How to make the brain work more efficiently

We used to believe that an acute mind and a good memory will always be with us. But this is not so. Every day our brain attacks stress, lack of sleep and improper nutrition. All this negatively affects the processes. occurring in our head. To keep the intellect to a very old age, you need to start caring for the brain right now.

David Perlmutter, in his book Food and the Brain, talks about how to protect our brain from negative factors and how to eat right to preserve the intellect. Here are some effective tips from him.

Do not forget about sports

A good physical form is useful not only for our body, but also for the brain. Sport makes our brain work more efficiently. Scientists have proven that aerobic exercise can influence our genes associated with longevity, as well as the "growth hormone" of the brain. They even carried out experiments that proved that sports loads can restore memory in the elderly, increasing the growth of cells in some parts of the brain.

Reduce the number of calories

Surprisingly, but the fact: the number of calories affects the work of the brain. The less you eat, the healthier your brain is. The 2009 study confirms this. Scientists have chosen 2 groups of older people, measured the performance of each person. And then: one was allowed to eat anything, others were put on a low-calorie diet. In the end: the first worsened memory, the second - on the contrary, it became better.

Train your brain

The brain is our main muscle. And it needs to be trained. By loading the brain, we form new neural connections, its work becomes more efficient and faster, and memory improves. This pattern is evidenced by the fact that people with a higher level of education are less at risk of Alzheimer's disease.

Eat fats, not carbohydrates

Today, scientists have proved that the work of our brain is directly related to nutrition and the excess of carbohydrates in the diet leads to a deterioration in intellectual performance. Our brain is 60% fat, and to work properly, it needs fats, not carbohydrates. However, many still think that there is fat and be fat - it's one and the same. In fact, we are not fattening from fat, but from an excess of carbohydrates in the diet. And without useful fats, our brains are starving.

Lose weight

Scientists have proved that there is a direct relationship between the girth of the waist and the effectiveness of the brain. They examined the intellectual indices of more than 100 people with different body weights. It turned out that the bigger the belly, the less the memory center - the hippocampus. With each new kilogram our brain becomes smaller.

Get enough sleep

Everybody knows. that sleep affects the brain. However, we still neglect this fact from time to time. And in vain. Scientifically proven that with a bad and restless sleep, mental abilities are reduced. Christine Joffe, a psychiatrist from the University of California, conducted various tests with her patients suffering from cognitive disorders. It turned out that they all have one thing in common: they can not sleep for a long time and constantly wake up in the middle of the night, and during the day they feel broken. Kristin investigated more than 1,300 adults and concluded that patients with breathing difficulties in sleep are twice as likely to suffer from dementia in old age. By following these simple recommendations, you will help your brain to be healthy, keep the sharp mind for many years and become much better. Based on the book "Food and the brain."