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The brain is the master control centre of all our thoughts and actions. It seems quite obvious, therefore, that we should do whatever we can to keep our brains operating most effectively.
Brain Awareness Week (15-21 March) highlights this issue and, in fact, does much more. By way of the Healthy Brain Program, which will be promoted during Brain Awareness Week we can learn how to keep our brains healthy right through old age.
We receive plenty of advice about keeping our body physically fit, and indeed there is lots of emphasis given to the health of other organs such as heart and lungs. It seems, however, that our brain is often neglected.
The Healthy Brain Program is an initiative of the Brain Foundation and it provides simple hints on how to maintain neural alertness.
According to the Brain Foundation, human mental decline begins before the age of 40; so we need regular exercise to keep our brains in shape, and the sooner we start the better.
Exercising the brain is doing anything that makes you think. For instance, you could play games that involve memory (such as bridge or other card games) or games that make you think ahead, like chess.
Instead of watching TV you could read a book; maybe take up a new hobby, learn a musical instrument or study a new language. Avoid calculators, try mental arithmetic – now that’s like really tough push-ups for brain power!
Of course just like any high-performance machine, the brain needs top quality fuel. Our brains need a well balanced, low cholesterol, low saturated fat (low animal fat) diet. Timing is important too. Studies have demonstrated the benefits of a good breakfast. Protein and unsaturated fat are especially important for developing brains. Fish, a good source of both, is sometimes quite justly called “brain food”.
Safety first should also be a priority. Accidents are commonly the cause of brain injury. The risk of car accidents, accidents at work, falls, assaults and sports injuries can be reduced with common sense safety precautions – precautions such as wearing seat belts or sports helmets.
We also need to manage anxiety, stress and depression. Acute stress is normal and short lived. The brain tells organs in the body to speed up and perform more effectively; then it returns to normal. But long-term stress can be a problem, and there is increasing evidence that such stress can damage the brain.
One of the most difficult forms of stress to cope with is depression. Feelings of grief or sadness from time to time is normal; but when long-lasting changes in mood and feelings adversely affect your lifestyle, then this is major depression and should be treated as a medical emergency.
Studies show that more than 10% of men and even double the number of women could suffer major depression at some stage in their lives.
Fortunately, depression can be treated; with the type of treatment depending on the cause and severity of the condition. Sometimes anti-depressant medicines will help. These aim to get our brain chemicals back in balance.
You can get more information about depression – the signs and symptoms and the various treatment options – from pharmacies around Australia providing the Pharmaceutical Society’s Self Care health information. Call 1300 369 772 for the nearest location and ask for the fact card titled Depression. |
