Alzheimer's disease and age-related cognitive decline are a growing problem in most modern societies. The stressful lifestyle, bad dietary habits and toxic environment all play a role in brain degeneration. Here are five things you can do to improve mental performance and decrease your chances of cognitive decline.
1. Eat a diet with a high nutritional value.
The most important things to remember here are that you should eat a lot of vegetables and fatty fish such as wild sockeye salmon. Vegetables are probably the most important group of foods to eat on a daily basis. They are high in phytonutrients and low in sugars. Eat as many different vegetables of as many different colors as possible. Eating fish is important because certain types of fish contain high levels of DHA and EPA, also known as the omega 3 fatty acids. These fats are essential for brain health. It is also important to avoid sugar in all its forms, including fructose.
2. Avoid heavy metal contamination.
It's an unfortunate fact that today heavy metals are present throughout our environment. Primarily, it is important to avoid contaminated fish, mercury dental fillings and vaccines containing mercury, formaldehyde or aluminum. All of these toxins can destroy brain cells and cause cognitive decline.
3. Take a fish oil supplement every day.
More than 60% of your brain is made of fat. DHA actually makes up about 15% of your cerebral cortex. DHA deficiency can cause serious problems in the brain. When your brain does not get enough of DHA, it will substitute omega 6 fatty acids or cholesterol to form brains cells with. This leads to a less responsive neurological system.
Hi grade fish oil supplements, ones that have been molecularly distilled, have the added benefit of avoiding the heavy metal contamination that can be found in most fish in today's supermarkets.
4. Use your mind.
The more you exercise your mind, the better it will function. This has been shown over and over again in many studies of elderly people as well as younger ones. Use it or lose it is the rule here.
Reading, playing games that require mental skill, sudoku puzzles and crossword puzzles can all help to keep the mind working.
5. Get plenty of physical exercise.
In one study designed to see the impact of lack of exercise on brain function, it was found that people who did not exercise at all had 3 to 4 times the chances of getting Alzheimer's disease.
If you follow the above guidelines your chances of suffering from cognitive decline should decrease significantly.
Sector rotator. Natural health and biophysics devotee. I enjoy mountaineering, baguazhang, learning interesting things and the music of Piazzolla.
For more in-depth information on the extensive benefits of fish oil, please check out my detailed blog post at http://www.life-sucks.org/benefits-of-fish-oil/