Although neurogenesis was considered impossible for a long time, scientists thought it was impossible to restore lost neurons. But in reality, this turned out not to be the case; you just need to develop healthy habits.
Until quite recently, the scientific community actively supported the idea that the human brain loses its nerve cells with age. Furthermore, they believed that this process was irreversible. But it turned out that this idea is not true, and our brain can create new neurons. And this process is called neurogenesis!
How To Rewire Your Brain?
Reading, studying, or even talking to someone causes amazing changes in brain structure. For example, if everyday life is filled with stress or anxiety, areas of the brain like the hippocampus (associated with memory) get inevitably affected. The brain is like a sculpture formed from our emotions, thoughts, actions, and daily habits. Next, we will try to explain how to improve the quality of life, focusing on improving brain health.
Neurogenesis: 6 Keys To Neuronal Regeneration
Here is how you can stimulate the brain’s health by spending active and healthy lifestyle:
1. Exercise More
Physical activity and neurogenesis are directly related. Whenever you put your body to work (whether it’s walking, swimming, or exercising in the gym), you are oxygenating your brain. And through this process, the body gets saturated with oxygen.
In addition to bringing cleaner, more oxygenated blood to the brain, endorphins are also stimulated. These endorphins improve your mood and thus allow you to fight stress and strengthen many nervous structures. In short, any activity that reduces stress levels promotes neurogenesis.
2. Avoid Alcohol Consumption
Researchers believe that excess consumption of alcohol reduces neurogenesis. As a result, a person may suffer from memory impairment, seizures, depression, and other mental health issues.
Thus, it is important to limit the consumption of alcoholic beverages to improve the brain’s health. However, those suffering from addiction must consult professionals’ help for the sake of their well-being.
Experts may recommend short-term rehab treatment that includes a 7-day or 10-day rehab program, depending on the condition of the person. Such programs help a person to be prepared for long-term treatments. Getting such professional assistance will surely improve a person’s overall health.
3. Have A Flexible Mind
There are many ways to develop the flexibility of the mind. To do this, you need to try to keep it active. When your brain is active, it will become much easier for it to process the data. A person can achieve it through various activities. Apart from exercising more, here are some more ways you can train your brain and make it stronger:
- Learn something new. You can learn any language, dancing, a board game, playing a musical instrument, etc.
- Reading: Read every day; it keeps you interested and curious about everything that happens around you (and new disciplines in particular).
- Critical perception of things: The search for truth and the formation of one’s own opinion.
- The openness of mind: Be susceptible to everything around, e.g., socialization, travel, discoveries, and hobbies.
4. Proper Diet
The biggest enemy to brain health is a food rich in saturated fats, and you need to replace them with foods rich in Omega-3 fatty acids. Many do not see the connection between the brain and the digestive system. They just don’t understand that malnutrition is very bad for their brain. But everything we eat affects the brain, and therefore, in order to remain healthy, you need to eat right.
It is important to realize that the nutrients found in food trigger certain chemical reactions. In turn, they affect the work of all body systems. For example, if you eat a lot of flour, say, bread and pasta, you will constantly feel sleepy. This happens because such food contributes to fatigue and sleep hormones.
Therefore, experts always advise eating more vegetables, fruits, and protein foods. Of course, we do not want to say that you should completely give up your favorite pizza. However, remember that your brain will perform much better with a balanced diet.
5. Say Good-Bye To Bad Habits
Drugs and smoking (tobacco is also a drug) can impair brain function. They also weaken motivation and interfere with cognitive processes and the emotional sphere. As a result, thinking, attention, memory, and the ability to develop plans suffer.
If you think that smoking does not harm the brain, you need to correct it. The chemicals in tobacco smoke directly affect neurons. In addition, smoking causes cancer of the lungs, mouth, stomach, and liver. Thus, you need to say goodbye to such bad habits that can harm your brain’s health.
6. Meditation For Brain’s Health
The benefits of meditation for the benefit of the brain are undeniable. There are many physical and mental benefits a person can achieve by meditating. In addition, meditation promotes the development of certain cognitive abilities, namely attention, memory, and concentration.
It allows a person to better understand reality and properly direct his or her anxieties and manage stress. During meditation, the brain of a person works in a different rhythm. First, it produces higher alpha waves which gradually generate gamma waves. Second, such waves help to stimulate neural connection and neurogenesis.
Take Away
In conclusion, we note that all these six principles that we talked about are not so complicated. If it sounds difficult, you can always start by taking small steps. For example, start meditating from today and then, later on, focus on changing your diet along with physical activities.
Slowly incorporating changes in your lifestyle will help improve your brain’s health and improve your well-being. Then, try to put them into practice and take care of the health of your brain in this way. Even a lazy person can follow these simple and easy ways to improve brain health.
