We all want to age well. We hope that our skin will stay tight, our muscles will stay strong and our brains will stay sharp. We use moisturisers and make sure not to spend too much time in the sun to protect our skin. We know we need to engage in daily exercise of at least 30 minutes a day to keep physically active and maintain our muscle integrity. But how do we protect our brain from age-related diseases such as Alzheimer’s and general cognitive decline? According to the Scientific American Magazine, ‘MIND’, there are 10 things you can do to support brain function and ensure optimal brain health:
- Pick your parents well. Make sure you get good genes, a good education, a second language and music lessons (though we can’t all be so lucky);
- Engage in regular cognitive and physical activity;
- Strengthen and maintain social ties;
- Get out and explore new things;
- Chillax and be happy;
- Avoid people who are downers, especially close family members!;
- Be conscientious and diligent;
- Spend time engaged in activities that are meaningful and goal-directed;
- Be heart-healthy: what’s good for the heart is good for the brain;
- Eat a MIND diet, with fresh fruit and vegetables and fish
MIND stands for Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay. As its name suggests, this way of eating is a mixture of the Mediterranean Diet and the DASH Diet with a specific focus on including foods and nutrients that have been proven to be good for the brain. A general eating plan on the MIND diet would involve:
- Green leafy vegetables (like spinach);
- Other vegetables;
- Nuts;
- Berries;
- Beans;
- Wholegrains;
- Fish;
- Poultry (chicken or turkey);
- Using olive oil as your main cooking oil;
- One glass of wine each day
Basically the MIND diet is a focus on nutrient dense whole foods with the inclusion of generous amounts of fibre and healthy fats. Fibre from vegetables, beans and wholegrains assists to eliminate waste from the body and rid our system of harmful toxins. Fat from nuts, fish and olive oil has wide ranging health benefits, not only for the mind but for our whole body too (for more information on the benefit of fat in the diet check our out blog post: Is Fat Really Making You Fat?). Including berries in your diet provides a good source of antioxidants which helps to protect the cells of our brain and body – many people will be glad to know that one glass of red wine per day has been shown to be good for this too!
So keep your mind healthy and aging well – use it! And don’t forget to exercise, eat well and relax too.
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