You may have an amazing mind because your brain is made up of about 100 trillion brain cells called neurons, which are responsible for releasing chemicals known as neurotransmitters for effective communication between brain cells. To sharpen your mind, you have to inter-connections between your brain cells since they are all inter-connected. The more connections you have, the greater is your brain power. So, sharpen your mind by increasing your brain cell connections.
Your brain is like a recorder, which records all information on a tape (your neurons). A good memory means your brain knows when to turn on and turn off the recorder. This is crucial. However, the "when" factor is no more than your basic memory skills, without which, you just turn on the recorder all the time. The problem is that you may have just too many tapes: when you want to look for a certain tape, you may have problems finding the right tape and finding it right away. This is how and why people become forgetful, and forgetfulness is the inability to retrieve the desired information when needed.
As you continue to age (e.g. the beginning of senility, whether you like it or not), it takes you longer to recall things, as well as longer time to process new information. Things could even get worse with time: you develop the common tip-of-the-tongue problem in remembering a common word, or a familiar name. The term is "senior moments." Mental deterioration will continue if you live long enough: for example, you don't remember directions, or recall lists, among other daily annoyances and frustrations. Poor memory is associated with old age and a deteriorating brain.
The good news is that you may not have dementia or Alzheimer's if your brain is still healthy. But you do want to avoid, or at least defer, for as long as you possibly can, the occurrence of memory-lapses.
1. Memory has to do with your senses: sight, sound, smell, and taste, and touch. They are your memory skills too, that is, tools for you to remember, store, and process information. Therefore, sharpen your senses to sharpen your mind. Protect and preserve your senses, for example, take care of your vision health, which is critical to having good memory, because sight is an important tool for remembering, storing, and processing information. There is a saying: "A picture is worth a thousand words." You still need good vision to see that picture.
2. Avoid emotional upheavals, such as depression or stress, which can adversely affect your brain power. Practice daily meditation to calm your nerves, and let your brain relax and rest. Meditation is a powerful tool to optimize your memory skills. Learn how to meditate. All you need is patience and consistency.
3. Avoid pharmaceutical drugs wherever possible, especially over-the-counter ones, such as cold remedies and sleep aids. Drugs are dangerous chemicals that may damage your brain cells. Remember, brain cells, unlike other cells, do not regenerate, although you have trillions of them. Use natural herbs and home-made medicine, which are less toxic and have fewer side effects than the chemicals of pharmaceutical drugs.
4. Good nutrition enhances brain health. The rule of thumb is: What is good for the heart is also good for the brain. Eat a diet low in animal fat to avoid clogging blood vessels in your brain.
5. Try not to do too many things too quickly at the same time. This not only creates time stress but also disorients the mind. Learn to live in the present. Most of us don't; they talk on the cell phones while driving (they are supposed to be driving, not talking about things in the future).
Your brain is one of the most valuable assets in your life. You can keep it functional for as long as you wish. If there is a will, there is a way. Make it your first priority to sharpen your mind and protect your brain health.
Stephen Lau
Copyright© by Stephen Lau
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