13 Brain Boosters

1. Eat dark chocolate
The task: dark chocolate to your Add some diet.
The reason: When you eat dark chocolate, you activate the system in your brain that pump out dopamine, an important brain chemical that transmits messages among nerve cells. These systems enable learning and memory and help keep your brain sharp and fit.

2. Visit a Museum.
The task: Go on guided tour of museum or a site of interest. Pay careful attention to what the guide says. When you get home, reconstruct the tour by writing an outline that includes everything you remember.
The reason: Research into brain plasticity (the ability of the brain to change at any age) indicates that memory activities that engages as many levels of brain operation as possible- receiving, remembering, thinking – help improve brain function and prevent its decline.

3. Memorize a song
The Task: Choose a song with lyrics you enjoy but have not memorized. Listen to the song repeatedly until you have written down all lyrics. Sing along. Once you’ve mastered one song, move on to another.
The reason: Developing better listening habits will assist you in understanding and in remembering. Reconstructing a song requires close attentional focus and an active memory. When you focus, you release the neurotransmitter called acetylcholine, a brain chemical that enables plasticity and animates memory.

4. Exercise your peripheral vision.
The Task: Sit in place outside your house, such as park or a café. Stare straight ahead and don’t move your eyes. Concentrate on everything you can see without moving your eyes, including the ones in your peripheral vision. When you have finished, write a list of everything you saw. Then try again and see if you can add to your list.
The reason: Scientist say that acetylcholine, which is crucial to focus and memory, declines with memory loss and is almost absent in Alzheimer’s patients. This activity helps you revitalize the release of acetylcholine in your brain.

5. Do a jigsaw puzzle.
The task: Do challenging jigsaw puzzle with no fewer than 500 pieces.
The reason: Mundane though they may seem, jigsaw puzzles help your brain. Completing one requires fine visual judgment about where pieces belong. It entails mentally “ rotating” the pieces , manipulating them in your hands, and shifting your attention from the small piece to the big picture. Besides, its fun when you find the right pieces.

6. Turn down the TV.
The task: Set your television volume a little lower than your accustomed setting. Observe if, by concentrating, you can follow what you are watching as well as when the volume was higher. As soon as you get used to the lower setting, turn it down another notch.
The reason: Many people raise the volume because their listening has become “detuned”- a little fuzzy. Matching TV volume to a conversational level can help you catch every word when talking with others.

7. Learn to play a musical instrument.
The task: If you ever considered learning to play an instrument or relearning an old one, now is the time!
The reason: Playing an instrument helps you exercise many interrelated operations of brain function, including listening, control of refined movements, and translation of written notes (sight) to music (movement and sound).


8. Eat Fish.
The task: Add fish especially fatty fish like salmon- to your diet.
The reason: studies suggest that a diet rich in fish can sharpen your cognitive processes.

9. Step it up a notch
The task: Find an activity you like doing alone, e.g., completing a crossword puzzle or knitting. See if, by concentrating and giving more effort to the activity, you can do it better or more quickly.
The reason: There is limited value in working at an activity that does not require close attention. Always strive to raise it to a more demanding level to reengage the brain’s learning machinery.

10.Catch some ZZZs
The task: Get a goodnight’s sleep. If you have trouble falling asleep, make sure your bedroom is quite and dark, learn some deep relaxation techniques, and avoid alcohol and other stimulating drinks after 7p.m.
The reason: Our brain consolidates learning and memories during sleep. Studies show that people who don’t sleep enough have more trouble learning new information. Sleeping well after learning something new helps the brain effectively process that information into long-term memory.

11. Have a ball.
The task: practice throwing and catching a ball up in the air. Better yet, take up juggling.
The reason: Mastering sensory guided movements can hone your brain’s visual, tactile, and hand-eye coordination responses, with positive impact on the brain.

12.Take the rocky road.
The task: Take a walk on a cobblestone path.
The reason: Scientist believe that walking on uneven surfaces like cobblestone improves the vestibular system of the inner ear, which plays a central role in balance and equilibrium. The result is better balance- the key to preventing serious falls.

13.Start exercising.
The task: Get on your bicycle, swim regularly, or take up an exercise you enjoy.
The reason: New research indicates that exercise has positive benefits for the hippo-campus, a brain structure important for learning and memory. Exercise can even help your brain create new cells. HT