Transcription
Today I'm going to summarize a book called Keep Sharp: How to Have a Better Brain at Any Age, written by neurosurgeon Sanjay Gupta. If you want to improve your brain's performance and keep it sharp right until the last day of your life, then this video is for you.
Contrary to popular belief, our brain's decline begins not in our 50s or 60s, but after the age of 24. So, you have to start as early as possible.
Part One: The Brain, Your Inner Black Box
Have you ever seen doctors operating on a patient's brain when the patient is awake and fully alert? It's so fascinating, but how does that happen? Doesn't the patient feel any pain? The reason is that the skull and brain don't have pain receptors of their own. Only the skin above the skull has fibers that feel pain. That is how it's possible to keep the patient awake.
For example, consider the story of Phineas Gage. He was a construction worker at the age of 25. He had an accident, and a large and heavy iron rod passed through his left cheek and came out of his head, injuring the brain. Typically, this would have been fatal, but Gage not only survived, but he went to the hospital on his own and felt no pain. The only two things that he lost after the accident were his left eye and his personality. He was a gentleman before the accident and became a toxic, resentful person afterward. He died at the age of 36, but people say that his behavior changed again, and he became friendly and caring closer to his death.
Gage's story helped science a lot to understand the brain and its functioning. It explained that the brain is alive, growing, learning, and changing throughout our lives. It proved that even after trauma, the brain starts to heal and starts to make connections. In science, this process is called neuroplasticity. Thanks to it, the brain is able to rewire itself and grow new brain cells.
I know neuroplasticity is a scientific term, and you probably didn't pay much attention to it, but the practical implication is huge for you and for me. It simply means even if you're old, you can start generating new brain cells, just like a younger person. You don't have to be stuck with a depleted and weak brain as you get older. Cognitive decline is something that you can definitely avoid. You can have a very sharp and healthy brain until the last day of your life.
In Part Three of this video, I will provide practical tips on how to achieve that, but first, let's debunk some of the myths about the brain that you probably believe.
Part Two: Myths That You Probably Believe About the Brain
Myth Number One: We only use 10% of the brain. You may have heard people saying that most of our mental power is untouched. We don't use 90% of our brain, and if we get to tap into it, we will become superhumans. Well, this is complete nonsense. Look at it this way: the brain is a demanding organ. It steals 20% of the blood and oxygen produced by the body. So, evolutionarily, it would make no sense to carry around extra brain tissue and not use it at all. The brain is like a town. There are houses and roads. There are more roads than houses, but this doesn't mean that the space occupied by roads is waste and useless. It is actually the roads that connect the houses, so they play an important role.
Myth Number Two: You are dominated by either your left brain or your right brain. Both sides of the brain are codependent. For example, the brain uses both sides to read and do math.
Myth Number Three: Dementia is a consequence of old age. Dementia is not a normal part of aging, and it can be prevented or completely avoided.
Myth Number Four: Male and female brains work in different ways. When people say that men are more biologically suited for math and science, whereas women are better suited for empathy and intuition, these are the worst kinds of biased research. Differences do exist in the brains of males and females, but not so much that they can decide that one is better at something than the other. Not just males and females, each of us is designed uniquely.
Myth Number Five: A crossword puzzle a day can keep the brain doctor away. Many studies have been done to find out if crosswords work as a brain exercise, and all of them have declared that crosswords don't have any effect on improving brain muscle. If you like doing crosswords, sure, it's a good mental exercise, but for someone who doesn't enjoy crosswords, you're not missing out on anything important.
Myth Number Six: You are born with all the brain cells you will ever have, and your brain is hardwired, and brain damage is always permanent. The size of the brain does not grow after reaching a certain age, but with more information, the number of neurons, nerve cells, and networks keeps on growing, hence proving that the brain remains plastic throughout life and can rewire itself in response to your experience. It can also generate new brain cells under the right circumstances.
Myth Number Seven: You only have five senses. No, there are six more: one, a sense of where your body parts are and what they're doing; two, a sense of balance, known as your internal GPS, located in your inner ear; three, a sense of pain; four, a sense of temperature; five, a sense of the passage of time; six, a sense of internal needs like hunger, thirst, or the need to use a bathroom.
Myth Number Eight: You must master one language before learning another. Children who learn multiple languages at the same time never confuse the two. They may take longer to master both, but that doesn't mean it's a bad idea. Different areas of the brain don't go to battle, so there's no interference.
Myth Number Nine: Older people can't learn new things. Learning can happen at any age. It may take a bit longer, but that doesn't mean it can never happen.
Myth Number Ten: The brain remains a complete mystery. While researchers are still learning much more about the brain, many of the so-called mysteries have already been solved.
Part Three: Five Practical Tips for a Sharper and Healthier Brain
One: Miracle of Movement. Dr. Gupta says exercise is the single most effective thing that you can do to enhance your brain function and its effectiveness in fighting disease. People often complain about not having enough time, and exercise is usually the first activity to get neglected on a busy day. However, you must know that physical inactivity is known to be the riskiest factor in cognitive decline and the development of dementia. Being inactive has been shown to be twice as deadly as being obese. Exercise must be a part of your daily routine, just like brushing your teeth. For a healthy brain, all you need is regular physical exercise for 150 minutes a week: 30 minutes per day, 5 days a week. Exercise helps in increasing the blood flow to the brain, which means more oxygen is reaching the brain, because of which more neurons are getting the nutrients.
Now, let's bust the myth that runs around exercise. It says that exercise becomes dangerous when you get older, as your body becomes weak. That's an absolute lie. Exercise is a lifetime activity and helps boost the brain and body. So, even if you haven't exercised for a long time, start today, and it can have a significant impact on your brain health. It is never too late.
Two: The Need for Relaxation. A lot of your brain health depends on how much sleep you get every night. Sleep has a cleansing characteristic. It's like a sewage system that cleans up your brain. People who sleep only 4 hours a night are at much higher risk for all sorts of health problems. There is no data that says that successful people get less sleep. It's one of the trends that's being created to get attention. We all need 7 to 8 hours of sleep daily. When you sleep for six or fewer hours for a single night, it reduces the daytime alertness by about a third and impairs your ability to do even basic activities. Proper sleep keeps you sharp, creative, attentive, and able to process information quickly. Many factors depend upon your sleep cycle, such as how fast your metabolism is, how strong your immune system is, how well you cope with stress, how fast you are at learning, how well you can make neural connections in your brain, and remember things.
Three: The Power of Discovery. As we already mentioned, the brain remains plastic throughout life. Therefore, it is important to promote brain cell growth by regularly learning new things, obtaining higher education, and indulging in brain-stimulating activities. Researchers have proved that speaking two or more languages, even if you've learned the second language decades after the first, slows down age-related mental decline. Not only language learning, but there are so many other activities that you can do to stimulate your brain, such as reading a book, taking a new course, taking a cooking class, etc. Even playing video games is good exercise for the brain, but there's another myth circling around it. It says that playing video games makes your brain muscles weaker. However, it's the opposite. People who play video games can see more than the rest of us and can make better and faster decisions. But beware, the gaming industry has exploited this information a lot for their benefit. It is important to keep in mind that not all video games that make claims of improving memory are to be trusted without proper research.
Four: Food For Thought. What is the best possible diet for brain health? Dr. Gupta provides a simple suggestion: stop buying food that your great-grandmother would not recognize. He says when it comes to food, we only have to keep five points in mind: one, say no to sugar; two, hydrate smartly, and know that if you are feeling thirsty, you're already late in hydrating your body; three, add more omega-3 fatty acids to your diet from seafood and nuts; four, reduce portions and don't overindulge in food; five, plan your meals ahead so you don't end up eating canned or junk food.
Five: Connection for Protection. Science confirms that we humans need social connection to thrive, especially when it comes to the brain. People with fewer social connections have disrupted sleep cycles, weak immune systems, and higher levels of stress hormones. Feeling lonely triggers the same region in the brain that gets triggered during physical pain. Close relationships protect people from physical and mental decline, and they are much more important than social class, IQ, and financial status.
If you would like to learn more and improve your health, then I have two video recommendations for you. The video you will see on the left side of your screen is a summary of a book called The Circadian Code. If you wake up every morning feeling exhausted, can't fall asleep, and have difficulty losing weight, then check out that video. The video on the right side summarizes a book called Why We Sleep. Check it out if you have a sleep disorder, such as not being able to fall asleep or waking up in the middle of the night.
Please keep in mind that none of the information mentioned in this video is medical advice. It's only for entertainment purposes. Thanks for watching.