Ten Ways to Sharpen Your Brain

Geniuses aren't made — they are built. Follow these tips to remember everything, think faster, and keep your dome healthy as you age.

 

Your brain isn’t just for thinking. Throw a football, turn the steering wheel, kiss your girlfriend — your mind controls everything you do, explains David S. Liebeskind, M.D.

But how? Scientists are starting to crack the code. Recent research has revealed plenty of measures you can take today to keep your mind sharp as you age.

Challenge Yourself

“Regular mental challenges force you to think. Use it, or you’ll lose it,” says Constantine Lyketsos, Ph.D., professor at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center. When connections between neurons are reinforced, they're easier to use, says Liebeskind.

Protect Your Ticker


People with the highest risk for heart disease — even as young as age 35 — scored 50 percent worse on cognitive tests than people with the lowest risk, a 2013 study in Stroke found. “The factors that accelerate the brain function degenerative process—smoking, lack of blood pressure control, obesity, and a sedentary lifestyle—are the same that promote heart disease,” says Eric Topol, M.D., the Men’s Health cardiology advisor.

Switch Up Your News Source

Slave to the local news every a.m.? You’re neglecting an active reading schedule — and a whole part of your brain, says Allen Sills, M.D., associate professor of neurological surgery at Vanderbilt University. When you read, you develop concentration, which is crucial for healthy aging.

The Power of 3

A large 2012 study in Neurology revealed that a diet lacking in omega-3’s may lead to faster memory loss and brain aging in older adults. 

Know What’s Normal Memory Loss

Systems like the hippocampus — crucial for memory — age faster than other brain parts. Worried? Compare yourself to others your age. "Don’t remember where you parked, but everyone else is walking to the car? That may be a problem,” says Coslett. But if you and all of your friends your age have to write down a phone number, don’t worry.

Move to Remember More


University of British Columbia researchers found that twice-weekly resistance training boosts your ability to make accurate decisions quickly. Focus on your form and your faults instead of intensity — brain-building comes from concentrating on what your body’s doing, says Gary Small, M.D., director of the UCLA Longevity Center and coauthor of The Alzheimer’s Prevention Program. When dementia hits, your weaker skills go first, so fixing what you’re doing wrong makes your brain work harder.

Ward off Depression

Mood disorders can be the result of chemical imbalance in the brain, says Sills. If you're no longer interested in things you used to love, ask a friend if they have noticed a change. If they have, see a doctor — losing interest in your hobbies is a major sign of clinical depression. An easy remedy? Exercise, which helps balance the chemical cocktail. "It’s the poor man's Prozac," says Sills.

Go Green


Working non-stop can cause your brain to become exhausted. But walking outdoors, even for a brief amount of time, can help your brain recover, says Jenny Roe, Ph.D., an environmental psychologist at Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, and author of a 2013 study that found a walk in a tree-filled park or leafy courtyard may ease stress.

Save Your Brain from Booze


Aerobic exercise could prevent long-term brain damage caused by heavy drinking (five or more drinks a night), according to new research in Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research. In the study, people who averaged over 180 minutes of exercise a week — even those in the “heaviest drinker” category — showed the least damage to the brain's white matter — the tissue responsible for relaying info throughout your brain.

Speak Up


When Boston University researchers autopsied the brains of 85 athletes (high schoolers included) with histories of concussions, 80 percent showed evidence of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (C.T.E), a degenerative brain disease. That’s a scary stat considering half of high school footballers surveyed in a different 2012 study said they’d felt concussion symptoms in the past, but hadn’t reported them.