Sharp Brains: Brain Fitness and Cognitive Health News

Brain Coach Answers: Do I really have to eat my vegetables?

vegetablesShort answer … yes!

Now the longer answer …

“On measures of mental sharpness, older people who ate more than two servings of vegetables daily appeared about five years younger at the end of the six-year study than those who ate few or no vegetables.”

The Associated Press reported on this Chicago-based, 6-year study of healthy seniors aged 65 and older. Interestingly, the results showed green leafy vegetables such as spinach, kale and collards slowed age-related cognitive decline, while there was no apparent benefit from eating fruit - suggesting that the effect wasn’t due to merely a healthy diet, but instead something specific to the vegetables. Vitamin E and healthy fats that help you absorb antioxidants were given most of the credit, but exercise also correlated with better results.

The Four Pillars of Good Health:

  1. Physical Fitness
  2. Brain Fitness
  3. Good Nutrition
  4. Reduced Stress

Keep working on each pillar. They all take work and commitment, but if you stick to it, you can have a healthier life with more time to spend on the things you love rather than recuperating from illness.

Categories: Cognitive Neuroscience, Health & Wellness, Peak Performance

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Print This Article Print This Article

6 Responses

  1. [...] Related Links The Four Pillars of Health: physical fitness, mental fitness, nutritional diet, and stress reduction Managing Stress Brain Anatomy Physical Fitness and Brain Fitness Glossary of Terms [...]

  2. [...] What can you do to stay mentally sharp? The good news is whether or not you and your doctor decide to go with hormone replacement therapy, lifestyle choices like exercise, nutritional management, and brain exercise can help alleviate the symptoms of menopause and aging. If you feel mentally fuzzy, try various strategies for dealing with weak attention or try some of the software programs out there that specifically work on increasing attention and working memory. [...]

  3. [...] What can you do to stay mentally sharp? The good news is whether or not you and your doctor decide to go with hormone replacement therapy, lifestyle choices like exercise, nutritional management, and brain exercise can help alleviate the symptoms of menopause and aging. If you feel mentally fuzzy, try various strategies for dealing with weak attention or try some of the software programs out there that specifically work on increasing attention and working memory. [...]

  4. [...] Caroline from SharpBrains has a great way to relieve the stress of the holidays while reminding us of why it is so important to eat a variety of good vegetables. Karen from Miscmum in Australia wants to offer us a fresh view on Thanksgiving from an international perspective. [...]

  5. Joao Silva says:

    I found a very interesting web page called “Cosmetic Neurology” .Take a look.

  6. Caroline says:

    Joao,

    I agree that “cosmetic neurology” is going to be a fascinating field to watch evolve. There are a lot of different ethical and personal liberty issues to weigh.

Leave a Reply

Top 30 Articles

  1. Top 50 Brain Teasers, by SharpBrains Team
  2. The Ten Habits of Highly Effective Brains, by Alvaro Fernandez
  3. Why do You Turn Down the Radio When You're Lost?, by Caroline Latham
  4. Brain Plasticity: How learning changes your brain, by Pascale Michelon
  5. Top 10 Brain Fitness Future Trends, by Alvaro Fernandez
  6. 7 FAQs on Mental Exercise, by Alvaro Fernandez
  7. It is Not Only Cars That Deserve Good Maintenance: Brain Care 101, by Alvaro Fernandez
  8. Evaluation Checklist for Brain Fitness products and games, by Alvaro Fernandez
  9. MIT Event on Brain Games: Context, Trends, Questions, by Alvaro Fernandez
  10. Stress Management Workshop for International Women's Day, by Alvaro Fernandez
  11. Mindfulness and Meditation in Schools for Stress Management, by Jill Sutie
  12. Stress and Neural Wreckage: Part of the Brain Plasticity Puzzle, by Gregory Kellet
  13. How can I improve my short term memory?, by Caroline Latham
  14. Cognitive and Emotional Development Through Play, by David Elkind
  15. Judith Beck: Train Your Brain to Think Like a Thin Person, by Alvaro Fernandez
  16. Easy Steps to Improve Brain Health, by Caroline Latham
  17. Infographic: State of the Market 2009, by Paul Van Slembrouck
  18. Improve Memory with Sleep, Practice, and Testing, by Bill Klemm
  19. 10 Brain Tips To Teach and Learn, by Laurie Bartels
  20. Dr. Elkhonon Goldberg on Cognitive Training and Brain Fitness, by Alvaro Fernandez
  21. Maximize the Cognitive Value of Your Mental Workout, by Schlomo Breznitz
  22. Brain Fitness Program and Neuroplasticity @ PBS, by Alvaro Fernandez
  23. Mindfulness Meditation for Adults & Teens with ADHD, by David Rabiner
  24. Can Intelligence Be Trained? Martin Buschkuehl shows how, by Alvaro Fernandez
  25. How Strong is the Research Support for Neurofeedback in Attention Deficits?, by David Rabiner
  26. Exercising the body is exercising the mind, by Adrian Preda
  27. Brain Evolution and Why it is Meaningful Today to Improve Our Brain Health, by Larry McCleary
  28. Physical Exercise and Brain Health, by Pascale Michelon
  29. Posit Science, Nintendo Brain Age, and Brain Training Topics, by Alvaro Fernandez
  30. Sleep, Tetris, Memory and the Brain, by Shannon Moffet

Monthly Blog Archives