Friday, December 2, 2016

Brain Health in Senior Years - Comfort Keepers Silicon Valley




We often observe various misconceptions and wrong ideas related with what aging does to your brain and about the things that you can do to improve your brain muscles in senior years. So, we from Comfort Keepers thought of clearing up some of the major misconceptions and at the same time guide you towards the right way to improve your brain health, memory and overall cognitive faculty.

Simple Exercise
One of the major misconceptions is that most of us think aging of the brain and the consequent decay is inevitable. However, this is not altogether a true statement. Although it is natural that with age the brain is likely to shrink but with just a bit of added measure you can also reverse the brain shrinking quite significantly. A study conducted by the University of Illinois and the University of Pittsburgh combined have found out that just simple exercises like walking or stretching can increase the size of the hippocampus, the main area of the brain responsible for memory, up to 2% in just one year. Besides, the study also suggested that seniors who exercise regularly are likely to have less amount of amyloid, the sticky plaque found in the brain in case of Alzheimer’s disease.

Eat Fish
Another common misconception is that supplements can boost memory and brain power. This cannot be asserted for sure. The evidence and reports on this matter often portray conflicting information on the results of supplements. Although vitamin E has been shown to slow down cognitive decline with age, high doses come with some obvious side effects. However, there’s a natural brain health booster that is unknown to most of us is fish. A UCLA study has found out that among the seniors over the age of 65 who ate at least one meal a week centered on fish items had higher amount of gray matter in their hippocampus than those who had less fish or didn’t have at all. The research concluded that the more you eat fish, up to three servings per week, the lesser the chances of cognitive decline.

Learn New Things
Although many of us tend to believe that playing games like crossword puzzles help to boost our brain power but in reality, it is not exactly the case. Actually what helps is learning anything new. Be it a game like crossword puzzle or a new skill like playing a musical instrument. But, keep playing the same game won’t help. Doing repetitive tasks won't help in creating new neural connection or improving your brain but learning new things will. A recent Swedish study reports that learning a new language increased the size of some brain parts. So, keep learning new things be it small games or huge task like learning a language.

Your Mind Actually Gets Better with Age
Contrary to popular beliefs our brain actually get better with age. This happens because the left and the right hemisphere of the brain sync better due to the richness of neural connection that is achieved with age. That’s why we often see wisdom and emotional balance increasing with age. Due to the same increased left and right connectivity creativity also soars in senior years. Besides, with a huge reservoir of skills, knowledge and experience accumulated throughout the whole lifespan our senior loved ones develop a crystallized form of superior intelligence.

Now, with these ideas in your head we can rightly hope that you will never allow the negative misconceptions about aging take the upper hand on you. For any help and support regarding senior health and well being do not hesitate to contact Comfort Keepers Silicon Valley!

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