Patriot Health Digest
Brain health is a popular topic in the medical field, and for a good reason: As an increasing amount of the population gets older, more individuals are developing dementia, which is a category of progressive brain diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease. Dr. Sanjay Gupta is on a mission to help promote brain health, as he mentions in the book titled Keep Sharp, Gupta’s grandfather passed away from Alzheimer’s. He has isolated four science-backed methods to lower your chances of the same fate. Here are 4 ways to prevent this disease.
1 —Â Get Moving
Routine exercise is the most crucial thing you could do for brain health, said Gupta. “Exercise, both nonaerobic and aerobic, is not only great for the body; it is even better for your brain,” he writes in Keep Sharp. “Utilizing sugar to fuel your muscles instead of sugar sitting idle in your blood can help prevent dramatic insulin and glucose fluctuations … that raise the risk of developing dementia. Exercise can help lower inflammation as well, and that is important in preventing dementia.”
2 —Â Eat a Healthy Diet
Gupta writes that what is “good for your heart is good for your brain” and “clean living could slash your chance of developing a potentially serious mind-destroying disease, including Alzheimer’s, even if you do carry genetic risk factors.” He suggests consuming less processed foods and red meat and more vegetables and fruits. And one brain food specifically: “Berries, in terms of what they could do for your brain and some of these other chemicals that they release, are more than likely going to be one of your best foods,” said Gupta.
3 — Cut This One Thing Out Of your diet Your Diet
Rid your daily diet of foods that have added sugar. “A lot of well-designed research has discovered that people with higher blood sugar levels had quicker rates of cognitive decline than individuals with normal blood sugar,” Gupta stated.
4 —Â Get Enough Sleep
“We are learning that the brain is continuously going through this ‘rinse cycle’ during the night,” said Gupta. During the nighttime, the brain takes the experiences that you had throughout your day, and it consolidates them into memories, clearing away debris like toxins and plaques which could lead to dementia. Try to get seven to nine hours of sleep a night. If you are dreaming in the morning prior to waking up, it is a good sign that your brain has been through its self-cleaning cycle.
Author: Blake Ambrose
