Title: How To Boost Brain Power and Memory
Headings: How to Boost Brain Power and Memory
How to Boost Brain Power and Memory
1 Physical exercise
2 Lifelong learning - your brain is a learning machine
3 Mental stimulation
4 Social interaction - People are good medicine
5 Sleep & Nap
6 Stress management
7 Laugh & Humor
8 Healthy breakfast
9 Omega-3 fatty acids
10 Blueberries
11 Vegetables
12 Want to drink? Choose red wine!
13 Care for your heart and vessels
14 Musical training
15 Singing for foreign language learning
16 Neurobics
17 Repeated testing is superior to repeated studying
Sources & References
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Content: Scientists believe people exposed to chronic stress tend to have elevated levels of hormone cortisol. Cortisol is produced by the adrenal glands in response to acute and chronic stress. High cortisol levels are dangerous to the brain. Some of the most impressive (in a negative way) effects of the stress on brain are hippocampal atrophy, shrinkage of the hippocampus or prefrontal cortex (the area of the brain unique to humans), and even neural death in some brain regions 20. The hippocampus, a vital brain region for episodic, spatial, and contextual memory, has many cortisol receptors, which makes it especially susceptible to stress. Chronic stress can impair cell communication in the brain region responsible for learning and memory. Increased stress hormone levels lead to memory impairment in the elderly and learning difficulties in young adults 19. Short-term stress is also very destructive. Researchers from the University of California 18 have found short-term stress lasting as little as few hours can harm brain-cell communication in areas essential for learning and memory. They revealed that acute stress activated selective molecules called corticotropin releasing hormones, which disrupted the process by which the brain collects and stores memories.