Keeping Your Mind Sharp as You Age

Cognitive health is the ability to think, learn, and remember clearly, and it can be affected by genetics, lifestyle, and environment. Motor skills, sensory responses, and emotional responses may be used as indicators for healthy neurological activity. There are many changes that come with aging, and cognitive health helps us maintain our independence for as long as possible. Try out these tips to keep your mind sharp as you age.

Knock Bad Habits

While making new healthy lifestyle choices is the right route to promote a sharp mind, you’ll need to reduce or cut out some habits that can cause a setback in your progress:

• Watching too much TV
• Smoking
• Drinking alcohol and sugary beverages
• Having negative thoughts
• Doing anything that negatively affects your hearing, like cranking up the volume

Exercise

Exercise is good for both your body and your brain, which is great for developing problem-solving skills and new ideas. Here are some physical exercises that send blood to the brain and support memory and learning abilities:

• Aerobics
• Dancing
• Tai Chi
• Weight Training
• Yoga

Socialize

Socializing with others for even a few minutes is a great way to stay mentally active. Interaction with others challenges our brains and makes us feel better. Science proves humans don’t do well in isolation.

• Join a new club
• Volunteer with a local organization
• Work part-time
• Regularly invite friends over
• Say yes to invitations you receive

Eat Right

A bad diet doesn’t just add pounds to the scale but can also affect your brain. Unhealthy eating habits can impact short-term, episodic, and long-term memory. Some food to help you retain your memories are:

• Oysters
• Dark chocolate
• Avocados
• Grapefruit
• Vegetables

Sleep Well

Not getting enough sleep can increase the probability of dementia and other memory-related conditions. As you sleep, your body heals and recharges, including the brain. The brain flushes toxins while you sleep, which lowers your risk of developing Alzheimer’s. So, if you want to keep your mind sharp, make sure you aren’t sabotaging your slumber and establish healthy sleeping habits.

Learn Something New

Learning new skills and information is a great way to keep your mind active and stay abreast of what’s going on around you. In fact, allowing a small amount of time every day to practice a new skill may be more effective, as incremental learning is better for task retention. There are a variety of options for you to learn about whatever interests you:

• Listening to different music
• Playing a new game
• Reading a book on an unfamiliar subject
• Starting a craft or piece of art
• Planting your first container garden
• Taking a class, attending a lecture, or joining a club
• Getting a new piece of technology

Read

Reading, especially out loud, is a great cognitive exercise since it lights up multiple parts of your brain. This is because your brain needs to work to translate what you see and comprehend into speech. It adds an extra cognitive step to an already robust psychological workout.

Use Your Senses

The more senses you use, the more you stimulate your brain and make connections. Challenge your senses daily, especially when you try something new:

• Try to guess the ingredients by smell while you cook
• Experiment with spices in your dishes you’ve never used before
• Give sculpting or ceramics a try and notice the feel and smell of the clay
• Take a solo hike and listen to the trees and animals around you
• Stroll through a craft store and touch the variety of fabrics

Learn more about your options for memory care with individualized resources based on your needs through our 5-minute survey powered by Roobrik here.

At Life Enriching Communities (LEC), we’re committed to ensuring patrons feel well-equipped to plan their future and age how they wish. Explore more resources on senior living or contact us today to learn more about our legacy of services and programs that bring meaning and purpose to every stage of life..