Three simple things you can do to help maintain your brain health, memory and thinking. Do Hellenic (Greek) folk dancing (probably any type of touch partner dancing will do), eat berries for their protective polyphenols, and chew your foods (keep your teeth!) to stimulate your hippocampus which helps with memory and thinking. Maybe not "smoothie it" everyday! There is something that goes along with the ability to chew your food that appears to protect brain health.
So for breakfast have those berries on your oatmeal with a cup or two of green tea both very rich in polyphenols. Take some partner, or "touching" dance classes. Or just "hug" your partner to music every night! Keep your teeth in good repair and slow down and chew your food completely for your digestion and your brain health.
“Differences in Cognitive Function Among Hellenic Folk Dancers, Exercisers and Non-exercisers” Journal Of Physical Activity, Nutrition and Rehabilitation, February 10, 2016. 51284 CONCLUSION: In262 individuals divided into two age categories (young adults: 24-35 years old, seniors> 60 years) who did a) Greek folk dance classes b) non-dance exercise programs or were c) sedentary it was found that senior Greek folk dancers had better cognitive function than exercisers and sedentary participants of the same age. The higher cognitive function of senior folk dancers, as opposed to exercisers and non-exercisers, might be attributed to the complexity of the Hellenic folk dance as a motor task or other characteristics of this dance, such as the circular form and/or the haptic (touch) connection among the participants.
“Medicinal Effect of Nutraceutical Fruits for the Cognition and Brain Health.” Scientifica (Cairo). 2016;2016:3109254. 51285 CONCLUSION: Fruits and fruit juices for the management and prevention of brain conditions like cognitive dysfunction, headaches, stress, anxiety, hypertension, and Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases are being researched by scientistsworldwide more frequently. Fruits possess various chemicals such as antioxidants and polyphenols, which reduce and balance the effects of hormones in the brain responsible for brain diseases. Natural remedies generally are cheaper, more accessible, less toxic, and easy to prepare and can positively affect mental health.
“Protective effects of berry polyphenols against age-related cognitive impairment.” Nutrition and Aging, 2016;3(2-4):89-106. 51286 CONCLUSION: Berry polyphenols improve memory and cognition and have a global effect on brain plasticity, partly through their antioxidant activity and/or their effect on neuronal signal transduction and neuroinflammation. Most polyphenols, or their key metabolites, can access the brain in sufficient concentrations. Dietary polyphenols can modulate brain health and function, and strengthen the importance of fruit consumption for a healthy aging brain and the prevention of age-related diseases. Major polyphenolic classes found in berries are flavanols, anthocyanins and stilbenes, and resveratrol.
“The impact of mastication on cognition: Evidence for intervention and the role of adult
hippocampal neurogenesis,” Nutrition and Aging, 2015(3):115–123 51287 CONCLUSION: Adult hippocampal neurogenesis (AHN) in the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus has been shown to affect mood, cognition, learning ability and memory. Evidence from animal and human studies suggest a causal relationship between masticatory ability and cognitive function. Experimental studies on mice and rats have consistently shown that impairing masticatory function results in physical and behavioral changes. Decreased neural stem cells proliferation in the hippocampus was seen in most of the studies found. Human population studies have shown that tooth loss and masticatory difficulty are positively correlated with having greater odds of cognitive impairment. No causal mechanism has yet been found to explain the effects of mastication on AHN. More research is needed to find out if mastication could be a health intervention to slowdown cognitive decline
in the aging population or delay the onset of diseases such as dementia.
Be and Stay Well,
Kirk
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