Training for the brain

Mentally fit into old age – this is how it works!

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Our brain needs to be exercised just as much as our muscles - and it can be a lot of fun. Because walking, eating and sleeping also promote mental fitness.

You probably know someone like this: many years of academic training in numerous disciplines. Can recite all the capitals at the drop of a hat, divide decimal places in your head or reproduce paragraphs verbatim. But if you ask for a nice book for the vacations or a romantic beach, for example, they remain silent.

So what does intelligence mean?
The word, which comes from Latin, describes the ability to think. This includes logic, spatial imagination, reasoning and memory. Knowledge alone doesn't make you smart - it's putting it into practice in everyday life that does.

Especially as the brain has an amazing ability to adapt. This so-called neuroplasticity enables nerve cells, their synapses and even entire areas of the brain to multiply and change. The more different impressions the brain receives, the better the structures network and work together.

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We are becoming more intelligent
However, this requires more holistic measures than "just" learning. Diet and exercise play a key role, as they provide the fuel for our brain. Vitamins, for example. Health expert Hademar Bankhofer advises the following cocktail: Pulses, wholegrain products (vitamin B), milk, eggs and cheese. Fish and vegetable oils instead of animal fats. These are ideal suppliers of omega-3 fatty acids as building blocks for new brain cells. Green foods (herbs, leafy vegetables, lettuce, olives) are important for oxygen transport, while nuts, dried fruit and pumpkin seeds are important for energy production.

Neurotransmitter metabolism (production of messenger substances in the brain such as serotonin or adrenaline, which transmit nerve impulses) is boosted by whole grains and red meat, among other things. Exercise, preferably in the fresh air, ensures blood circulation. Although the brain only weighs two percent of the body mass, it consumes 40 percent of the oxygen we breathe in! In addition, environmental impressions and physical coordination lead to the interconnection of information.

Man ist nie zu alt, um ein Musikinstrument zu erlernen!

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Brain exercise gets the cells going
Alternate between Sudoku and picture puzzles, read a difficult text and retell it, tackle new tasks (computer, languages, musical instrument), practise verses - there are no limits to your imagination. But avoid routine, because it makes your memory "rusty". At least as important: social contact!

Read also: How to keep your mind and body healthy 
and The truth about sugar

The best tips for a fit brain:

• Creativity: painting promotes hand-eye coordination, writing and poetry stimulate the imagination. It doesn't have to become a masterpiece, but rather give thought content a real form. A very complex process that also puts you in a good mood.
• Ensure sufficient sleep: The brain is "tidied up", preferably in a lateral position. This was discovered by researchers at Stony Brook University in New York, USA. A good night's sleep contributes to brain regeneration and helps with learning. In the lateral resting position, the spaces between the cells widen, making it easier for cerebrospinal fluid to flow around them. This promotes the removal of harmful substances and is even said to prevent dementia.
• Sport makes you smart. This has been proven by numerous studies. Neurologists from Münster have shown, for example, that vocabulary is learned and remembered more quickly if it has been preceded by brief but intensive physical exercise. Regular endurance training even changes the brain structure towards more networking and the development of nerve cells. Just one hour of walking increases blood flow in the brain by 20 percent. Ideal: 10,000 steps a day, light strength training twice a week.
• Sing - not just in the shower. In the course of dementia studies at the Finnish University of Helsinki, the working memory and orientation of those affected improved after ten weeks of regular singing. It is completely irrelevant whether you hit every note or sing it wrong. It's all about the connection between words, sounds and breathing.
• Nuts are known as brain food due to their ingredients - B vitamins, amino acids, minerals and unsaturated fatty acids. Phosphorus, zinc, selenium and potassium in particular help nerve cells to sprout. Cashew nuts have a stress-reducing effect. A handful a day is enough.
• Drink two to three liters of still mineral water! Our brain can only work in a moist environment, otherwise there will be a lack of oxygen and nutrients.
• Take breaks! Relaxation helps to consolidate what you have learned. Let your gaze wander from time to time or close your eyes and turn to your inner self. Meditation also helps to store and process impressions.
• Intelligent dancers: Brain scans show that the regions for attention and memory are enlarged in people who dance regularly. This is explained by the ability to grasp and implement complicated movement sequences from the arms to the legs. In addition, there is an increase in growth factors in the blood, which are important for the formation of new nerve cells.