And a small study published in July in the Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society found that a single moderate-intensity workout session immediately before a cognitive task resulted in greater brain activation. The researchers measured the brain activity of 26 healthy adults ages 55 to 85 on two separate days.

On one day, they had participants rest for 30 minutes before identifying famous and nonfamous names; on a separate day, they had participants pedal a stationary bike for 30 minutes before doing the same activity.

The result: There was significantly greater brain activation after exercise. This finding led researchers to conclude that exercise can immediately change the way our brains function, which added to existing scientific evidence that physical activity helps strengthen brain function and memory.

Health experts recommend sticking to brain training that involves real-world activities instead. Exercises to strengthen brain function should offer novelty and challenge. Brush your teeth with your opposite hand. Your morning newspaper is a great place to start.

Morley, MD , a professor of medicine in the division of geriatric medicine at St. Louis University in Missouri. In addition to word games, Dr.

Morley recommends the following exercises to sharpen your mental skills. Additional reporting by Lisa Rapaport. Health Conditions A-Z. Best Oils for Skin Complementary Approaches Emotional Wellness Fitness and Exercise Healthy Skin Online Therapy Reiki Healing Resilience Sleep Sexual Health Self Care Yoga Poses See All.

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Health Tools. Body Type Quiz Find a Doctor - EverydayHealth Care Hydration Calculator Menopause Age Calculator Symptom Checker Weight Loss Calculator. See All. DailyOM Courses. About DailyOM Most Popular Courses New Releases Trending Courses See All. Being physically active — through regular exercise, household chores, or other activities — has many benefits.

It can help you:. In one study, exercise stimulated the human brain's ability to maintain old network connections and make new ones that are vital to cognitive health.

Other studies have shown that exercise increases the size of a brain structure important to memory and learning, resulting in better spatial memory.

Aerobic exercise, such as brisk walking, is thought to be more beneficial to cognitive health than nonaerobic stretching and toning exercise. Federal guidelines recommend that all adults get at least minutes 2. Walking is a good start. You can also join programs that teach you to move safely and prevent falls, which can lead to brain and other injuries.

Check with your health care provider if you haven't been active and want to start a vigorous exercise program. Being intellectually engaged may benefit the brain. People who engage in personally meaningful activities , such as volunteering or hobbies, say they feel happier and healthier.

Learning new skills may improve your thinking ability, too. For example, one study found that older adults who learned quilting or digital photography had more memory improvement than those who only socialized or did less cognitively demanding activities.

Some of the research on engagement in activities such as music, theater, dance, and creative writing has shown promise for improving quality of life and well-being in older adults, from better memory and self-esteem to reduced stress and increased social interaction.

However, a recent, comprehensive report reviewing the design and findings of these and other studies did not find strong evidence that these types of activities have a lasting, beneficial effect on cognition.

Additional research is needed, and in large numbers of diverse older adults, to be able to say definitively whether these activities may help reduce decline or maintain healthy cognition.

Lots of activities can keep your mind active. For example, read books and magazines. Play games. Take or teach a class. Learn a new skill or hobby. Work or volunteer. These types of mentally stimulating activities have not been proven to prevent serious cognitive impairment or Alzheimer's disease , but they can be fun!

Some scientists have argued that such activities may protect the brain by establishing "cognitive reserve. Some types of cognitive training conducted in a research setting also seem to have benefits. For the Advanced Cognitive Training for Independent and Vital Elderly ACTIVE trial , healthy adults 65 and older participated in 10 sessions of memory training, reasoning training, or processing-speed training.

The sessions improved participants' mental skills in the area in which they were trained with evidence suggesting these benefits persisted for two years. Be wary of claims that playing certain computer and online games can improve your memory and other types of thinking as evidence to back up such claims is evolving.

There is currently not enough evidence available to suggest that computer-based brain training applications offered commercially have the same impact on cognitive abilities as the ACTIVE study training. NIA and other organizations are supporting research to determine whether different types of cognitive training have lasting effects.

For more information, see Participating in Activities You Enjoy. Connecting with other people through social activities and community programs can keep your brain active and help you feel less isolated and more engaged with the world around you. Participating in social activities may lower the risk for some health problems and improve well-being.

People who engage in personally meaningful and productive activities with others tend to live longer, boost their mood, and have a sense of purpose. Studies show that these activities seem to help maintain their well-being and may improve their cognitive function.

So, visit with family and friends. Consider volunteering for a local organization or join a group focused on a hobby you enjoy. Join a walking group with other older adults.

Check out programs available through your Area Agency on Aging , senior center, or other community organizations. Increasingly, there are groups that meet online too, providing a way to connect from home with others who share your interests or to get support.

The MIND diet emphasizes the consumption of fish because of its high concentration of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids. Omega-3s protect your brain cells, and multiple studies have found that eating one or more servings of fish per week is associated with better age-related cognition.

Not a big fan of fish? You can get similar benefits from supplements. A 4g fish oil or omega-3 supplement is a good starting point. As always, consult with your doctor before you begin any new supplement routines.

Try adding blueberries to your breakfast, having a piece of dark chocolate for a mid-afternoon snack, or sipping on red wine at dinner. Wine and chocolate in the name of health? Yes, you read that right. Tai Chi, a mind-body exercise, is especially beneficial because it integrates physical, cognitive, social, and meditative components.

Yes, the regular completion of brain games like Sudoku, crossword puzzles, or even video games is associated with a brainpower boost.

More specifically, these games can improve executive function the mental ability to complete multi-step tasks and processing speed in both young and elderly people.

Your next move? Download a brain game app on your phone, keep a Sudoku book in your work bag and chip away at it on the train, or spend your Sunday mornings with a cup of coffee and the weekly crossword.

Your brain will thank you! sales insidetracker. com Support center. All rights reserved. InsideTracker is a personalized nutrition model by Segterra.

Diabetes is an important risk factor for dementia. You can help prevent diabetes by eating right, exercising regularly, and staying lean. But if your blood sugar stays high, you'll need medication to achieve good control.

High levels of LDL "bad" cholesterol are associated with an increased the risk of dementia. Diet, exercise, weight control, and avoiding tobacco will go a long way toward improving your cholesterol levels. But if you need more help, ask your doctor about medication.

Some observational studies suggest that low-dose aspirin may reduce the risk of dementia, especially vascular dementia. Ask your doctor if you are a candidate. Excessive drinking is a major risk factor for dementia. If you choose to drink, limit yourself to two drinks a day. People who are anxious, depressed, sleep-deprived, or exhausted tend to score poorly on cognitive function tests.

Poor scores don't necessarily predict an increased risk of cognitive decline in old age, but good mental health and restful sleep are certainly important goals. Moderate to severe head injuries, even without diagnosed concussions, increase the risk of cognitive impairment.

Strong social ties have been associated with a lower risk of dementia, as well as lower blood pressure and longer life expectancy. As a service to our readers, Harvard Health Publishing provides access to our library of archived content.

Please note the date of last review or update on all articles. No content on this site, regardless of date, should ever be used as a substitute for direct medical advice from your doctor or other qualified clinician.

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Stay on top of latest health news from Harvard Medical School. Recent Blog Articles. Flowers, chocolates, organ donation — are you in? What is a tongue-tie? What parents need to know. Which migraine medications are most helpful? How well do you score on brain health?

Shining light on night blindness. Can watching sports be bad for your health? Beyond the usual suspects for healthy resolutions. May 13, Every brain changes with age, and mental function changes along with it. Get mental stimulation Through research with mice and humans, scientists have found that brainy activities stimulate new connections between nerve cells and may even help the brain generate new cells, developing neurological "plasticity" and building up a functional reserve that provides a hedge against future cell loss.

Get physical exercise Research shows that using your muscles also helps your mind. Improve your diet Good nutrition can help your mind as well as your body. I believe these programs do have a risk because they add more sedentary screen time to a person's day.

This additional time spent on a mobile device or computer takes away from time that people could spend breaking a sweat, exploring the world, interacting with friends and family, making art, playing a musical instrument, writing, reading a novel, daydreaming, practicing mindfulness meditation , etc.

I did a meta-analysis of recent neuroscience studies to compile a list of habits that can improve cognitive function for people in every generation.

These habits can improve cognitive function and protect against cognitive decline for a lifespan. Last December, researchers at Boston University School of Medicine discovered more evidence that physical activity is beneficial for brain health and cognition.

The study found that certain hormones , which are increased during exercise, may help improve memory. The researchers were able to correlate blood hormone levels from aerobic fitness and identify positive effects on memory function linked to exercise.

In , researchers at Dana-Farber and Harvard Medical School released a study showing a specific molecule released during endurance exercise that improves cognition and protects the brain against degeneration.

See " Scientists Discover Why Exercise Makes You Smarter. In their breakthrough discovery, scientists honed in on a specific molecule called irisin that is produced in the brain during endurance exercise through a chain reaction.

Irisin is believed to have neuroprotective effects. Researchers were also able to artificially increase the levels of irisin in the blood which activated genes involved in learning and memory. A study of children in Finland investigated the link between cardiovascular fitness, motor skills, and academic test scores.

The researchers found that first-graders with poor motor skills also had poorer reading and arithmetic test scores. Across the board, children with better performance in fitness and motor skills had higher cognitive function and scored better on reading and arithmetic tests.

A study , "The Impact of Sustained Engagement on Cognitive Function in Older Adults: The Synapse Project," found that learning new and demanding skills while maintaining an engaged social network is key to staying sharp as we age.

The findings reveal that less-demanding activities, such as listening to classical music or simply completing word puzzles, probably don't provide noticeable benefits to an aging mind and brain. Older adults have long been encouraged to stay active and to flex their memory and learning like any muscle that you have to "use or lose.

When you are inside your comfort zone you may be outside of the enhancement zone. Another study, from , found that a training program designed to boost cognition in older adults also increased their openness to new experiences, demonstrating for the first time that a non-drug intervention in older adults can change a personality trait once thought to be fixed throughout a person's lifespan.

A study from Michigan State found that childhood participation in arts and crafts leads to innovation , patents, and increases the odds of starting a business as an adult.

The researchers found that people who own businesses or patents received up to eight times more exposure to the arts as children than the general public.

And that was something we were surprised to discover. Last year, neuroscientists discovered multiple ways that musical training improves the function and connectivity of different brain regions and improves cognitive function. Practicing a musical instrument increases brain volume and strengthens communication between brain areas.

Playing an instrument changes how the brain interprets and integrates a wide range of sensory information, especially for those who start before age seven. The findings were presented at the Neuroscience conference in San Diego.

In a press briefing, Gottfried Schlaug of Harvard Medical School summarized the new research from three different presentations at the conference.

He said, "These insights suggest potential new roles for musical training including fostering plasticity in the brain; have strong implications for using musical training as a tool in education ; and for treating a range of learning disabilities. Another study found that reading books, writing, and participating in brain-stimulating activities at any age may preserve memory.

Neuroscientists discovered that reading a novel can improve brain function on a variety of levels. This study of the brain benefits of reading fiction was conducted at Emory University and published in the journal Brain Connectivity.

The researchers found that becoming engrossed in a novel enhances connectivity in the brain and improves brain function. In , John Cacioppo of the University of Chicago presented findings that identified that the health consequences of feeling lonely can trigger psychological and cognitive decline.

Cacioppo's research found that feeling isolated from others can disrupt sleep, elevate blood pressure, increase morning rises in the stress hormone cortisol, alter gene expression in immune cells, increase depression , and lower overall subjective well-being.

All of these factors conspire to disrupt optimal brain function and connectivity, and reduce cognitive function. A pilot study by researchers at Harvard's Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center identifed that the brain changes associated with meditation and subsequent stress reduction may play an important role in slowing the progression of age-related cognitive disorders like Alzheimer's disease and other dementias.

First author Rebecca Erwin Wells explained, "We were particularly interested in looking at the default mode network DMN —the brain system that is engaged when people remember past events or envision the future, for example—and the hippocampus—the part of the brain responsible for emotions, learning and memory—because the hippocampus is known to atrophy as people progress toward mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease.

We also know that as people age, there's a high correlation between perceived stress and Alzheimer's disease, so we wanted to know if stress reduction through meditation might improve cognitive reserve. Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco UCSF have created a specialized video game that may help older people boost mental skills like handling multiple tasks at once.

Adam Gazzaley of UCSF and colleagues published their findings in Nature in If someone received additional "booster" sessions over the next three years, the improvements were even more dramatic. Scientists have known for decades that the brain requires sleep to consolidate learning and memory.

At the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience in San Diego in , sleep researchers from Brown University presented groundbreaking new research that helps explain the specifics of how the sleeping brain masters a new task. The extent of reorganization that the brain accomplishes during sleep is suggested by the distinct roles the two brainwave oscillations appear to play.

A study from University of California, San Francisco UCSF found an association between poor sleep quality and reduced gray matter volume in the brain's frontal lobe, which helps control important processes such as working memory and executive function.

Neuroscientists have discovered that chronic stress and high levels of cortisol can damage the brain. A wide range of recent studies has affirmed the importance of maintaining healthy brain structure and connectivity by reducing chronic stress, which lowers cortisol.

Neuroscientists at the University of California, Berkeley, found that chronic stress triggers long-term changes in brain structure and function which can lead to cognitive decline.

Their findings might explain why young people exposed to chronic stress early in life are prone to mental problems such as anxiety and mood disorders later in life, as well as learning difficulties.