Many older people are surprised to learn that there are common risk factors between heart disease and Alzheimer’s disease. But if you think about how the vascular system supplies blood to the brain, it makes sense that impairment of blood flow could lead to brain tissue damage.

The small arteries of the brain are sensitive to elevations in blood pressure and long-term hypertension can injure them. Several studies support the connection between blood pressure and brain health. Higher blood pressure correlates with poorer cognitive performance and damage to brain tissue.

According to long-term studies, the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia is more than doubled if systolic blood pressure is in or above the range of 140-160 mmHg.

Cholesterol plays a role in the formation of amyloid-beta plaques, damage characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease, and elevated cholesterol levels are thought to increase the production of amyloid-beta plaques.

Check Your Vitamin D Level

Low levels of vitamin D are linked to cognitive impairment. Vitamin D is involved in memory formation. Several studies have associated vitamin D deficiency with an increased risk of cognitive impairment or dementia in older adults.

The optimal level of vitamin D is between 30 and 45 ng/ml.

In addition, the vitamin is involved in regulating glucose and calcium transport to and within the brain, and may also protect cognition by reducing inflammation and increasing the availability of certain neurotransmitters.

Take the Brain-Supporting Supplements Omega-3 DHA and Vitamin B12

Maintaining sufficient levels of the omega-3 fatty acid DHA in the brain is an important measure for preventing neurodegenerative diseases later in life. Studies have shown that higher intake and higher circulating omega-3 DHA is associated with larger brain volume and a decreased risk of Alzheimer’s disease.

The risk of vitamin B12 deficiency increases with age, about 20 percent of adults over age 60 are either insufficient or deficient.

B12 deficiency causes problems in the brain, including confusion, depression, and poor memory. A deficiency in this important vitamin has been associated with Alzheimer’s disease.

Since your body’s ability to absorb vitamin B12 decreases with age, and the vitamin is not present in plant foods, it is wise to supplement. Plus, the RDI is insufficient for flexitarians, vegans and the elderly. 

Limit Your Consumption of Red Meat and Other Animal Products

Copper and iron are essential minerals present in large amounts in red meat; these minerals accumulate in the body over time and in excess, they can harm the brain.

Instead, they can be obtained in non-dangerous amounts through healthier options such as sesame and pumpkin seeds, edamame, and other beans.

Excess copper and iron both contribute to oxidative stress in the brain and are involved in amyloid-beta plaque formation in the brain.​

Focus on Whole Plant Foods

A good rule to follow is to have 90 percent or more of your diet be whole plant foods, meaning vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts, and seeds. A diet higher in these foods and low in meat and dairy is associated with a 36 percent decrease in Alzheimer’s risk.

Make sure your diet is rich in natural, healthy plant foods, and add more raw vegetables to your diet by eating a large salad as your entrée at least once a day. Add beans, tomatoes, raw onions, and a nut or seed-based salad dressing.

Eat Berries Frequently

Phytochemicals found in vegetables and fruit may help to alleviate oxidative stress and inflammation in the brain, leading to a reduced risk of Alzheimer’s disease.

Berries, in particular, have been singled out for their protective effects on the brain. Several different berries have been found to slow or reverse age-related declines in brain function in animals.

Blueberries and pomegranates have shown promising results in human studies, suggesting that these phytochemical-rich foods may help to improve memory in older adults.

Make Nuts and Seeds Your Major Fat Source

Research indicates that nut consumption—walnuts in particular—may benefit brain function. Walnuts are rich in the essential omega-3 fatty acid ALA (precursor to DHA and EPA), and observational studies have linked higher walnut consumption to better working memory.

Higher total nut consumption is associated with better cognitive function overall.

Avoid Salt in Your Diet

High salt intake stiffens arteries and increases blood pressure, damaging the delicate blood vessels in the brain, impairing blood flow in brain tissue and increasing your chances of cognitive impairment.

Season your foods with herbs and spices or try perking up foods with a splash of citrus or flavored vinegar or use a no-salt seasoning blend.

Stay Away from Added Sugars in Your Diet

Excess sugar can impair your cognitive skills and also contributes to high blood pressure. High amounts of sugar cause dangerous elevations in blood glucose which can lead to blood vessel damage, and there is evidence that this damage contributes to a progressive decline in brain function. 

Even a single instance of hyperglycemia could be harmful, as slowed cognitive function and deficits in memory and attention have been reported.

In addition, frequent exposure to high glucose levels likely diminishes mental capacity, as higher HbA1c levels have been associated with a greater degree of brain shrinkage.

Instead, satisfy a sweet tooth with fresh fruit which will give you the added benefits of the fruit’s fiber and antioxidants.

Stay Active

A balanced life helps improve overall well-being. Regular exercise has favorable effects on the brain at all stages of life. One likely reason is that during physical activity there is enhanced blood flow to the brain, and exercising regularly helps to keep blood vessels healthy.

In adults over age 60, physical fitness is associated with better memory, cognitive function and reaction time.

Exercise also helps brain tissue produce more mitochondria, responsible for cellular energy production. High levels of physical activity are associated with a significant reduction in Alzheimer’s disease risk.

Source

https://www.verywellmind.com/strategies-to-boost-cognitive-health-and-fight-brain-aging-4077306

A growing body of scientific research suggests that the following steps are linked to cognitive health. Small changes may really add up: Making these part of your routine could help you function better.

• Take Care of Your Physical Health
• Manage High Blood Pressure
• Eat Healthy Foods
• Be Physically Active
• Keep Your Mind Active
• Stay Connected with Social Activities
• Manage Stress
• Reduce Risks to Cognitive Health

Research shows that a combination of these healthy lifestyle behaviors may also reduce the risk for Alzheimer’s disease.

Take Care of Your Physical Health

Taking care of your physical health may help your cognitive health. You can:

• Get recommended health screenings.
• Manage chronic health problems like diabetes, high blood pressure, depression, and high cholesterol.
• Consult with your health care provider about the medicines you take and possible side effects on memory, sleep, and brain function.
• Reduce risk for brain injuries due to falls and other accidents.
• Limit use of alcohol (some medicines can be dangerous when mixed with alcohol).
• Quit smoking, if you currently smoke. Also avoid other nicotine products such as chewing tobacco.
• Get enough sleep, generally seven to eight hours each night.

Manage High Blood Pressure

Preventing or controlling high blood pressure, not only helps your heart, but may help your brain too. Decades of observational studies have shown that having high blood pressure in midlife — the 40s to early 60s — increases the risk of cognitive decline later in life. In addition, the SPRINT-MIND study, a nationwide clinical trial, showed that intensive lowering of blood pressure (even below the previous standard target of 140 for systolic blood pressure) lowers the risk for mild cognitive impairment, which is a risk factor for dementia.

High blood pressure often does not cause signs of illness that you can see or feel. Routine visits to your doctor will help pick up changes in your blood pressure, even though you might feel fine. To control or lower high blood pressure, your doctor may suggest exercise, changes in your diet, and if needed — medications. These steps can help protect your brain and your heart.

Eat Healthy Foods

A healthy diet can help reduce the risk of many chronic diseases such as heart disease or diabetes. It may also help keep your brain healthy.

In general, a healthy diet consists of fruits and vegetables; whole grains; lean meats, fish, and poultry; and low-fat or nonfat dairy products. You should also limit solid fats, sugar, and salt. Be sure to control portion sizes and drink enough water and other fluids.

Researchers are looking at whether a healthy diet can help preserve cognitive function or reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s. For example, there is some evidence that people who eat a Mediterranean diet have a lower risk of developing dementia.

While scientists aren’t sure yet why the Mediterranean diet might help the brain, its effect on improving cardiovascular health might in turn reduce dementia risk. In contrast, the typical Western diet often increases cardiovascular disease risk, possibly contributing to faster brain aging.

Researchers have developed and are testing another diet, called MIND, a combination of the Mediterranean and DASH (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) diets. According to observational studies of more than 900 dementia-free older adults, closely following the MIND diet was associated with a reduced risk of Alzheimer’s and a slower rate of cognitive decline.

Learn more about diet and prevention of Alzheimer’s disease.

Be Physically Active

Being physically active — through regular exercise, household chores, or other activities — has many benefits. It can help you:

• Keep and improve your strength
• Have more energy
• Improve your balance
• Prevent or delay heart disease, diabetes, and other concerns
• Perk up your mood and reduce depression

Studies link ongoing physical activity with benefits for the brain and cognition as well, although a strong link between physical activity and Alzheimer’s disease prevention has not yet been documented.

In one study, exercise stimulated the human brain’s ability to maintain old network connections and make new ones that are vital to cognitive health. Other studies have shown that exercise increases the size of a brain structure important to memory and learning, resulting in better spatial memory. Aerobic exercise, such as brisk walking, is thought to be more beneficial to cognitive health than nonaerobic stretching and toning exercise. One study found that the more time spent doing a moderate levels of physical activity, the greater the increase in brain glucose metabolism — or how quickly the brain turns glucose into fuel — which may reduce the risk for developing Alzheimer’s disease.

Federal guidelines recommend that all adults get at least 150 minutes (2.5 hours) of physical activity each week. Walking is a good start. You can also join programs that teach you to move safely and prevent falls, which can lead to brain and other injuries. Check with your health care provider if you haven’t been active and want to start a vigorous exercise program.

Keep Your Mind Active

Being intellectually engaged may benefit the brain. People who engage in personally meaningful activities, such as volunteering or hobbies, say they feel happier and healthier. Learning new skills may improve your thinking ability, too. For example, one study found that older adults who learned quilting or digital photography had more memory improvement than those who only socialized or did less cognitively demanding activities. Some of the research on engagement in activities such as music, theater, dance, and creative writing has shown promise for improving quality of life and well-being in older adults, from better memory and self-esteem to reduced stress and increased social interaction.

However, a recent, comprehensive report reviewing the design and findings of these and other studies did not find strong evidence that these types of activities have a lasting, beneficial effect on cognition. Additional research is needed, and in large numbers of diverse older adults, to be able to say definitively whether these activities may help reduce decline or maintain healthy cognition.

Lots of activities can keep your mind active. For example, read books and magazines. Play games. Take or teach a class. Learn a new skill or hobby. Work or volunteer. These types of mentally stimulating activities have not been proven to prevent serious cognitive impairment or Alzheimer’s disease, but they can be fun! Plus, findings from observational studies suggest that some informal mentally stimulating activities, such as reading or playing games, may lower the risk of Alzheimer’s-related cognitive impairment and dementia.

Some scientists have argued that such activities may protect the brain by establishing “cognitive reserve.” They may help the brain become more adaptable in some mental functions so it can compensate for age-related brain changes and health conditions that affect the brain.

Some types of cognitive training conducted in a research setting also seem to have benefits. For the Advanced Cognitive Training for Independent and Vital Elderly (ACTIVE) trial, healthy adults 65 and older participated in 10 sessions of memory training, reasoning training, or processing-speed training. The sessions improved participants’ mental skills in the area in which they were trained with evidence suggesting these benefits persisted for two years.

Be wary of claims that playing certain computer and online games can improve your memory and other types of thinking as evidence to back up such claims is evolving. There is currently not enough evidence available to suggest that computer-based brain training applications offered commercially have the same impact on cognitive abilities as the ACTIVE study training. NIA and other organizations are supporting research to determine whether different types of cognitive training have lasting effects.

For more information, see Participating in Activities You Enjoy.

Stay Connected with Social Activities

Connecting with other people through social activities and community programs can keep your brain active and help you feel less isolated and more engaged with the world around you. Participating in social activities may lower the risk for some health problems and improve well-being.

People who engage in personally meaningful and productive activities with others tend to live longer, boost their mood, and have a sense of purpose. Studies show that these activities seem to help maintain their well-being and may improve their cognitive function.

So, visit with family and friends. Consider volunteering for a local organization or join a group focused on a hobby you enjoy. Join a walking group with other older adults. Check out programs available through your Area Agency on Aging, senior center, or other community organizations. Increasingly, there are groups that meet online too, providing a way to connect from home with others who share your interests or to get support.

We don’t know for sure yet if any of these actions can prevent or delay Alzheimer’s and age-related cognitive decline. Still, some of these have been associated with reduced risk of cognitive impairment and dementia.

Manage Stress

Stress is a natural part of life. Short-term stress can even focus our thoughts and motivate us to take action. However, over time, chronic stress can change the brain, affect memory, and increase the risk for Alzheimer’s and related dementias. To help manage stress and build the ability to bounce back from stressful situations, there are many things you can do:

• Exercise regularly. Practicing tai chi or going for a walk, especially in nature, can restore a sense of well-being.
• Write in a journal. Putting your thoughts or worries on paper can help you let go of an issue or see a new solution.
• Try relaxation techniques. Practices such as mindfulness — which involves focusing awareness on the present moment without judgment — or breathing exercises can help your body relax. These can help lower blood pressure, lessen muscle tension, and reduce stress.
• Stay positive. Release grudges or things beyond your control, practice gratitude, or pause to enjoy the simple things, like the comfort of a cup of tea or the beauty of a sunrise.

Reduce Risks to Cognitive Health

Genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors are all thought to influence cognitive health. Some of these factors may contribute to a decline in thinking skills and the ability to perform everyday tasks such as driving, paying bills, taking medicine, and cooking.

Genetic factors are passed down (inherited) from a parent to child and cannot be controlled. But many environmental and lifestyle factors can be changed or managed to reduce your risk. These factors include:

• Some physical and mental health problems, such as high blood pressure or depression
• Brain injuries, such as those due to falls or accidents
• Some medicines, or improper use of medicines
• Lack of physical activity
• Poor diet
• Smoking
• Drinking too much alcohol
• Sleep problems
• Social isolation and loneliness

Physical and Mental Health Problems

Many health conditions affect the brain and pose risks to cognitive function. These conditions include:

• Heart disease and high blood pressure — can lead to stroke and changes in blood vessels in the brain that can lead to dementia
• Diabetes — damages blood vessels throughout the body, including in the brain; increases risk for stroke and heart attack; increases risk for Alzheimer’s
• Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias — cause a buildup of harmful proteins and other changes in the brain that lead to memory loss and other thinking problems
• Stroke — can damage blood vessels in the brain and increase risk for vascular dementia
• Depression — can lead to confusion or attention problems and has been linked to dementia
• Delirium — shows up as an acute state of confusion, often during a hospital stay, and is associated with subsequent cognitive decline

It’s important to prevent or seek treatment for these health problems. They affect your brain as well as your body and receiving treatment for other conditions may help prevent or delay cognitive decline or thinking problems.

Brain Injuries

Older adults are at higher risk of falls, car accidents, and other accidents that can cause brain injury. Alcohol and certain medicines can affect a person’s ability to drive safely and also increase the risk for accidents and brain injury. Learn about risks for falls and participate in fall prevention programs. Wear helmets and seat belts to help prevent head injuries as well. But don’t let a fear of falling keep you from being active. Overcoming this fear can help you stay active, maintain your physical health, and prevent future falls.

Medicines

Some drugs and combinations of medicines can affect a person’s thinking and the way the brain works. For example, certain ones can cause confusion, memory loss, hallucinations, and delusions in older adults.

Medicines can also interact with food, dietary supplements, alcohol, and other substances. Some of these interactions can affect how your brain functions. Drugs that can harm older adults’ cognition include:

• Antihistamines for allergy relief
• Medicines for anxiety and depression
• Sleep aids
• Antipsychotics
• Muscle relaxants
• Some drugs that treat urinary incontinence
• Medications for relief of cramps in the stomach, intestines, and bladder

Talk with your doctor if you’re concerned that your medications may be causing cognitive problems. Do not stop taking any medications you’ve been prescribed without first talking with your health care provider.

Lack of Physical Activity

Lack of exercise and other physical activity may increase your risk of diabetes, heart disease, depression, and stroke — all of which can harm the brain. In some studies, physical activity has been linked to improved cognitive performance and reduced risk for Alzheimer’s disease. In general, staying active is known to lower the risk of high blood pressure, stroke, and symptoms of depression, all of which in turn can improve cognitive health.

Poor Diet

A number of studies link eating certain foods with keeping the brain healthy and suggest that other foods can increase health risk. For example, high-fat and high-sodium foods can lead to health problems, such as heart disease and diabetes, that can harm the brain.

Smoking

Smoking is harmful to your body and your brain. It raises the risk of heart attack, stroke, and lung disease. Quitting smoking at any age can improve your health.

Alcohol

Drinking too much alcohol affects the brain by slowing or impairing communication among brain cells. This can lead to slurred speech, fuzzy memory, drowsiness, and dizziness. Long-term effects may include changes in balance, memory, emotions, coordination, and body temperature. Staying away from alcohol can reverse some of these changes.

As people age, they may become more sensitive to alcohol’s effects. The same amount of alcohol can have a greater effect on an older person than on someone who is younger. Also, some medicines can be dangerous when mixed with alcohol. Ask your doctor or pharmacist for more information.

Sleep Problems

At any age, getting a good night’s sleep supports brain health. Sleep problems — not getting enough sleep, sleeping poorly, and sleep disorders — can lead to trouble with memory, concentration, and other cognitive functions.

Social Isolation and Loneliness

Social isolation and feeling lonely may be bad for brain health. Loneliness has been linked to higher risk for dementia, and less social activity has been linked to poorer cognitive function.

By taking steps now to reduce your risks for cognitive decline, you’ll help to maintain your cognitive health for the future.

Source

https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/cognitive-health-and-older-adults

What Is Cognitive Psychology?

Cognitive psychology involves the study of internal mental processes—all of the things that go on inside your brain, including perception, thinking, memory, attention, language, problem-solving, and learning. While it is a relatively young branch of psychology, it has quickly grown to become one of the most popular subfields.

There are numerous practical applications for this cognitive research, such as providing help coping with memory disorders, increasing decision-making accuracy, finding ways to help people recover from brain injury, treating learning disorders, and structuring educational curricula to enhance learning.

Learning more about how people think and process information not only helps researchers gain a deeper understanding of how the human brain works, but it allows psychologists to develop new ways of helping people deal with psychological difficulties.

For example, by recognizing that attention is both a selective and limited resource, psychologists are able to come up with solutions that make it easier for people with attentional difficulties to improve their focus and concentration.

Findings from cognitive psychology have also improved our understanding of how people form, store, and recall memories. By knowing more about how these processes work, psychologists can develop new ways of helping people improve their memories and combat potential memory problems.

For example, psychologists have found that while your short-term memory is quite short and limited (lasting just 20 to 30 seconds and capable of holding between five and nine items), rehearsal strategies can improve the chances that information will be transferred to long-term memory, which is much more stable and durable.

When to See a Cognitive Psychologist

While many cognitive psychologists specialize in research and are employed by universities or government agencies, others take a clinical focus and work directly with individuals who are experiencing challenges related to different mental processes. They may work in hospitals, mental health clinics, or private practices.

Psychologists who work in this area often focus on a particular area of interest such as memory, while others might instead choose to work directly on specific health concerns related to cognition, such as degenerative brain disorders or brain injuries.

Reasons to Consult a Cognitive Psychologist

• Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, or memory loss
• Brain trauma treatment
• Cognitive therapy for a psychological illness
• Interventions for learning disabilities
• Perceptual or sensory issues
• Therapy for a speech or language disorder

The work of cognitive psychologists is essential for helping people who have experienced issues with mental processes. While we tend to take abilities such as attention and problem solving for granted, perhaps because they are so woven into the fabric of our everyday existence, cognitive disruptions can create havoc in multiple areas of an individual’s life.

Attention problems can make it difficult to focus at work or at school. Even relatively minor memory problems can make it a struggle to handle the demands of everyday life. Consider, for example, how negative thinking can interfere with your health and happiness.

We all experience these negative thoughts from time to time, but some people may find themselves overwhelmed with pessimistic thinking patterns that make it difficult to function in daily life. These ruminations can lead to increased stress levels, pessimism, and self-sabotaging, and can even contribute to feelings of learned helplessness.

With the help of cognitive psychologists, people are often able to find ways to cope and even overcome such difficulties.

Therapy treatments rooted in cognitive research focus on helping people change these negative thinking patterns and replace such thoughts with more positive and realistic ones.

Cognitive Psychology for Mental Health

In addition to adding to our understanding of how the human mind works, the field of cognitive psychology has also had an impact on approaches to mental health. Before the 1970s, many mental health approaches were focused more on psychoanalytic, behavioral, and humanistic approaches.

The so-called “cognitive revolution” that took place during this period put a greater emphasis on understanding the way people process information and how thinking patterns might contribute to psychological distress. Thanks to research in this area by cognitive psychologists, new approaches to treatment were developed to help treat depression, anxiety, phobias, and other psychological disorders.

Cognitive behavior therapy and rational emotive behavior therapy are two methods in which clients and therapists focus on the underlying cognitions that contribute to psychological distress.

Therapists can help clients identify irrational beliefs and other cognitive distortions that are in conflict with reality and then aid them in replacing such thoughts with more realistic, healthy beliefs.

If you are experiencing symptoms of a psychological disorder that would benefit from the use of cognitive approaches, you might see a psychologist who has specific training in these cognitive treatment methods.

These professionals frequently go by titles other than cognitive psychologists, such as psychiatrist, clinical psychologist, or counseling psychologist, but many of the strategies they utilize are rooted in the cognitive tradition. If you’re unsure of a practitioner’s discipline or approach, just ask him or her.

The Impact of Cognitive Psychology

As you can see, the field of cognitive psychology is both broad and diverse, yet it touches on so many aspects of daily life.

Research on cognitive psychology may at times seem academic and far-removed from the problems you face in everyday life, yet the findings from such scientific investigations play a role in how professionals approach the treatment of mental illness, traumatic brain injury, and degenerative brain diseases.

Thanks to the work of cognitive psychologists, we can better pinpoint ways to measure human intellectual abilities, develop new strategies to combat memory problems, and decode the workings of the human brain—all of which ultimately has a powerful impact on how we treat cognitive disorders.

The field of cognitive psychology is a rapidly growing area that continues to add to our understanding of the many influences that mental processes have on our health and daily lives.

From understanding how cognitive processes change over the course of child development to looking at how the brain transforms sensory inputs into perceptions, cognitive psychology has helped us gain a deeper and richer understanding of the many mental events that contribute to our daily existence and overall well-being.

A Word From Verywell

Being diagnosed with a brain or cognitive health problem can be frightening and sometimes confusing, but it is important to remember that you are not alone.

By working with your doctor, you can come up with an effective treatment plan to help address brain health and cognitive problems. Your treatment may involve consulting with a cognitive psychologist who has a background in the specific area of concern that you are facing, or you may be referred to another mental health professional that has training and experience with your particular illness.

You may find it helpful to learn as much as you can about your initial diagnosis and to consider putting together a list of questions you have before your next visit with your physician, cognitive psychologist, or mental health professional. This can help you feel better prepared and ready to tackle the next steps in your treatment.

Source

https://www.verywellmind.com/cognitive-psychology-4157181

As the control center of your body, it’s in charge of keeping your heart beating and lungs breathing and allowing you to move, feel, and think.

That’s why it’s a good idea to keep your brain in peak working condition.

The foods you eat play a role in keeping your brain healthy and can improve specific mental tasks, such as memory and concentration.

This article lists 11 foods that boost your brain.

1. Fatty fish

When people talk about brain foods, fatty fish is often at the top of the list.

This type of fish includes salmon, trout, albacore tuna, herring, and sardines, all of which are rich sources of omega-3 fatty acids.

About 60% of your brain is made of fat, and half of that fat is comprised of omega-3 fatty acids.

Your brain uses omega-3s to build brain and nerve cells, and these fats are essential for learning and memory.

Omega-3s also offer several additional benefits for your brain.

For one thing, they may slow age-related mental decline and help ward off Alzheimer’s disease.

On the flip side, not getting enough omega-3s is linked to learning impairments, as well as depression.

In general, eating fish seems to have positive health benefits.

Some research also suggests that people who eat fish regularly tend to have more gray matter in their brains. Gray matter contains most of the nerve cells that control decision making, memory, and emotion.

Overall, fatty fish is an excellent choice for brain health.

SUMMARY

Fatty fish is a rich source of omega-3 fatty acids, a major building block of the brain. Omega-3s play a role in sharpening memory and improving mood, as well as protecting your brain against cognitive decline.

2. Coffee

If coffee is the highlight of your morning, you’ll be glad to hear that it’s good for you.

Two main components in coffee — caffeine and antioxidants — can help support brain health.

The caffeine found in coffee has a number of positive effects on the brain, including:

• Increased alertness. Caffeine keeps your brain alert by blocking adenosine, a chemical messenger that makes you feel sleepy.
• Improved mood. Caffeine may also boost some of your “feel-good” neurotransmitters, such as dopamine.
• Sharpened concentration. One study found that caffeine consumption led to short-term improvements in attention and alertness in participants completing a cognition test.

Drinking coffee over the long-term is also linked to a reduced risk of neurological diseases, such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s. The largest risk reduction was seen in those adults who consumes 3-4 cups daily.

This could at least be partly due to coffee’s high concentration of antioxidants.

SUMMARY

Coffee can help boost alertness and mood. It may also offer some protection against Alzheimer’s, thanks to its content of caffeine and antioxidants.

3. Blueberries

Blueberries provide numerous health benefits, including some that are specifically for your brain.

Blueberries and other deeply colored berries deliver anthocyanins, a group of plant compounds with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects.

Antioxidants act against both oxidative stress and inflammation, conditions that can contribute to brain aging and neurodegenerative diseases.

Some of the antioxidants in blueberries have been found to accumulate in the brain and help improve communication between brain cells.

According to one review of 11 studies, blueberries could help improve memory and certain cognitive processes in children and older adults.

Try sprinkling them over your breakfast cereal, adding them to a smoothie, or enjoying as is for a simple snack.

SUMMARY

Blueberries are packed with antioxidants that may delay brain aging and improve memory.

4. Turmeric

Turmeric has generated a lot of buzz recently.

This deep-yellow spice is a key ingredient in curry powder and has a number of benefits for the brain.

Curcumin, the active ingredient in turmeric, has been shown to cross the blood-brain barrier, meaning it can directly enter the brain and benefit the cells there.

It’s a potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compound that has been linked to the following brain benefits:

• May benefit memory. Curcumin may help improve memory in people with Alzheimer’s. It may also help clear the amyloid plaques that are a hallmark of this disease.
• Eases depression. Curcumin boosts serotonin and dopamine, both of which improve mood. One review found that curcumin could improve symptoms of depression and anxiety when used alongside standard treatments in people diagnosed with depression.
• Helps new brain cells grow. Curcumin boosts brain-derived neurotrophic factor, a type of growth hormone that helps brain cells grow. It may help delay age-related mental decline, but more research is needed.

Keep in mind that most studies use highly concentrated curcumin supplements in doses ranging from 500–2,000 mg per day, which is much more curcumin than most people typically consume when using turmeric as a spice. This is because turmeric is only made up of around 3–6% curcumin.

Therefore, while adding turmeric to your food may be beneficial, you may need to use a curcumin supplement under a doctor’s guidance to obtain the results reported in these studies.

SUMMARY

Turmeric and its active compound curcumin have strong anti-inflammatory and antioxidant benefits, which help the brain. In research, it has reduced symptoms of depression and Alzheimer’s disease.

5. Broccoli

Broccoli is packed with powerful plant compounds, including antioxidants.

It’s also very high in vitamin K, delivering more than 100% of the Recommended Daily Intake (RDI) in a 1-cup (160-gram) serving of cooked broccoli.

This fat-soluble vitamin is essential for forming sphingolipids, a type of fat that’s densely packed into brain cells.

A few studies in older adults have linked a higher vitamin K intake to better memory and cognitive status.

Beyond vitamin K, broccoli contains a number of compounds that give it anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects, which may help protect the brain against damage.

SUMMARY

Broccoli contains a number of compounds that have powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, including vitamin K.

6. Pumpkin seeds

Pumpkin seeds contain powerful antioxidants that protect the body and brain from free-radical damage.

They’re also an excellent source of magnesium, iron, zinc, and copper.

Each of these nutrients is important for brain health:

• Zinc. This element is crucial for nerve signaling. Zinc deficiency has been linked to many neurological conditions, including Alzheimer’s disease, depression, and Parkinson’s disease.
• Magnesium. Magnesium is essential for learning and memory. Low magnesium levels are linked to many neurological diseases, including migraine, depression, and epilepsy.
• Copper. Your brain uses copper to help control nerve signals. And when copper levels are out of whack, there’s a higher risk of neurodegenerative disorders, such as Alzheimer’s.
• Iron. Iron deficiency is often characterized by brain fog and impaired brain function.

The research focuses mostly on these micronutrients, rather than pumpkin seeds themselves. However, since pumpkin seeds are high in these micronutrients, you can likely reap their benefits by adding pumpkin seeds to your diet.

SUMMARY

Pumpkin seeds are rich in many micronutrients that are important for brain function, including copper, iron, magnesium, and zinc.

7. Dark chocolate

Dark chocolate and cocoa powder are packed with a few brain-boosting compounds, including flavonoids, caffeine, and antioxidants.

Dark chocolate has a 70% or greater cocoa content. These benefits are not seen with regular milk chocolate, which contains between 10–50% cocoa.

Flavonoids are a group of antioxidant plant compounds.

The flavonoids in chocolate gather in the areas of the brain that deal with learning and memory. Researchers believe that these compounds may enhance memory and also help slow down age-related mental decline.

In fact, a number of studies back this up.

According to one study in over 900 people, those who ate chocolate more frequently performed better in a series of mental tasks, including some involving memory, compared with those who rarely ate it.

Chocolate is also a legitimate mood booster, according to research.

One study found that participants who ate chocolate experienced increased positive feelings compared to those who ate crackers.

However, it’s still not clear whether that’s because of compounds in the chocolate or simply because the tasty flavor makes people happy.

SUMMARY

The flavonoids in chocolate may help protect the brain. Studies have suggested that eating chocolate, especially dark chocolate, could boost both memory and mood.

8. Nuts

Research has shown that eating nuts can improve heart-health markers, and having a healthy heart is linked to having a healthy brain.

One study found that regular consumption of nuts could be linked to a lower risk of cognitive decline in older adults.

Also, another 2014 study found that women who ate nuts regularly over the course of several years had a sharper memory compared with those who did not eat nuts.

Several nutrients in nuts, such as healthy fats, antioxidants, and vitamin E, may explain their beneficial effects on brain health.

Vitamin E protects cells against free-radical damage to help slow mental decline.

While all nuts are good for your brain, walnuts may have an extra edge, since they also deliver anti-inflammatory omega-3 fatty acids.

SUMMARY

Nuts contain a host of brain-boosting nutrients, including vitamin E, healthy fats, and plant compounds.

9. Oranges

You can get almost all the vitamin C you need in a day by eating one medium orange.

Doing so is important for brain health since vitamin C is a key factor in preventing mental decline.

According to one study, having higher levels of vitamin C in the blood was associated with improvements in tasks involving focus, memory, attention, and decision speed.

Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that helps fight off the free radicals that can damage brain cells. Plus, vitamin C supports brain health as you age and may protect against conditions like major depressive disorder, anxiety, schizophrenia, and Alzheimer’s disease.

You can also get high amounts of vitamin C from other foods like bell peppers, guava, kiwi, tomatoes, and strawberries.

SUMMARY

Oranges and other foods that are high in vitamin C can help defend your brain against damage from free radicals.

10. Eggs

Eggs are a good source of several nutrients tied to brain health, including vitamins B6 and B12, folate, and choline.

Choline is an important micronutrient that your body uses to create acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter that helps regulate mood and memory.

Two older studies found that higher intakes of choline were linked to better memory and mental function.

Nevertheless, many people do not get enough choline in their diet.

Eating eggs is an easy way to get choline, given that egg yolks are among the most concentrated sources of this nutrient.

Adequate intake of choline is 425 mg per day for most women and 550 mg per day for men, with just a single egg yolk containing 112 mg.

Furthermore, the B vitamins found in eggs also have several roles in brain health.

To start, they may help slow the progression of mental decline in older adults by lowering levels of homocysteine, an amino acid that could be linked to dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.

Also, being deficient in two types of B vitamins — folate and B12 — has been linked to depression.

Folate deficiency is common in older people with dementia, and studies show that folic acid supplements can help minimize age-related mental decline.

Vitamin B12 is also involved in synthesizing brain chemicals and regulating sugar levels in the brain.

It’s worth noting that there’s very little direct research on the link between eating eggs and brain health. However, there is research to support the brain-boosting benefits of the specific nutrients found in eggs.

SUMMARY

Eggs are a rich source of several B vitamins and choline, which are important for regulating mood and promoting proper brain function and development.

11. Green tea

As is the case with coffee, the caffeine in green tea boosts brain function.

In fact, it has been found to improve alertness, performance, memory, and focus.

But green tea also has other components that make it a brain-healthy beverage.

One of them is L-theanine, an amino acid that can cross the blood-brain barrier and increase the activity of the neurotransmitter GABA, which helps reduce anxiety and makes you feel more relaxed.

L-theanine also increases the frequency of alpha waves in the brain, which helps you relax without making you feel tired.

One review found that the L-theanine in green tea can help you relax by counteracting the stimulating effects of caffeine.

It’s also rich in polyphenols and antioxidants that could protect the brain from mental decline and reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.

Plus, some studies have shown green tea helps improve memory.

SUMMARY

Green tea is an excellent beverage to support your brain. Its caffeine content boosts alertness, its antioxidants protect the brain, and L-theanine helps you relax.

The bottom line

Many foods can help keep your brain healthy.

Some foods, such as the fruits and vegetables in this list, as well as tea and coffee, have antioxidants that help protect your brain from damage.

Others, such as nuts and eggs, contain nutrients that support memory and brain development.

You can help support your brain health and boost your alertness, memory, and mood by strategically including these foods in your diet.

Just one thing. Try this today: Just as important as including these brain-boosting foods in your diet is steering clear of foods that can negatively impact brain health. Check out this article for a list of the 7 worst foods for your brain that you should limit or avoid.

Source

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/11-brain-foods

Feeling low is a part of all of our lives at some stage. Everyone feels upset, sad or disheartened from time to time, but for some of us it can be a real problem. The good news is that there are things you can do to improve your mood.

We also have specific tips and expert advice to help you look after your mental health and wellbeing if you are feeling low or worried about coronavirus (COVID-19).

What is low mood? Am I depressed?

Everyone feels low or down from time to time. It does not always mean something is wrong. Feeling low is common after distressing events or major life changes, but sometimes periods of low mood happen for no obvious reason.

You may feel tired, lacking confidence, frustrated, angry and worried. But a low mood will often pass after a couple of days or weeks – and there are some easy things you can try and small changes you can make that will usually help improve your mood.

If you’re still feeling down or no longer get pleasure from things for most of each day and this lasts for several weeks, you may be experiencing depression.

The tips on this page should help, but you may also want to find out about what further support is available.

Top tips to improve your mood

Challenge unhelpful thoughts

The way we think affects the way we feel. Watch our video to learn how to challenge unhelpful thoughts.

Video: Reframing unhelpful thoughts

Increase helpful activity

Low mood can stop us doing important or enjoyable activities. Try listing these things and doing some each day. Start with easier ones and, as you progress, your mood should improve.

Talk to someone

Trusted friends, family and colleagues, or contacting a helpline, can help us when we are struggling. Watch our video for more ideas.

Video: Social connection

Get better sleep

Low moods can make us feel tired. Tiredness can also have a bad impact on our mood. Watch our video on tips to improve your sleep.

Video: Tips for sleeping better

Boost your mood with music

Music can be a powerful way to change our feelings. See if you can create a playlist to listen to when feeling low – start with slower choices and gradually move to faster, uplifting songs. This can help your mood to gradually lift too.

A little activity every day

If you can, doing little things every day to be more active – like taking the stairs instead of a lift, or standing up to stretch your legs every so often when sitting down for long periods – can really lift your mood.

Better Health: Get active

Signs of low mood

Feeling low may cause someone to stop doing the things they like, cut themselves off from loved ones or have difficulty sleeping. Other signs include feeling:

• sad
• worried, anxious or panicked
• tired
• less confident
• frustrated, irritated or angry

A low mood should lift after a few days, but if it lasts longer than about 2 weeks, it may be a sign of depression.

Some physical illnesses can cause depression, so it’s important to rule out possible physical causes or side effects from any medication you are taking.

If you’re having thoughts that life’s not worth living, or you’re self-harming or thinking about doing so, it’s important to tell someone. You do not have to struggle alone – urgent help and support is available right now if you need it.

Possible causes of low mood or depression

There are lots of things that can influence our mental health, such as our upbringing, childhood environment, things that happen to us and even our temperament.

Learn more about what affects our mental health and what support is available for life’s challenges.

Read more about dealing with life’s challenges

Support if you have low mood or depression

• Seek NHS support if low mood is affecting your daily life or causing you distress, call NHS 111, talk to your GP or refer yourself for psychological therapy through the NHS IAPT service (England only).
  • Find an IAPT service (England only)
  • Get advice on low mood
  • NHS self-help guide: depression
• Charities, helplines and communities
  • Visit Living Life to the Full
  • Speak to Samaritans
  • Visit Rethink for help with depression
  • Join Mind’s Side by Side online community
• Try a Reading Well: Reading Well for mental health provides helpful information and support, with books on mindfulness and other subjects available free from your local library.
  • See the Reading Well books

Source

https://www.nhs.uk/every-mind-matters/mental-health-issues/low-mood/

Stress is something everyone feels at times, and there are all kinds of stressful situations that can be a part of daily life. Low-level stress can even be helpful or motivational.

There are plenty of things you can do to help cope with stressful events, and simple steps you can take to deal with feelings of stress or burnout.

We also have specific tips and expert advice to help you look after your mental health and wellbeing if you are feeling stressed or anxious about coronavirus (COVID-19).

What is stress?

Stress is the body’s reaction to feeling threatened or under pressure. It’s very common, can be motivating to help us achieve things in our daily life, and can help us meet the demands of home, work and family life.

But too much stress can affect our mood, our body and our relationships – especially when it feels out of our control. It can make us feel anxious and irritable, and affect our self-esteem.

Experiencing a lot of stress over a long period of time can also lead to a feeling of physical, mental and emotional exhaustion, often called burnout.

The tips on this page should help, but if you have been experiencing stress for some time and it’s affecting your daily life or causing you distress, you should consider seeking further support.

Top tips to deal with stress and burnout

Split up big tasks

If a task seems overwhelming and difficult to start, try breaking it down into easier chunks, and give yourself credit for completing them.

Allow yourself some positivity

Take time to think about the good things in your life. Each day, consider what went well and try to list 3 things you’re thankful for.

Challenge your thoughts

The way we think affects the way we feel. Watch our video to learn how to challenge unhelpful thoughts.

Video: Reframing unhelpful thoughts

Be more active

Being active can help you to burn off nervous energy. It will not make your stress disappear, but it can make it less intense.

Better Health: Home workout videos

Talk to someone

Trusted friends, family and colleagues, or contacting a helpline, can help us when we are struggling. Watch our video for more ideas.

Video: Social connection

Plan ahead

Planning out any upcoming stressful days or events – a to-do list, the journey you need to do, things you need to take – can really help.

Signs of stress or burnout

If you are stressed, you may:

• feel overwhelmed
• have racing thoughts or difficulty concentrating
• be irritable
• feel constantly worried, anxious or scared
• feel a lack of self-confidence
• have trouble sleeping or feel tired all the time
• avoid things or people you are having problems with
• be eating more or less than usual
• drink or smoke more than usual

Possible causes of stress

Stress affects people differently, and the things that cause stress vary from person to person.

The level of stress you are comfortable with may be higher or lower than that of other people around you. Stressful feelings typically happen when we feel we do not have the resources to manage the challenges we face.

Pressure at work, school or home, illness, or difficult or sudden life events can all lead to stress.

Some possible causes of stress are:

• our individual genes, upbringing and experiences
• difficulties in our personal lives and relationships
• big or unexpected life changes, like moving house, having a baby or starting to care for someone
• money difficulties, like debt or struggling to afford daily essentials
• health issues, either for you or someone close to you
• pregnancy and children
• problems with housing, like the conditions, maintenance or tenancy
• a difficult or troubled work environment
• feeling lonely and unsupported

Read more about dealing with life’s challenges

Support for stress

• Seek NHS support if stress is affecting your daily life or causing you distress, call NHS 111 or talk to your GP. In England, you can also refer yourself for psychological therapy through the NHS IAPT service without seeing your GP.
  • Find an IAPT service (England only)
  • NHS advice about stress
  • NHS self-help guide: stress
• Charities, helplines and communities
  • Get support from Time to Change
  • Visit Samaritans’ website
  • Check Mental Health Foundation: stress
  • Join the Stress Management Society
• Try a Reading Well bookReading Well for mental health provides helpful information and support, with books on mindfulness and other subjects available free from your local library.
  • See the Reading Well books

Source

https://www.nhs.uk/every-mind-matters/mental-health-issues/stress/

Anxiety is something everyone experiences at times, and feeling anxious is a perfectly natural reaction to some situations.

But sometimes feelings of anxiety can be constant, overwhelming or out of proportion to the situation and this can affect your daily life.

The good news is there are plenty of things you can try to help cope with anxiety. We also have specific tips and expert advice to help you look after your mental health and wellbeing if you are feeling worried or anxious about coronavirus (COVID-19).

What is anxiety?

Anxiety is a feeling of unease, like a worry or fear, that can be mild or severe. Everyone feels anxious from time to time and it usually passes once the situation is over.

It can make our heart race, we might feel sweaty, shaky or short of breath. Anxiety can also cause changes in our behaviour, such as becoming overly careful or avoiding things that trigger anxiety.

When anxiety becomes a problem, our worries can be out of proportion with relatively harmless situations. It can feel more intense or overwhelming, and interfere with our everyday lives and relationships.

The tips on this page should help you manage feelings of anxiety. But if your anxiety is affecting your daily life or causing you distress, you could consider seeking further support.

Top tips to cope with anxiety

Shift your focus

Some people find relaxation, mindfulness or breathing exercises helpful. They reduce tension and focus our awareness on the present moment.

Try NHS-recommended relaxation exercises

Understand your anxiety

Try keeping a diary of what you are doing and how you feel at different times to help identify what’s affecting you and what you need to take action on.

Challenge your anxious thoughts

Tackling unhelpful thoughts is one of the best things we can do to feel less anxious. Watch the video to find out more.

Video: Reframing unhelpful thoughts

Make time for worries

If your worry feels overwhelming and takes over your day, setting specific “worry time” to go through your concerns each day can help you to focus on other things. Watch the video for more advice.

Video: Tackle your worries

Face the things you want to avoid

It’s easy to avoid situations, or rely on habits that make us feel safer, but these can keep anxiety going. By slowly building up time in worrying situations, anxious feelings will gradually reduce and you will see these situations are OK.

Look at the bigger picture

If we feel anxious about a situation, we might get stuck on the details and stop seeing things rationally. Thinking about your problem or situation from someone else’s view can make it easier to come up with a plan. What advice would you give to a friend or family member?

Signs of anxiety

Anxiety can show in a variety of ways. This can be as changes in your body, in being constantly worried or changes in your behaviour, such as becoming overly careful or avoiding things that trigger anxiety.

You may:

• feel tired, on edge, restless or irritable
• feel a sense of dread
• be unable to concentrate or make decisions
• have trouble sleeping
• feel sick, dizzy, sweaty or short of breath
• be shaky or trembly
• get headaches or tummy aches
• avoid situations or put off doing things you are worried about
• have difficulty falling or staying asleep
• experience a noticeably strong, fast or irregular heartbeat
• have pins and needles
• have a dry mouth
• sweat excessively
• repeatedly check things or seek assurance from others

What causes anxiety?

Anxiety affects everyone differently and can be brought on by different situations or experiences. It is our body’s natural reaction to perceived danger, focusing our attention and giving us a rush of adrenaline to react, sometimes called the “fight or flight” response.

Sometimes it can be difficult to know what is making you anxious, which can be upsetting or stressful in itself. That’s why learning to recognise what is making you anxious can help so you can deal with the uncertainty better.

Some people naturally react more than others, and there are times when everyone may go through stressful situations and feel anxious because of uncertainty or perceived threat.

There are lots of things that can influence our mental health, such as our upbringing, childhood environment, things that happen to us and even our temperament. Learn more about what affects our mental health and what support is available for life’s challenges.

Read more about dealing with life’s challenges

Support or treatment for anxiety

• Seek NHS support if anxiety is affecting your daily life or causing you distress, call NHS 111 or talk to your GP. In England, you can also refer yourself for psychological therapy through the NHS IAPT service without seeing your GP.
  • Find an IAPT service (England only)
  • NHS self-help guide: anxiety
  • Read about generalised anxiety disorder (GAD)
• Charities, helplines and communities
  • Get help from Anxiety UK
  • Visit Mind: anxiety and panic attacks
  • Visit Royal College of Psychiatrists: anxiety, panic and phobias
  • Hear others’ experiences at Time to Change
• Try a Reading Well bookReading Well for mental health provides helpful information and support, with books on mindfulness and other subjects available free from your local library.
  • See the Reading Well books

Source

https://www.nhs.uk/every-mind-matters/mental-health-issues/anxiety/

What is Meditation?

A brief explanation of the practice.

How do you learn to meditate? In mindfulness meditation, we’re learning how to pay attention to the breath as it goes in and out, and notice when the mind wanders from this task. This practice of returning to the breath builds the muscles of attention and mindfulness.

When we pay attention to our breath, we are learning how to return to, and remain in, the present moment—to anchor ourselves in the here and now on purpose, without judgement.

The idea behind mindfulness seems simple—the practice takes patience. Indeed, renowned meditation teacher Sharon Salzberg recounts that her first experience with meditation showed her how quickly the mind gets caught up in other tasks. “I thought, okay, what will it be, like, 800 breaths before my mind starts to wander? And to my absolute amazement, it was one breath, and I’d be gone,” says Salzberg.

Why Learn to Meditate?

A selection of benefits that are associated with meditating.

While meditation isn’t a cure-all, it can certainly provide some much-needed space in your life. Sometimes, that’s all we need to make better choices for ourselves, our families, and our communities. And the most important tools you can bring with you to your meditation practice are a little patience, some kindness for yourself, and a comfortable place to sit.

When we meditate, we inject far-reaching and long-lasting benefits into our lives. And bonus: you don’t need any extra gear or an expensive membership.

Here are five reasons to meditate:

1. Understanding your pain
2. Lower your stress
3. Connect better
4. Improve focus
5. Reduce brain chatter

How to Meditate

Meditation is something everyone can do, here’s how.

Meditation is simpler (and harder) than most people think. Read these steps, make sure you’re somewhere where you can relax into this process, set a timer, and give it a shot:

1) Take a seat
Find place to sit that feels calm and quiet to you.

2) Set a time limit
If you’re just beginning, it can help to choose a short time, such as five or 10 minutes.

3) Notice your body
You can sit in a chair with your feet on the floor, you can sit loosely cross-legged, you can kneel—all are fine. Just make sure you are stable and in a position you can stay in for a while.

4) Feel your breath
Follow the sensation of your breath as it goes in and as it goes out.

5) Notice when your mind has wandered
Inevitably, your attention will leave the breath and wander to other places. When you get around to noticing that your mind has wandered—in a few seconds, a minute, five minutes—simply return your attention to the breath.

6) Be kind to your wandering mind
Don’t judge yourself or obsess over the content of the thoughts you find yourself lost in. Just come back.

7) Close with kindness
When you’re ready, gently lift your gaze (if your eyes are closed, open them). Take a moment and notice any sounds in the environment. Notice how your body feels right now. Notice your thoughts and emotions.

That’s it! That’s the practice. You go away, you come back, and you try to do it as kindly as possible.

How Much Should I Meditate?

Meditation is no more complicated than what we’ve described above. It is that simple … and that challenging. It’s also powerful and worth it. The key is to commit to sit every day, even if it’s for five minutes. Meditation teacher Sharon Salzberg says: “One of my meditation teachers said that the most important moment in your meditation practice is the moment you sit down to do it. Because right then you’re saying to yourself that you believe in change, you believe in caring for yourself, and you’re making it real. You’re not just holding some value like mindfulness or compassion in the abstract, but really making it real.”

Meditation Tips and Techniques

We’ve gone over the basic breath meditation so far, but there are other mindfulness techniques that use different focal points than the breath to anchor our attention—external objects like a sound in the room, or something broader, such as noticing spontaneous things that come into your awareness during an aimless wandering practice. But all of these practices have one thing in common: We notice that our minds ARE running the show a lot of the time. It’s true. We think thoughts, typically, and then we act. But here are some helpful strategies to change that up:

How to Make Mindfulness a Habit

It’s estimated that 95%of our behavior runs on autopilot. That’s because neural networks underlie all of our habits, reducing our millions of sensory inputs per second into manageable shortcuts so we can function in this crazy world. These default brain signals are so efficient that they often cause us to relapse into old behaviors before we remember what we meant to do instead. 

Mindfulness is the exact opposite of these default processes. It’s executive control rather than autopilot, and enables intentional actions, willpower, and decisions. But that takes practice. The more we activate the intentional brain, the stronger it gets. Every time we do something deliberate and new, we stimulate neuroplasticity, activating our grey matter, which is full of newly sprouted neurons that have not yet been groomed for “autopilot” brain. 

But here’s the problem. While our intentional brain knows what is best for us, our autopilot brain causes us to shortcut our way through life. So how can we trigger ourselves to be mindful when we need it most? This is where the notion of “behavior design” comes in. It’s a way to put your intentional brain in the driver’s seat. There are two ways to do that—first, slowing down the autopilot brain by putting obstacles in its way, and second, removing obstacles in the path of the intentional brain, so it can gain control. 

Shifting the balance to give your intentional brain more power takes some work, though. Here are some ways to get started. 

• Put meditation reminders around you. If you intend to do some yoga or to meditate, put your yoga mat or your meditation cushion in the middle of your floor so you can’t miss it as you walk by. 
• Refresh your reminders regularly. Say you decide to use sticky notes to remind yourself of a new intention. That might work for about a week, but then your autopilot brain and old habits take over again. Try writing new notes to yourself; add variety or make them funny. That way they’ll stick with you longer. 
• Create new patterns. You could try a series of “If this, then that” messages to create easy reminders to shift into the intentional brain. For instance, you might come up with, “If office door, then deep breath,” as a way to shift into mindfulness as you are about to start your workday. Or, “If phone rings, take a breath before answering.” Each intentional action to shift into mindfulness will strengthen your intentional brain.

Some Basic Meditations

These are some meditation practices to get you going.

A Basic Meditation for Beginners

The first thing to clarify: What we’re doing here is aiming for mindfulness, not some process that magically wipes your mind clear of the countless and endless thoughts that erupt and ping constantly in our brains. We’re just practicing bringing our attention to our breath, and then back to the breath when we notice our attention has wandered.

• Get comfortable and prepare to sit still for a few minutes. After you stop reading this, you’re going to simply focus on your own natural inhaling and exhaling of breath.
• Focus on your breath. Where do you feel your breath most? In your belly? In your nose? Try to keep your attention on your inhale and exhale.
• Follow your breath for two minutes. Take a deep inhale, expanding your belly, and then exhale slowly, elongating the out-breath as your belly contracts.

Welcome back. What happened? How long was it before your mind wandered away from your breath? Did notice how busy your mind was even without your consciously directing it to think about anything in particular? Did you notice yourself getting caught up in thoughts before you came back to reading this? We often have little narratives running in our minds that we didn’t choose to put there, like: “Why DOES my boss want to meet with me tomorrow?” “I should have gone to the gym yesterday.” “I’ve got to pay some bills” or (the classic) “I don’t have time to sit still, I’ve got stuff to do.”

If you experienced these sorts of distractions (and we all do), you’ve made an important discovery: simply put, that’s the opposite of mindfulness. It’s when we live in our heads, on automatic pilot, letting our thoughts go here and there, exploring, say, the future or the past, and essentially, not being present in the moment. But that’s where most of us live most of the time—and pretty uncomfortably, if we’re being honest, right? But it doesn’t have to be that way.

We “practice” mindfulness so we can learn how to recognize when our minds are doing their normal everyday acrobatics, and maybe take a pause from that for just a little while so we can choose what we’d like to focus on. In a nutshell, meditation helps us have a much healthier relationship with ourselves (and, by extension, with others).

Source

Read more on: https://www.mindful.org/how-to-meditate/

Meditation is a technique used for thousands of years to develop awareness of the present moment.

It can involve practices to sharpen focus and attention, connect to the body and breath, develop acceptance of difficult emotions, and even alter consciousness. It’s been shown to offer a number of physical and psychological benefits like stress reduction and improved immunity.

While many spiritual traditions include meditation as a part of their teachings and practices, the technique itself doesn’t belong to any particular religion or faith. Though ancient in origin, it’s still practiced today in cultures all over the world to create a sense of peace, calm, and inner harmony.

Meditation may offer a solution to the growing need to reduce stress in the midst of busy schedules and demanding lives.

Although there isn’t a right or wrong way to meditate, it’s important to find a practice that meets your needs.

There are nine popular types of meditation practice:

• mindfulness meditation
• spiritual meditation
• focused meditation
• movement meditation
• mantra meditation
• transcendental meditation
• progressive relaxation
• loving-kindness meditation
• visualization meditation

Not all meditation styles are right for everyone. These practices require different skills and mindsets. How do you know which practice is right for you?

“It’s what feels comfortable and what you feel encouraged to practice,” says Mira Dessy, a meditation author and holistic nutritionist.

Keep reading to learn more about the different types of meditation and how to get started.

1. Mindfulness meditation

Mindfulness meditation originates from Buddhist teachings and is the most popular and researched form of meditation in the West.

In mindfulness meditation, you pay attention to your thoughts as they pass through your mind. You don’t judge the thoughts or become involved with them. You simply observe and take note of any patterns.

This practice combines concentration with awareness. You may find it helpful to focus on an object or your breath while you observe any bodily sensations, thoughts, or feelings.

This type of meditation is good for people who don’t have a teacher to guide them, as it can be easily practiced alone.

2. Spiritual meditation

Spiritual meditation is used in nearly all religions and spiritual traditions.

The types of spiritual meditation are as diverse as the world’s spiritual traditions themselves. Many of the meditation techniques listed in this article could be considered spiritual meditation.

According to a 2017 study, spiritual meditation focuses on developing a deeper understanding of spiritual/religious meaning and connection with a higher power. Examples include:

• Christian contemplative prayer
• Sufi dhikr (remembrance of God)
• Jewish kabbalistic practices

Spiritual meditation can be practiced at home or in a place of worship. This practice is beneficial for those who seek spiritual growth and a deeper connection to a higher power or spiritual force.

3. Focused meditation

Focused meditation involves concentration using any of the five senses.

For example, you can focus on something internal, like your breath, or you can bring in external influences to help focus your attention.

Examples include:

• counting mala beads
• listening to a gong
• staring at a candle flame
• counting your breaths
• moon gazing

This practice may be simple in theory, but it can be difficult for beginners to hold their focus for longer than a few minutes at first.

If your mind does wander, simply come back to the practice and refocus.

As the name suggests, this practice is ideal for anyone who wants to sharpen their focus and attention.

4. Movement meditation

Although most people think of yoga when they hear movement meditation, this practice may include:

• walking
• gardening
• qi gong
• tai chi
• other gentle forms of movement

This is an active form of meditation where the movement guides you into a deeper connection with your body and the present moment.

Movement meditation is good for people who find peace in action and want to develop body awareness.

5. Mantra meditation

Mantra meditation is prominent in many teachings, including Hindu and Buddhist traditions. This type of meditation uses a repetitive sound to clear the mind. It can be a word, phrase, or sound, one of the most common being “om.”

Your mantra can be spoken loudly or quietly. After chanting the mantra for some time, you’ll be more alert and in tune with your environment. This allows you to experience deeper levels of awareness.

Some people enjoy mantra meditation because they find it easier to focus on a word than on their breath. Others enjoy feeling the vibration of the sound in their body.

This is also a good practice for people who don’t like silence and enjoy repetition.

6. Transcendental Meditation

Transcendental Meditation (TM) is a type of meditation that’s been the subject of numerous studies in the scientific community.

TM was founded by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and refers to a specific practice designed to quiet the mind and induce a state of calm and peace. It involves the use of mantra and is best taught by a certified TM practitioner.

This practice is for those who want an accessible approach to the depth that meditation offers.

7. Progressive relaxation

Also known as body scan meditation, progressive relaxation is a practice aimed at reducing tension in the body and promoting relaxation.

Oftentimes, this form of meditation involves slowly tightening and relaxing one muscle group at a time throughout the body.

In some cases, it may also encourage you to imagine a gentle wave flowing through your body to help release any tension.

This form of meditation is often used to relieve stress and unwind before bedtime.

8. Loving-kindness meditation

Loving-kindness meditation is used to strengthen feelings of compassion, kindness, and acceptance toward oneself and others.

It typically involves opening the mind to receive love from others and then sending well wishes to loved ones, friends, acquaintances, and all living beings.

Because this type of meditation is intended to promote compassion and kindness, it may be ideal for those holding feelings of anger or resentment.

9. Visualization meditation

Visualization meditation is a technique focused on enhancing feelings of relaxation, peace, and calmness by visualizing positive scenes, images, or figures.

This practice involves imagining a scene vividly and using all five senses to add as much detail as possible. It can also involve holding a beloved or honored figure in mind with the intention of embodying their qualities.

Another form of visualization meditation involves imagining yourself succeeding at specific goals, which is intended to increase focus and motivation.

Many people use visualization meditation to boost their mood, reduce stress levels, and promote inner peace.

How to get started

The easiest way to begin is to sit quietly and focus on your breath. An old Zen saying suggests, “You should sit in meditation for 20 minutes every day — unless you’re too busy. Then you should sit for an hour.”

All kidding aside, it’s best to start in small increments of time, even 5 or 10 minutes, and grow from there.

“Sit consistently for 20 minutes a day and do this for 100 days straight,” recommends Pedram Shojai, author of “The Urban Monk” and founder of Well.org. “Couple that with an additional 2 to 5 minutes of meditation throughout the day to break up the chaos, and you will soon be feeling the benefits.”

Why meditation is beneficial

There’s plenty of evidence supporting the numerous benefits of meditation.

Meditation can offer general health and mental/emotional benefits, including:

• lower blood pressure
• reduced stress
• better sleep
• improved emotional regulation
• increased focus
• enhanced mood
• reduced aggression
• greater adaptability
• healthier aging process
• a greater sense of empathy and connection with others

A 2017 review noted that non-transcendental meditation may be a “promising alternative approach” for lowering systolic and diastolic blood pressure, while a 2019 review found that mindfulness-based interventions reduced levels of the stress hormone cortisol in employees participating in workplace mindfulness programs.

It’s also been shown to encourage prosocial emotions and behaviors, enhance focus and mood, and reduce aggression while also encouraging positive coping strategies in times of stress.

A 2018 review suggests that meditation may contribute to healthy aging.

Meditation may also help with symptoms of specific conditions, including:

• depression and anxiety disorders
• cardiovascular disease, such as arterial hypertension
• dementia and Alzheimer’s disease
• Parkinson’s disease
• insomnia
• attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
• chronic pain

When it comes to depression, a 2019 review noted that mindfulness-based meditation has positive effects that may last up to 6 months or more. The same review notes that the lack of negative effects of mindfulness-based interventions makes them a promising supplemental therapy for depression and anxiety disorders.

A 2018 review found that meditation resulted in reductions in cognitive decline and perceived stress as well as increased quality of life, connectivity, and blood flow to the brain.

A 2017 study found low-quality evidence that mindfulness meditation is associated with a small decrease in chronic pain compared with controls. More research is needed to solidify this connection.

The bottom line

Whether you’re looking to reduce stress or find spiritual enlightenment, there’s a meditation practice for you.

Don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone and try different types. It often takes a little trial and error until you find the one that fits.

“Meditation isn’t meant to be a forced thing,” Dessy says. “If we’re forcing it, then it becomes a chore. Gentle, regular practice eventually becomes sustaining, supportive, and enjoyable.

“Open yourself up to the possibilities, ” she adds. “There are so many forms of meditation that if one isn’t working or isn’t comfortable, just try a new one.”

Source

https://www.healthline.com/health/mental-health/types-of-meditation#transcendental-meditation

What is mindfulness?

Mindfulness is the basic human ability to be fully present, aware of where we are and what we’re doing, and not overly reactive or overwhelmed by what’s going on around us.

While mindfulness is something we all naturally possess, it’s more readily available to us when we practice on a daily basis.

Whenever you bring awareness to what you’re directly experiencing via your senses, or to your state of mind via your thoughts and emotions, you’re being mindful. And there’s growing research showing that when you train your brain to be mindful, you’re actually remodeling the physical structure of your brain.

The goal of mindfulness is to wake up to the inner workings of our mental, emotional, and physical processes.

What is meditation?

Meditation is exploring. It’s not a fixed destination. Your head doesn’t become vacuumed free of thought, utterly undistracted. It’s a special place where each and every moment is momentous. When we meditate we venture into the workings of our minds: our sensations (air blowing on our skin or a harsh smell wafting into the room), our emotions (love this, hate that, crave this, loathe that) and thoughts (wouldn’t it be weird to see an elephant playing a trumpet).

Mindfulness meditation asks us to suspend judgment and unleash our natural curiosity about the workings of the mind, approaching our experience with warmth and kindness, to ourselves and others.

How do I practice mindfulness and meditation?

Mindfulness is available to us in every moment, whether through meditations and body scans, or mindful moment practices like taking time to pause and breathe when the phone rings instead of rushing to answer it.

VIDEO: “YOU ARE NOT YOUR THOUGHTS”

Jon Kabat-Zinn, creator of the research-backed stress-reduction program Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), explains how mindfulness lights up parts of our brains that aren’t normally activated when we’re mindlessly running on autopilot.

“Mindfulness is awareness that arises through paying attention, on purpose, in the present moment, non-judgementally,” says Kabat-Zinn. “And then I sometimes add, in the service of self-understanding and wisdom.”

The Basics of Mindfulness Practice

Mindfulness helps us put some space between ourselves and our reactions, breaking down our conditioned responses. Here’s how to tune into mindfulness throughout the day:

1. Set aside some time. You don’t need a meditation cushion or bench, or any sort of special equipment to access your mindfulness skills—but you do need to set aside some time and space.
   
2. Observe the present moment as it is. The aim of mindfulness is not quieting the mind, or attempting to achieve a state of eternal calm. The goal is simple: we’re aiming to pay attention to the present moment, without judgment. Easier said than done, we know.
   
3. Let your judgments roll by. When we notice judgments arise during our practice, we can make a mental note of them, and let them pass.
   
4. Return to observing the present moment as it is. Our minds often get carried away in thought. That’s why mindfulness is the practice of returning, again and again, to the present moment.
   
5. Be kind to your wandering mind. Don’t judge yourself for whatever thoughts crop up, just practice recognizing when your mind has wandered off, and gently bring it back.

That’s the practice. It’s often been said that it’s very simple, but it’s not necessarily easy. The work is to just keep doing it. Results will accrue.

How to Meditate

This meditation focuses on the breath, not because there is anything special about it, but because the physical sensation of breathing is always there and you can use it as an anchor to the present moment. Throughout the practice you may find yourself caught up in thoughts, emotions, sounds—wherever your mind goes, simply come back again to the next breath. Even if you only come back once, that’s okay.

A Simple Meditation Practice

1. Sit comfortably. Find a spot that gives you a stable, solid, comfortable seat.
   
2. Notice what your legs are doing. If on a cushion, cross your legs comfortably in front of you. If on a chair, rest the bottoms of your feet on the floor.
   
3. Straighten your upper body—but don’t stiffen. Your spine has natural curvature. Let it be there.
   
4. Notice what your arms are doing. Situate your upper arms parallel to your upper body. Rest the palms of your hands on your legs wherever it feels most natural.
   
5. Soften your gaze. Drop your chin a little and let your gaze fall gently downward. It’s not necessary to close your eyes. You can simply let what appears before your eyes be there without focusing on it.
   
6. Feel your breath. Bring your attention to the physical sensation of breathing: the air moving through your nose or mouth, the rising and falling of your belly, or your chest.
   
7. Notice when your mind wanders from your breath. Inevitably, your attention will leave the breath and wander to other places. Don’t worry. There’s no need to block or eliminate thinking. When you notice your mind wandering gently return your attention to the breath.
   
8. Be kind about your wandering mind. You may find your mind wandering constantly—that’s normal, too. Instead of wrestling with your thoughts, practice observing them without reacting. Just sit and pay attention. As hard as it is to maintain, that’s all there is. Come back to your breath over and over again, without judgment or expectation.
   
9. When you’re ready, gently lift your gaze (if your eyes are closed, open them). Take a moment and notice any sounds in the environment. Notice how your body feels right now. Notice your thoughts and emotions.

Mindful Practices for Every Day

As you spend time practicing mindfulness, you’ll probably find yourself feeling kinder, calmer, and more patient. These shifts in your experience are likely to generate changes in other parts of your life as well.

Mindfulness can help you become more playful, maximize your enjoyment of a long conversation with a friend over a cup of tea, then wind down for a relaxing night’s sleep. Try these 4 practices this week:

Try This Simple Walking Meditation

5 Steps to Mindful Listening

Loving-Kindness Practice for Every Day

5 Steps to Wind Down and Fall Asleep

Source