Brain is the most complex, sensitive and important organ of a human body, which made up of 100 billion nerves that communicate in trillions of connections called synapses. So for better mental and physical health, we must ensure the systemic process of our brain. But there are some habits that deny our brain’s important nutrients or rapidly kill brain cells put us at risk of mental disorders like depression or anxiety, as well as physical ailments like Alzheimer’s, stroke, epilepsy, and even cancer. Let’s know those habits you must avoid to keep your brain healthy:
1. Skipping Breakfast
Breakfast is considered as the most important meal of the day. Skipping it can result in low blood sugar levels, and that is very damaging to the brain, especially if it happens a lot. Your brain uses more energy than any other organ in the body, and takes up to 20% of the total available glucose in your system each day. Regularly denying your brain enough nourishment causes a deficit in that energy budget, and you’ll find that your brain becomes less responsive to stimuli. So you should never miss your breakfast at time.
2. Poor Sleep
Almost all of you have noticed that after a sleepless or less sleep night you cannot enjoy a relax morning or day. The reason is that insufficient sleep robs your neurons of the ability to function properly. That leads to mental lapses that can affect your work and relationships. But more than that, your senses and reflexes are dulled, making it more likely that you’ll have a dangerous accident.
A continuous lack of sleep harms your memory too and has long-term effects on your brain. Lack of sleep means that these mechanisms cannot get sufficiently activated, and therefore fail to clean your brain from harmful substances. So a person usually needs between 7 to 8.5 hours of sleep per day for optimum overall health.
3. Smoking
As we age the cerebral cortex, the outermost layer of brain cells gets thin. This area of the brain is where important thought processes such as memory, language and perception occur. Nicotine speeds the thinning of your cerebral cortex and can contribute to the development of Alzheimer’s Disease. While quitting smoking does lead to some recovery of the cortex, it is slow and may be incomplete. Bottom line, smoking and vaping are terrible for your brain.
4. Too much sugar
Our bodies and our brains need sugar in order to function, but our modern diets include way too much of it. When you eat too much sugar on a regular basis, your cells, including brain cells, are in a state of chronic inflammation.
That impacts the ability of your body to absorb important nutrients from food and begins to starve the brain of what it needs for optimal cognition. Ultimately, you will have a higher risk of dementia and a smaller hippocampus, the region in the brain that manages memory.
5. Too much salt
After all these years of sugar-bashing, you can add another ingredient to the list of nutritional villains: salt. A study published in the journal of JAMA Neurology exposed salt as one factor contributing to high blood pressure. And indeed, research has proven that a high intake of salt can increase the risk of high blood pressure, which in turn can lead to minor cognitive deficits and an increased risk of stroke. A higher risk of stroke can cause quite severe damage to your brain.
6. Taking stress
Chronic stress may affect all over the body. Situational stress is actually a good thing that prepares the body to fight or flee in the face of danger, but when your lifestyle includes chronic stress, the hormone cortisol builds up in the brain and causes lasting damage. Not only can it kill brain cells, it actually causes the brain to shrink. When this shrinking effect hits the prefrontal cortex, your ability to learn and remember becomes impacted. It is imperative that you find a way to relax before it’s too late.
7. Lack of stimulation
Stimulating your brain cells for healthy and fruitful work may be helpful in keeping them functional for a longer period of time. Research has indicated that stimulation of brain cells activates new pathways and better communication of brain cells network, allowing them to be more productive. The more you talk, think, and stimulate your brain cells; the more efficiently it will work. Source: https://www.daily-bangladesh.com/
