therapeutic writing indicate that it can calm the amygdala (alert system of the brain), strengthen the cortex (executive system), reduce chronic stress, and relieve symptoms of mental conditions.
In short, therapeutic writing has a grounding effect on the whole brain.
In addition to its mental health and psychological benefits, such as improving mood, therapeutic writing can also improve our physical health.
For example, studies indicate that it can reduce blood pressure, improve lung and liver function, and boost the immune system.
As I covered the benefits of therapeutic writing in an article, I won’t repeat them here. You may check my findings if this item is an interest to you. In addition to my professional writing, daily therapeutic writing puts me into an altered state of mind easily and effortlessly.
5 — Mindful Daily Chores
We can turn daily chores into brain boosters. They all revolve around mindfulness practices such as focus, attention, task switching, and working memory.
These cognitive constructs help us activate several regions and keep the thinking brain healthy. We can keep our brains active and fresh when we intentionally and mindfully use daily chores like cleaning dishes, washing clothes, brushing our teeth, and gardening.
When undertaking these activities, we might have some resistance and impatience as they are usually mundane tasks. The secret is to recognize uncomfortable emotions and deliberately maintain focus and attention. This approach can be meditative and therapeutic for the brain.
For example, I used to practice only one hand while brushing my teeth or writing my journal. When I tried to use my left hand, it was initially challenging and tiresome. The urge was sturdy to use the right hand. But, after a while, I got used to it.
6 — Laughter and Smiles
Laughter and smiles are not only for fun, but also they have therapeutic effects in dealing with chronic stress. The psychological and neurobiological effects of laughter and smiles are well-researched. Therefore, they are used by therapists.
Laughing and smiling intentionally can enhance pleasant brain activities. For example, when we deliberately smile, the brain can release neurochemicals such as serotonin, endorphins, and dopamine to reduce stress. These neurotransmitters not only lubricate the neuro-circuits for better functioning of brain activities, but they also serve as an antidepressant.
I learned that laughter therapists could help reduce anxiety and chronic stress for people suffering from mental health conditions structurally with guidance, as explained in the attached article.
7 — Joyful Movements
The value of movement for physical and mental health is indisputable. Unfortunately, some of us don’t like exercise finding them dull and tiring. However, we can turn physical training into fun by doing festive activities.
When our workouts are joyful, the brain and the body desire to benefit. We all have different hobbies. For me jumping on a trampoline, dancing to my favorite music, calisthenic workouts, yoga, and swimming are pleasurable.
I don’t make the extra effort and don’t need the motivation to perform these activities. I introduced the importance of dancing for longevity.
As I introduced in the attached article, joyful movements significantly affect our brain chemistry. Some intense workouts can substantially increase the amount of BDNF (Brain-Derived Neuro Factor) in the brain. BDNF is essential to keep our brains active and young. It is a tool to increase our cognitive reserves as we age and get prone to mental decline.
8 — Social Connections
Our brain is hard-wired for social connections. We cannot live in isolation. We evolved as tribal creatures because the brain’s limbic (emotional) part is an open system craving stable relationships with others. While solitude can be desirable for some of us, loneliness is a cause of emotional and mental conditions for many of us.
Social connections can significantly activate various brain regions. Longevity studies, particularly in Blue Zones, indicate the importance of social connections for the brain and mental health. Socially engaged people experience fewer mental health diseases.
This article mentions that we desire social connections from genetic and neurological predispositions. Therefore, I firmly believe that we need to find ways to improve our social intelligence to survive and thrive in society.
9 — Time-Restricted Eating & Energetic Nutrition
I penned many articles about time-restricted eating, focusing on intermittent and long-term fasting for physical, mental, and spiritual health. However, the critical point I touched on in the article is the importance of ketosis for the brain.
From my research, observations, and personal practice, I noticed that ketones provide cleaner alternative energy to the brain even though the brain mainly uses glucose. β-hydroxybutyrate serves as an energy source for the brain and a signaling molecule to reduce inflammation and oxidative stress.
In addition to fasting, intense exercise and ketogenic diets can produce ketosis. Of course, diet and exercise are personal matters and depend on many factors. However, customizing them with assistance from our healthcare professionals can significantly improve our brain and mental health.
The brain needs energy constantly. It never stops working. To form vital energy, it also needs nutrients like essential fats, amino acids, enzymes, clean water, fresh air, and minerals.
As I mentioned in one of my recent articles, in addition to many physical health benefits, such as making us insulin sensitive to shrink our waistline, fasting can change brain chemistry.
10 — Emotional Regulation
Emotional regulation is critical to coping with stress. Excessive stress, especially when it turns chronic, can cause severe mental issues. As I pointed out in this article, chronic stress is the root cause of many ailments.
As mentioned in this article, emotional stress is the more significant part of the iceberg for energy deficiency in the body and the brain. Therefore, emotional stress can prevent us from living a satisfying life.
Emotional regulation requires increasing emotional intelligence and improving emotional maturity to reduce emotional stress. When we gain these capabilities, we can experience an abundance of energy so our brains can thrive and serve us longer.
I provided handy tips and a structured framework to deal with emotional toxicity and prolonged stress, especially at work.
Conclusions and Takeaways
The brain is a never resting and delicate organ. So even though there are medical and technological interventions to boost brain activities that can be necessary for some of us, I choose to use natural and safe ways to keep my brain active, functional, and high-performing.
Chronic stress, inflammation, toxins, and hormonal and neurochemical imbalances adversely impact the functions of the brain. Thus, we can significantly improve our brain function, mental health, and cognitive performance by considering these ten points.
Most of these points can increase neuroplasticity, leading to neurogenesis for rewiring our brain to serve us better at any age. In addition, these activities can help us create cognitive reserves to protect us from mental declines as we age.
Joyfully stimulating the brain has been an optimal investment in my mental health and performance. Finally, I hope these points can provide valuable perspectives in designing your lifestyle goals.
Thank you for reading my perspectives. I wish you a healthy and happy life.
As a new reader, please check my holistic health and well-being stories reflecting my reviews, observations, and decades of experiments optimizing my hormones and neurotransmitters. I write about health as it matters. I believe health is all about homeostasis.
Petechiae, ALS, Metabolic Syndrome, Type II Diabetes, Fatty Liver Disease, Heart Disease, Strokes, Obesity, Liver Cancer, Autoimmune Disorders, Homocysteine, Lungs Health, Pancreas Health, Kidneys Health, NCDs, Infectious Diseases, Brain Health, Dementia, Depression, Brain Atrophy, Neonatal Disorders, Skin Health, Dental Health, Bone Health, Leaky Gut, Leaky Brain, Brain Fog, Chronic Inflammation, Insulin Resistance, Elevated Cortisol, Leptin Resistance, Anabolic Resistance, Cholesterol, High Triglycerides, Metabolic Disorders, Gastrointestinal Disorders, Thyroid Disorders, Anemia, Dysautonomia, cardiac output, and urinary track disorders.
I also wrote about valuable nutrients. Here are the links for easy access:
Lutein/Zeaxanthin, Phosphatidylserine, Boron, Urolithin, taurine, citrulline malate, biotin, lithium orotate, alpha-lipoic acid, n-acetyl-cysteine, acetyl-l-carnitine, CoQ10, PQQ, NADH, TMG, creatine, choline, digestive enzymes, magnesium, zinc, hydrolyzed collagen, nootropics, pure nicotine, activated charcoal, Vitamin B12, Vitamin B1, Vitamin D, Vitamin K2, Omega-3 Fatty Acids, N-Acetyl L-Tyrosine, and other nutrients.
Disclaimer: My posts do not include professional or health advice. I only document my reviews, observations, experiences, and perspectives to provide information and create awareness.
As part of my creative non-fiction writing goals, I’d like to share a few stories that might warm our hearts with a bit of humor into weighty topics.
Sample Humorous Stories
Finally, After Burning Her House, Georgia Found Enlightenment
Hilarious Tips to Prevent Brain Atrophy and Keep the Gray Matter Giggling
8 Psychological Points I Had to Unlearn and Relearn the Opposite
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