5 healthy lifestyle habits to boost memory and cognitive abilities

We all have bad habits we want to change, but certain behaviors could have a negative effect on your cognitive abilities. The path to better memory and improved focus is as easy as choosing healthy lifestyle habits.

Practicing mindfulness, getting enough sleep and exercising regularly have all been shown to boost cognitive health and help you live a happy life. Continue reading to learn more about the healthy lifestyle habits you can adopt to boost your cognitive abilities.

1. Practice mindfulness

If you want to learn how to improve your focus, set aside a little time each day to meditate. Meditation has been shown to reduce stress and anxiety, boosting cognition by strengthening gray matter in the brain. Start by finding a quiet place where you won’t be disturbed. Sit comfortably, relax and focus on your breathing. Start by meditating for a few minutes each day, then gradually bring yourself up to around 20 minutes.

If you don’t have enough time to meditate, you can get some of the same benefits by practicing mindfulness whenever possible. Mindfulness involves consciously focusing only on what’s happening around you. Meditation and mindfulness are very similar. Meditation is something you set time aside to do, whereas mindfulness is a state of mind you can practice throughout your day.

2. Get enough sleep

Sleeping enough every night is one of those healthy lifestyle habits that can have a positive effect on nearly every major system in the body, including improved focus. During a regular sleep cycle, the brain is undergoing a number of processes that repair and restore key structures and functions. Not getting enough sleep hampers these processes and prevents proper recuperation of neural activity.

Poor sleep has been linked to a number of lifestyle diseases, including diabetes, obesity and heart disease, all of which can negatively impact brain health. If you’re wondering how to improve your focus, start with a good night of sleep.

While the amount of sleep you get is important, so too is the quality of sleep. Light sleep prevents you from falling into the deep, regenerative sleep that is needed to keep the brain focused and operating at its best.

3. Consume less alcohol

It’s well known that alcohol can impact memory after a night of binge drinking, but the damage can be longer lasting than that.

Alcohol is a neurotoxin, and regularly drinking to excess has been shown to have a damaging effect on the part of the brain associated with memory. Worse than that, alcohol consumption is linked to deficiencies in key nutrients like vitamin B-1, which is critical for providing energy to brain cells.

Heavy drinking can lead to a number of other unhealthy habits, too. Those who drink too frequently often skip meals or eat foods loaded with saturated fats and sugar. A poor diet is also shown to have a negative effect on cognitive abilities.

4. Eat the right foods

Your brain needs a steady stream of nutrients to stay energized and operate at its best. But too much of the wrong kinds of food can have a damaging effect. Foods that are high in refined simple carbs — think white bread, candy, soda and pastries — can cause a spike in blood sugar that can damage the brain over time. Diets high in refined carbs have shown to reduce memory function and more pronounced cognitive decline over time.

Instead of buying sugary foods, have a few healthy recipes ready to go that use unprocessed foods high in brain-boosting vitamins and nutrients like leafy greens, fruits, nuts and legumes.

5. Exercise regularly

Exercise is essential for overall health, and the brain is no exception. Exercise helps to improve blood flow, bathing your brain in rich oxygenated blood and all sorts of vital nutrients. Even moderate daily exercise has been shown to boost key cognitive functions like memory and concentration. Good nutrition goes hand-in-hand with exercise. You need food that gives you energy, so make sure you’re preparing healthy recipes to get the most out of your workouts.

Exercise also releases hormones called endorphins into the bloodstream, commonly known as the “feel-good” chemical. Endorphins do exactly what they sound like — they make you feel good! This can have a powerful effect on your mood and wellbeing throughout the day, helping to limit the degenerative impact stress can have on the brain and giving you more clarity of thought.

Get Ameritas on your side

Life is busy and challenging. Sometimes it feels like you don’t have enough time in the day, but adopting even some of these habits can have long-term positive benefits for your brain health and overall wellbeing.

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