UNDERSTANDING THE CHANGING BRAIN AND MIND AND INCREASE YOUR MENTAL FITNESS
The brain can be regarded as just another organ in the body like the liver or the kidney, and indeed that is what it looks like in a butcher’s shop.
However the brain in the butcher’s shop is very misleading because it looks white and bloodless unlike the liver and kidney, whereas the brain has a very rich blood supply which is of vital importance.
Cognitive functions of the brain
The reason the brain is special, of course, is because of the mind and one way of looking at the brain is that it is like a computer which is able to carry out very complex tasks quickly and which can also can learn, adapt and change. The mind is of course influenced by many things other than the brain, but it is the brain that almost always causes those disorders like dementia , which are disorders of either the cognitive or computer aspects of the mind namely the ability of the brain to remember, to calculate and to make decisions.
Emotional functions of the brain
The emotional aspects of the mind are the feelings, for example of anxiety or depression or loneliness. Disorders of these conditions are usually the result of problems in the mind, not in the brain.
The brain is plastic
We now know that the brain is dynamic and can change. It is plastic to use the modern jargon. Most of the doctors over forty were taught that the brain was static namely that you were born with a number of brain cells and from that point it was downhill all the way. However we now know that the brain that the brain in fact can keep establishing new connections throughout life, learning and adapting at any age. This is called neuroplasticity.
The four factors that affect the rest of the body -ageing, loss of fitness, disease and negative beliefs and attitudes affect the brain and the mind too.
BE POSITIVE ABOUT INCREASING YOUR BRAINABILITY
Perhaps the most important step to take is to be positive, not only positive about ageing from the physical sense but positive about ageing of the brain and the mind namely
LISTEN TO OUR PODCAST
GET FITTER – MENTALLY AS WELL AS PHYSICALLY
Until relatively recently it has been generally believed that all that happened to the brain cells after the age of twenty was that they died off. But, as was emphasised in the podcast on improving skill, new links can form between nerve cells to creat new networks at any age but this not only beneficial for improving co-ordination but also for improving the cognitive and emotional capacity of the brain and the mind, namely for getting fitter mentally. Cognitive capacity is the brain’s ability to think logically and make decisions, the emotional capacity includes the ability to cope with stress and feel better the focus of the next podcast
As with phusical firness the key is to increase activity, and because one effect of the normal biological ageing process is loss of resilience it is important as every birthday approaches to make sure that you have not become less active mentally, or physically, and that you could think of some new way of stimulating your brain, which could of course be a book token
Puzzles and crosswords, particularly cryptic crosswords, do have a beneficial effect and this effect is increased if you can share your success and failures with friends. ‘Brain games’, to use a generic term for a wide range of different activities, have also been shown to have a beneficial effect and again can be added to one’s birthday or Christmas list.
Learning is the next type of activity that can increase mental fitness and this includes relearning a skill from your youth, relearning a language for example or relearning the violin or piano. Learning a new skill is also helpful and this could include a practical skill like carpentry and new knowledge is also stimulating, particularly if learning is in a group and the University of the Third Age, the U3A, is a great learning organisation offering what is sometimes called ‘non-formal’ learning. Formal learning for a qualification or degree is also appropriate, and beneficial, for people of any age.
The key is stimulation, and increasingly it is recognised that what is sometimes called the Arts and Culture’ have benefit and there are an increasing number of opportunities, both local and online. This could taking up or returning to creative activities such as painting or acting and in creating or participating in music, dancing and choral singing, provide stimulation and increase fitness as well as creating joy, namely having a great emotional as well as cognitive effect
Points for Reflection after listening and reading; if you are working through these podcasts with a group ask people to turn to their neighbour and discuss these points or allocate them to a Zoom room if you are online
Identify some intellectual activity that you used to do and restart it, enrol in some learning opportunity such as the University of the Third Age or a local or online learning course, and volunteer for a challenging task
The brain can be regarded as just another organ in the body like the liver or the kidney, and indeed that is what it looks like in a butcher’s shop.
However the brain in the butcher’s shop is very misleading because it looks white and bloodless unlike the liver and kidney, whereas the brain has a very rich blood supply which is of vital importance.
Cognitive functions of the brain
The reason the brain is special, of course, is because of the mind and one way of looking at the brain is that it is like a computer which is able to carry out very complex tasks quickly and which can also can learn, adapt and change. The mind is of course influenced by many things other than the brain, but it is the brain that almost always causes those disorders like dementia , which are disorders of either the cognitive or computer aspects of the mind namely the ability of the brain to remember, to calculate and to make decisions.
Emotional functions of the brain
The emotional aspects of the mind are the feelings, for example of anxiety or depression or loneliness. Disorders of these conditions are usually the result of problems in the mind, not in the brain.
The brain is plastic
We now know that the brain is dynamic and can change. It is plastic to use the modern jargon. Most of the doctors over forty were taught that the brain was static namely that you were born with a number of brain cells and from that point it was downhill all the way. However we now know that the brain that the brain in fact can keep establishing new connections throughout life, learning and adapting at any age. This is called neuroplasticity.
The four factors that affect the rest of the body -ageing, loss of fitness, disease and negative beliefs and attitudes affect the brain and the mind too.
- Ageing does have an affect on the brain. As the brain ages it does quick calculations less well, so older people are generally not so good at quick response games and quizzes. There is also a loss of memory power, particularly for events and facts that are recently remembered but it is very important to emphasise that the changes such as those listed below are not an early sign of dementia
- Forgetting where you put your phone
- Forgetting the name of someone you met two days ago
- Loss of fitness is also relevant for the mind and therefore for the brain because the brain needs stimulation to form new circuits. A the best form of activity for the brain is that which challenges the individual to engage with others, for example running a voluntary group or being a local councillor or quite simply carrying on working, in fact any activity with a purpose
- Disease that affects the brain usually affects the mind. Alzheimer’s disease is still a huge mystery but Alzheimer’s disease is only one cause of dementia the other main cause being vascular dementia due to impairment of the blood supply the brain. Furthermore we know that stress and lack of sleep also have adverse effects on the brain, and that physical activity as well as improving the blood supply of the brain, has a direct beneficial effect on brain cells.
- Negative beliefs and attitudes play a very important part in the development of dementia. We know that depression and loneliness, often the complications of deafness and blindness, increase the risk of dementia significantly but so too do negative beliefs for example beliefs such as “There is no point in arguing with someone aged ninety, just agree with them”.
BE POSITIVE ABOUT INCREASING YOUR BRAINABILITY
Perhaps the most important step to take is to be positive, not only positive about ageing from the physical sense but positive about ageing of the brain and the mind namely
- We know that people can learn and adapt at any age.
- We know that although decision making that requires rapid response decays with age people who are more experienced often make better decisions.
- We now know that the brain can form new connections throughout life. It is plastic not static like a lump of clay. As we have said it is more like a telephone relay box, the green box at the end of your road but when you open it up this is what you see. The hand on the left is establishing new connections, like you learning a new dance step
- by learning new skills, preferably by engaging in purposeful work- Work your brain even harder
- by increasing contact and interaction with other people to avoid isolation and depression
- by Keeping your hearing and your vision as sharp as possible to keep receiving stimulation
LISTEN TO OUR PODCAST
GET FITTER – MENTALLY AS WELL AS PHYSICALLY
Until relatively recently it has been generally believed that all that happened to the brain cells after the age of twenty was that they died off. But, as was emphasised in the podcast on improving skill, new links can form between nerve cells to creat new networks at any age but this not only beneficial for improving co-ordination but also for improving the cognitive and emotional capacity of the brain and the mind, namely for getting fitter mentally. Cognitive capacity is the brain’s ability to think logically and make decisions, the emotional capacity includes the ability to cope with stress and feel better the focus of the next podcast
As with phusical firness the key is to increase activity, and because one effect of the normal biological ageing process is loss of resilience it is important as every birthday approaches to make sure that you have not become less active mentally, or physically, and that you could think of some new way of stimulating your brain, which could of course be a book token
Puzzles and crosswords, particularly cryptic crosswords, do have a beneficial effect and this effect is increased if you can share your success and failures with friends. ‘Brain games’, to use a generic term for a wide range of different activities, have also been shown to have a beneficial effect and again can be added to one’s birthday or Christmas list.
Learning is the next type of activity that can increase mental fitness and this includes relearning a skill from your youth, relearning a language for example or relearning the violin or piano. Learning a new skill is also helpful and this could include a practical skill like carpentry and new knowledge is also stimulating, particularly if learning is in a group and the University of the Third Age, the U3A, is a great learning organisation offering what is sometimes called ‘non-formal’ learning. Formal learning for a qualification or degree is also appropriate, and beneficial, for people of any age.
The key is stimulation, and increasingly it is recognised that what is sometimes called the Arts and Culture’ have benefit and there are an increasing number of opportunities, both local and online. This could taking up or returning to creative activities such as painting or acting and in creating or participating in music, dancing and choral singing, provide stimulation and increase fitness as well as creating joy, namely having a great emotional as well as cognitive effect
Points for Reflection after listening and reading; if you are working through these podcasts with a group ask people to turn to their neighbour and discuss these points or allocate them to a Zoom room if you are online
- What new field of knowledge would you like to learn?
- Are there opportunities taking on a more challenging role in your local community?
Identify some intellectual activity that you used to do and restart it, enrol in some learning opportunity such as the University of the Third Age or a local or online learning course, and volunteer for a challenging task