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5 Ways to keep your brain sharp and focused

12 October 2020
by Glynis Horning
  • Get enough sleep

    Most of us need at least seven hours of sleep each night. "Without this you can’t form or maintain the pathways in your brain that let you learn and create new memories, and it’s harder to concentrate and respond quickly", says the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.

    "Your brain needs sleep to file away new information, and clean out toxins and damaging amyloid plaques linked to Alzheimer’s," adds Petra du Toit, executive director of Alzheimer’s SA. 

    Get enough sleep

    Most of us need at least seven hours of sleep each night. "Without this you can’t form or maintain the pathways in your brain that let you learn and create new memories, and it’s harder to concentrate and respond quickly", says the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.

    "Your brain needs sleep to file away new information, and clean out toxins and damaging amyloid plaques linked to Alzheimer’s," adds Petra du Toit, executive director of Alzheimer’s SA. 

  • Eat smart

    A balanced diet helps you build brainpower and retain it. An overview of studies on the effects of food on the brain concluded that "changes in diet are a viable strategy for enhancing cognitive abilities, protecting the brain from damage and counteracting the effects of ageing". Make sure you eat lots of vegetables, fruit, whole grains, legumes and enough protein and dairy - and pay special attention to B vitamins, as these are especially important for brain health.

    "You can find these in red meat and chicken, eggs, fish, dairy and dark green veggies," says Gauteng dietitian Debby Watkins. Omega 3 fatty acids are also key – enjoy two servings of fatty fish a week or a handful of walnuts or flax seeds daily.  

    Eat smart

    A balanced diet helps you build brainpower and retain it. An overview of studies on the effects of food on the brain concluded that "changes in diet are a viable strategy for enhancing cognitive abilities, protecting the brain from damage and counteracting the effects of ageing". Make sure you eat lots of vegetables, fruit, whole grains, legumes and enough protein and dairy - and pay special attention to B vitamins, as these are especially important for brain health.

    "You can find these in red meat and chicken, eggs, fish, dairy and dark green veggies," says Gauteng dietitian Debby Watkins. Omega 3 fatty acids are also key – enjoy two servings of fatty fish a week or a handful of walnuts or flax seeds daily.  

  • Get moving

    Studies, including this one at the University of British Columbia, suggest regular aerobic exercise can actually increase the size of the hippocampus – the part of your brain responsible for verbal memory and learning. Other studies suggest the prefrontal cortex and medial temporal cortex, which control thinking and memory, grow too, reports Harvard Health. 

    Exercise boosts your brain directly, by lowering insulin resistance and inflammation and promoting the release of brain chemicals that influence brain cell health. "But, exercise also benefits the brain indirectly, by improving your mood and lowering stress and anxiety – factors often implicated in cognitive impairment," says Klerksdorp biokineticist Isabeau van Heerden.

    Include 30 minutes of activity every day - this can be anything that gets your heart pumping: brisk walking, stair-climbing, dancing or swimming.

    Get moving

    Studies, including this one at the University of British Columbia, suggest regular aerobic exercise can actually increase the size of the hippocampus – the part of your brain responsible for verbal memory and learning. Other studies suggest the prefrontal cortex and medial temporal cortex, which control thinking and memory, grow too, reports Harvard Health. 

    Exercise boosts your brain directly, by lowering insulin resistance and inflammation and promoting the release of brain chemicals that influence brain cell health. "But, exercise also benefits the brain indirectly, by improving your mood and lowering stress and anxiety – factors often implicated in cognitive impairment," says Klerksdorp biokineticist Isabeau van Heerden.

    Include 30 minutes of activity every day - this can be anything that gets your heart pumping: brisk walking, stair-climbing, dancing or swimming.

  • Exercise your brain

    Mental exercise of any sort, from crossword puzzles to learning a new language, is thought to activate processes that help maintain brain cells and stimulate communication among them, reports Harvard Health. 

    "Read, learn a new language or skill, do Sudoku, play board or card games, and explore online activities to build your cognitive reserve," suggests Dr Ryan Fuller, a specialist geriatric psychiatrist in Johannesburg. 

    Exercise your brain

    Mental exercise of any sort, from crossword puzzles to learning a new language, is thought to activate processes that help maintain brain cells and stimulate communication among them, reports Harvard Health. 

    "Read, learn a new language or skill, do Sudoku, play board or card games, and explore online activities to build your cognitive reserve," suggests Dr Ryan Fuller, a specialist geriatric psychiatrist in Johannesburg. 

  • Quit bad habits

    Quit heavy drinking and smoking. Heavy drinkers are more likely to develop frontal lobe shrinkage than non-drinkers, say researchers in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry. Have no more than two drinks a day for a man, one for a woman. 

    "Smokers demonstrated a significantly greater atrophy rate over two years than non-smokers in multiple brain regions associated with early stages of Alzheimer’s disease," reports the Alzheimer’s & Dementia Journal. There’s no safe level of smoking, so get professional help if need be to help you quit. If you drink or smoke in an effort to fight stress, try deep breathing and progressive relaxation instead. Listen to music, unwind with a sitcom, and find others to unburden with, in person or online.

    Quit bad habits

    Quit heavy drinking and smoking. Heavy drinkers are more likely to develop frontal lobe shrinkage than non-drinkers, say researchers in the Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery and Psychiatry. Have no more than two drinks a day for a man, one for a woman. 

    "Smokers demonstrated a significantly greater atrophy rate over two years than non-smokers in multiple brain regions associated with early stages of Alzheimer’s disease," reports the Alzheimer’s & Dementia Journal. There’s no safe level of smoking, so get professional help if need be to help you quit. If you drink or smoke in an effort to fight stress, try deep breathing and progressive relaxation instead. Listen to music, unwind with a sitcom, and find others to unburden with, in person or online.