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Cancel Continue. Every brain changes with age, and mental function changes along with it. Mental decline is common, and it's one of the most feared consequences of aging. But cognitive impairment is not inevitable.

Here are 12 ways you can help maintain brain function. Through research with mice and humans, scientists have found that brainy activities stimulate new connections between nerve cells and may even help the brain generate new cells, developing neurological "plasticity" and building up a functional reserve that provides a hedge against future cell loss.

Any mentally stimulating activity should help to build up your brain. Read, take courses, try "mental gymnastics," such as word puzzles or math problems Experiment with things that require manual dexterity as well as mental effort, such as drawing, painting, and other crafts.

Research shows that using your muscles also helps your mind. Animals who exercise regularly increase the number of tiny blood vessels that bring oxygen-rich blood to the region of the brain that is responsible for thought.

Exercise also spurs the development of new nerve cells and increases the connections between brain cells synapses. This results in brains that are more efficient, plastic, and adaptive, which translates into better performance in aging animals. Exercise also lowers blood pressure, improves cholesterol levels, helps blood sugar balance and reduces mental stress, all of which can help your brain as well as your heart.

Good nutrition can help your mind as well as your body. For example, people that eat a Mediterranean style diet that emphasizes fruits, vegetables, fish, nuts, unsaturated oils olive oil and plant sources of proteins are less likely to develop cognitive impairment and dementia.

High blood pressure in midlife increases the risk of cognitive decline in old age. Use lifestyle modification to keep your pressure as low as possible. Stay lean, exercise regularly, limit your alcohol to two drinks a day, reduce stress, and eat right. Diabetes is an important risk factor for dementia.

You can help prevent diabetes by eating right, exercising regularly, and staying lean. But if your blood sugar stays high, you'll need medication to achieve good control. High levels of LDL "bad" cholesterol are associated with an increased the risk of dementia.

Diet, exercise, weight control, and avoiding tobacco will go a long way toward improving your cholesterol levels. But if you need more help, ask your doctor about medication. Some observational studies suggest that low-dose aspirin may reduce the risk of dementia, especially vascular dementia.

Ask your doctor if you are a candidate. Excessive drinking is a major risk factor for dementia. Your Greatest Asset Is Your Brain. In this video, Admiral McRaven and others speak about The BrainHealth Project, a collaboration with more than 30 of the world's leading experts in brain health science.

Reframe How You Define Brain Health Brain health is about making the most of your capacity to thrive in life. Science is revealing just how interconnected the components of brain health are.

The BrainHealth Index provides a snapshot of your brain's health and performance, allowing you to track change and improvement over time.

It is one of the core elements of The BrainHealth Project. If you would like to get a snap shot of your brain health's fitness level but are not ready to join The project research study, consider the Concierge BrainHealth Index , conducted in person, one-on-one with a clinician at Center for BrainHealth.

Emerging Adults. Using the BrainHealth Index , emerging young adults ages receive a comprehensive measure of their current level of brain health and performance. They can also meet virtually with a trained coach to set personal goals, and then start building brain-healthy habits using our online training on topics including sleep, stress management and social relationships.

Learn about brain-healthy strategies focused on individual strengths and goals, and help us advance the science of brain health. Join The BrainHealth Project.

Young Adult Registration. Understanding the participant experience The BrainHealth Project introduces a multidimensional understanding of brain health and explores our lifelong ability to impact the brain's fitness, no matter the starting point.

This innovative approach to brain training teaches you to focus on your own strengths and performance. Learn how you can measure and track your own brain fitness. Listen to a recorded information session with Dr. Julie Fratantoni and coach Stacy Vernon, MS, LPC, for more on the strategies and tools related to brain health and performance.

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And in , more than 30 million life years were lost to self-harm. On the individual level, brain health conditions can affect anyone. However, factors such as age, social determinants such as trauma, poverty, discrimination, or workplace stress , and genetics can increase the risk of developing conditions and affect the severity of symptoms.

Exposure to traumatic events is a well-established risk factor for a range of brain health problems, including post-traumatic stress disorder PTSD and depression. Age is a key determinant of brain health. In recent years, young people around the world have seen alarming increases in psychological distress and in mental health and substance use disorders.

According to a global survey conducted by the McKinsey Health Institute MHI , Gen Z respondents ranked their mental health as poorer than their physical, social, or spiritual health and were three times likelier than baby boomers to report poor or very poor mental health.

The underlying causes for this may include the stages of development for Gen Zers, their levels of engagement with healthcare, familial or societal attitudes, and their relationships with social media and technology.

Globally, people have unequal access to care. Barriers to access include lack of availability, stigma , and discrimination. In many countries, health services are limited by the availability of healthcare professionals, inconvenient locations of healthcare facilities, and high costs of care. In fact, in low- and middle-income countries, only a quarter of people with brain health conditions receive treatment, compared with around 65 percent in high-income countries.

Overcoming stigma can help address this burden: 47 percent of respondents to a recent McKinsey Global Survey report feeling ashamed of their mental-illness history. There are also cultural and geographic variations in how people perceive, express, and cope with brain health conditions.

Even populations within countries or communities may experience brain health conditions differently: cultural beliefs about mental health, gender roles, and community dynamics affect perception and response to mental health, as well as recovery. It also plays a pivotal role in the economic and social health and prosperity of our communities.

Employers are important stakeholders in the brain health ecosystem. For many young people, as they age and enter the workforce, they can begin to experience social stressors that could further predispose them to brain health challenges. A recent MHI global survey found that, on average, three in five employees report experiencing at least one mental health challenge during their careers, and toxic workplaces only add to the stress.

Toxic workplaces often lead to burnout , which is correlated with attrition. In addition to the cost of replacing employees, higher rates of absenteeism and decline in organizational commitment can negatively affect a company. While more companies are now offering wellness benefits, these interventions alone are not enough.

To truly address employee mental health, companies can take a more systemic approach including addressing issues such as unfair treatment and unsustainable workloads. Outside the workplace, other societal stakeholders have a role in supporting people with brain health conditions. Research suggests that, with adequate support, the majority of individuals who experience trauma are able to respond with resilience and avoid developing PTSD.

For children and youth who have experienced trauma, educators and caring adults can provide important support while connecting them with appropriate resources.

Overall, investments in early interventions and treatment could minimize downstream burdens for both individuals and society, meaning better quality of life and lower healthcare costs.

There is opportunity, across all stakeholders in the ecosystem, to better coordinate action and optimize care in support of these goals. In many cases, brain health conditions go undiagnosed and untreated.

In a global MHI survey , 32 percent of respondents report that they have not received any treatment for their mental-illness or substance use condition. But there is strong evidence that interventions can help not only treat but also prevent some brain health conditions.

These interventions can include psychotherapy, preventive or behavioral treatments, medication, social support, and digital tools. And, in many cases, the earlier the intervention, the more effective it is in minimizing individual suffering and costs to society.

These interventions can be implemented across a diverse range of settings and by different types of professionals. The types of professionals involved may include psychiatrists, psychologists, counselors, therapists, social workers, nurses, traditional healers, trained lay providers, and peer support specialists.

The overarching continuum of brain health care is also referred to as behavioral health or mental and substance use disorder services. The continuum begins with available and well-coordinated behavioral health promotion, targeted prevention services, access to outpatient care, and interventions for existing behavioral-health needs.

This continuum is complete only when connected to more intensive services that can be accessed when medically necessary, and from which people will exit and return to the community. At this point, recovery and resiliency support become critical. The continuum of care is most effective when services are evidence based, consumer driven, trauma informed, and developmentally, culturally, and linguistically appropriate.

By mobilizing various sectors and systems to focus upstream, with respect to the prevention and treatment of mental and substance use disorders , we can better allocate resources to address brain health conditions across the full continuum of care, ultimately improving overall brain health and well-being.

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This tiny nub acts as a memory indexer—sending memories out to the appropriate part of the cerebral hemisphere for long-term storage and retrieving them when necessary.

The basal ganglia not shown are clusters of nerve cells surrounding the thalamus. They are responsible for initiating and integrating movements. The brain and the rest of the nervous system are composed of many different types of cells, but the primary functional unit is a cell called the neuron.

All sensations, movements, thoughts, memories, and feelings are the result of signals that pass through neurons. Neurons consist of three parts: the cell body , dendrites , and the axon. The cell body contains the nucleus, where most of the molecules that the neuron needs to survive and function are manufactured.

Dendrites extend out from the cell body like the branches of a tree and receive messages from other nerve cells. Signals then pass from the dendrites through the cell body and travel away from the cell body down an axon to another neuron, a muscle cell, or cells in some other organ.

The neuron is usually surrounded by many support cells. Some types of cells wrap around the axon to form an insulating myelin sheath. Myelin is a fatty molecule which provides insulation for the axon and helps nerve signals travel faster and farther.

Other axons may be very long, such as those that carry messages from the brain all the way down the spinal cord. Scientists have learned a great deal about neurons by studying the synapse—the place where a signal passes from the neuron to another cell.

When the signal reaches the end of the axon it stimulates the release of tiny sacs called vesicles. These vesicles release chemicals known as neurotransmitters into the synaptic cleft.

The neurotransmitters cross the synapse and attach to receptors on the neighboring cell. These receptors can change the properties of the receiving cell.

If the receiving cell is also a neuron, the signal can continue the transmission to the next cell. Neurotransmitters are chemicals that brain cells use to talk to each other.

Some neurotransmitters make cells more active called excitatory while others block or dampen a cell's activity called inhibitory. The brain is one of the hardest working organs in the body.

When the brain is healthy it functions quickly and automatically. But when problems occur, the results can be devastating. NINDS supports research on hundreds of neurological disorders. Knowing more about the brain can lead to the development of new treatments for diseases and disorders of the nervous system and improve many areas of human health.

Home Health Information Public Education Brain Basics. Brain Basics: Know Your Brain. Last reviewed on November 15, If you're on the fence about whether to go out with friends or invite loved ones over, do it. Being social helps ward off depression and stress. Both can make memory loss worse.

Social isolation and loneliness also have been linked to a higher risk of a decline in thinking skills and Alzheimer's disease. Sleep is the human equivalent of plugging in your phone to charge. A good night's sleep helps improve brain function and memory, keeps you alert and makes it easier to do daily tasks.

Rest also eases stress and depression. Make getting enough healthy sleep a priority. Adults should sleep 7 to 9 hours a night. If snoring disrupts sleep, make an appointment with your healthcare professional. Snoring could be a sign of a sleep disorder, such as sleep apnea.

Conditions that disturb sleep may raise the risk for a decline in thinking skills and dementia. Research has found that eating a healthy diet may play a role in preventing or delaying symptoms of dementia.

In particular, the MIND diet can be a valuable tool for brain health. MIND stands for Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay. This diet of brain healthy foods gives your brain fuel to help improve mental focus and slow decline in thinking skills. The MIND diet focuses on plant-based foods.

It includes plenty of leafy greens and other vegetables, berries, nuts, whole grains, poultry and fish. It limits foods like butter, cheese, red meat and sweets. Just as physical activity keeps your body in shape, activities that engage your mind can keep your brain in shape.

And those activities may help improve brain function and memory. Do crossword puzzles. Play games. Learn to play a musical instrument. Try a new hobby. Volunteer at a local school or with a community group. Drugs and alcohol can affect how brain cells communicate with one another.

They also can have an effect on your brain's ability to react, plan, solve problems and control impulses. Follow the directions on medicines carefully. That includes medicines that you get without a prescription.

If you choose to drink alcohol, do so in moderation. For healthy adults that means up to one drink a day for women and up to two drinks a day for men.

Drinking too much raises your risk of a fall and can cause memory problems. It also can make worse some medical conditions that affect the brain, such as high blood pressure and diabetes.

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Products and services. Show references Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans. Department of Health and Human Services. Accessed Sept. Watson NF, et al. Recommended amount of sleep for a healthy adult: A joint consensus statement of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and Sleep Research Society.

What parents need to know. Which migraine medications are most helpful? How well do you score on brain health? Shining light on night blindness. Can watching sports be bad for your health? Beyond the usual suspects for healthy resolutions. May 13, Every brain changes with age, and mental function changes along with it.

Get mental stimulation Through research with mice and humans, scientists have found that brainy activities stimulate new connections between nerve cells and may even help the brain generate new cells, developing neurological "plasticity" and building up a functional reserve that provides a hedge against future cell loss.

Get physical exercise Research shows that using your muscles also helps your mind. Improve your diet Good nutrition can help your mind as well as your body. Improve your blood pressure High blood pressure in midlife increases the risk of cognitive decline in old age.

Improve your blood sugar Diabetes is an important risk factor for dementia. Improve your cholesterol High levels of LDL "bad" cholesterol are associated with an increased the risk of dementia. Consider low-dose aspirin Some observational studies suggest that low-dose aspirin may reduce the risk of dementia, especially vascular dementia.

Avoid tobacco Avoid tobacco in all its forms. Don't abuse alcohol Excessive drinking is a major risk factor for dementia. Care for your emotions People who are anxious, depressed, sleep-deprived, or exhausted tend to score poorly on cognitive function tests. Protect your head Moderate to severe head injuries, even without diagnosed concussions, increase the risk of cognitive impairment.

Build social networks Strong social ties have been associated with a lower risk of dementia, as well as lower blood pressure and longer life expectancy. Share This Page Share this page to Facebook Share this page to Twitter Share this page via Email.

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