Archive for March, 2008
The March 2008 issue of Consumer Reports has an interesting article titled “9 Ways to a Longer Life” (if you get the magazine, it’s on page 6). It’s interesting because Consumer Reports is usually quite conservative about reporting on this type of thing – they usually won’t talk about something healthcare-related unless there is pretty good evidence for or against it. And anything about health that research consistently says is good for you is newsworthy. As the article says, “Following health news can be like watching a Ping-Pong match,” with one day something is good for, then it’s bad, then the next time is good again.
Here are the nine things that Consumer Reports suggests that you consider:
- Eat whole grains. Eating whole grains may reduce the risk of your having heart disease and some cancers.
- Consider taking vitamin D supplements. As we get older, our bodies don’t make vitamin D as well as when we’re younger. Vitamin D is important in strengthening bones and in boosting immunity
- Limit time in the sun. Use sunscreen, use sunscreen, use sunscreen!
- Eat colorful produce. Colorful vegetables have substances in them that may help prevent cancer and other diseases.
- Exercise. Exercise is important in many ways. Aerobic exercise (exercise that helps your heart) may be especially important for brain fitness.
- Get enough sleep. If you’re not sleeping well, try to figure out why. Does something interfere, like noise or a restless pet? Getting enough sleep helps with immune function as well as brain fitness.
- Don’t smoke. Duh! Smoking is bad for you is so many ways that it’s hard to list them all. If you’re still smoking, contact us about how to stop. Methods for quitting involve group support, using the nicotine patch, and other medicines. Your risk of disease starts going down almost as soon as you stop, so take a few minutes to think about how much better you’ll feel after you stop.
- Eat the right kinds of fats. More and more research seems to show that it’s not just avoiding all fats that is important. Certain kinds of fats, like those in nuts, some oils, and fish, can be good for your heart and your brain.
- Relax. Stress is bad for your memory, your brain, and your mood. If you feel stressed out, it’s probably time to think about some kind of stress management.
You can access the complete article at http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/health-fitness/news/2008/03/9-ways-to-a-longer-life-3-08/overview/longer-life-ov.htm.
Latest
- Brain Fitness and The Mind of a Monk
- Brain Fitness Tip: Training Without a Computer
I saw an interesting blog post yesterday evening on the site of the Huffington Post about the potential benefits of meditation – or at least about what one woman thinks might be the benefits. (more…)
Although many people are excited about the potential for using computers to train their brains, we shouldn’t forget that other techniques have been used to the train the brain for many centuries. I’m thinking about the large number of techniques for meditation. While free computer software still requires an investment in a computer, meditation only asks you to sit or lie quietly and focus your mind.
A recently-published study shows parts of the brain in long-term meditators are larger than the same parts of the brain in people who don’t meditate. The article by Eileen Luders and her colleagues appeared in a recent issue of the journal Neuroimage (Vol. 45, No. 3, pp. 672-678, April 15, 2009). The study showed that portions of the orbitofrontal cortex and the hippocampus were larger in persons who had been regular meditators for 5 or more years. The study is interesting because the parts of the brain that were larger are often thought to be important in helping people keep themselves emotionally balanced.
A number of strategies are likely to be helpful for meditators. There has been a great deal of interest over the last several years in mindfulness meditation. Researchers have studied how it can be used in reducing anxiety and depression. Mindfulness is based on Buddhist meditation (for a brief article, click here) but you don’t have to be a Buddhist to practice meditation. In fact, one of the most important persons who has promoted mindfulness is Jon Kabat-Zinn, a researcher at the University of Massachusetts. You can see a video presentation by him on YouTube by clicking here.