Don't Lose Your Marbles

Eat Right, Exercise, Stay Busy to Keep Brain Young

Last updated Tuesday, September 9, 2008 3:27 PM CDT in Your Family

By Marla Hinkle
THE MORNING NEWS

"Think of all the 60-, 70- and 80-year-olds you know who are healthy. Do they just sit around watching TV? No. They are active," she told a group gathered for a "Maintain Your Brain" workshop held Aug. 13 at the Jones Center for Families in Springdale.

The audience familiarized themselves with both the outer and inner brain. Warmack passed a head of cauliflower around to convey brain shape and size, which is about 3 pounds.

Participants formed a semicircle to mimic neurons firing and the importance of each one in the chain to quickly react. The first person squeezes a hand, and so on, until the last person standing next to Warmack says "done."

On the first attempt, 16 seconds elapsed, and the second attempt reduced time to 11 seconds.

The average number of cells in the brain is 100 trillion, Warmack says, and when there are more connections, the brain cells grow in number.

"In Alzheimer's disease, the neurons cannot connect to deliver impulses to brain cells. That's why we want to constantly learn things," Warmack says.

"Some people tell me they have been doing crossword puzzles their whole lives, but if the brain goes on automatic, the cells become dormant."

No cure exists for Alzheimer's, but having a healthy brain is a good defense, Warmack says.

Last year the Alzheimer's Association gave $21 million to the Institute on Aging to study brain health, locate participants for clinical trials and find a cure.

Brain Food

What you eat has repercussions on your brain. And while it may not happen overnight, fat clogging arteries and high cholesterol can potentially lead to dementia, Warmack says.

"The goal is to have good nutrition for our brains. Don't think of it as a diet; think of it as a long-term health plan," she says.

Dark, leafy green vegetables, healthy fats like omega 3 found in halibut, mackerel and tuna, flaxseed, walnuts and pecans are good choices. Also important are Vitamin E and C found in prunes, raisins, red grapes, cherries and blueberries.

Trans-fats should be limited, Warmack says.

"If there is one thing I can leave with you, it is to never use margarine. Always use real butter. Margarine contains a lot of bad fats and is artery clogging."

Chocolate (the dark variety, not milk) has been found to provide anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.

An article in the Journal of Nueroscience, May 2007, reported flavonols, which improve cardiovascular health and increase blood flow to the brain, are found in some chocolate.

The piece states that Dr. Henriette van Praag of the Salk Institute and colleagues at Mars Inc. demonstrated the combination of exercise and a diet with epicatechin promoted structural and functional changes in the dentate gyrus, a part of the brain involved in the formation of learning and memory.

The results suggest that a diet rich in flavonols may help reduce the incidence or severity of neurodegenerative disease or cognitive disorders related to aging.

The most simple and vital element people may forget about is staying hydrated. Dehydration can lead to long-term neuronal damage sustained from elevated stress hormones.

Body Wise

Earlyne Keen visits the Fayetteville Senior Center about four times per week, mostly for the exercise, she says.

Her favorite machine is the Gazelle Power Plus. The low-impact exercise works the legs and arms in a swinging motion, reducing the harsher impact of an exercise like running.

Keen is accomplishing one of the important factors researchers promote in brain health. A statistic that surprised Warmack demonstrates the interdependency of the heart and brain.

For every heartbeat, 25 percent of the blood flow is designated for the brain, so the brain depends on healthy blood vessels.

A Swedish study reveals being overweight or obese throughout adulthood increases the likelihood of brain atrophy.

Researchers followed 290 Swedish women over 24 years and scanned the brains when they were between 70 and 84. Scientists found the obese women experienced a loss of brain tissue in the temporal lobe, an area in the brain that is responsible for cognitive functions like comprehension, language and memory.

Also, fat tissue increases hormone levels that contribute to brain cell death, which appears to precede dementia.

Diabetes, high cholesterol and blood pressure in obese subjects can contribute to blood vessel damage and blockages in the heart and to the brain.

Victoroff recommends eating less and exercising more.

"Break free of the chains of obesity, return to the virtues of our ancient dietary heritage, take the time to enjoy a good meal, and the time to enjoy the active life that meal makes possible. These are some of the most powerful things you can do to unleash the amazing power of your brain."

Making The Connection

The Alzheimer's Association considers social and emotional networks another important tool in the fight against dementia. Elderly people who have few social connections experience mental decline.

Keeping a purpose in life and joining civic clubs, churches and volunteer work all play an important role in a balanced life.

Any weekday at the Benton County Senior Center is packed with activities like duplicate bridge, a game of pool or dominoes. Center director Vanessa Reece-Snodgrass says visitors also enjoy outings to the Lake Bella Vista trail, Frisco Mall in Rogers and more.

"I think this is like a second home for people and a salvation for many," she says.

"Our organization is very much like a family. We are a going group. We like to do different things. It's just fun."

Groups from the Springdale Senior Center enjoy an occasional trip to Branson, Mo. Folks participate in several exercise classes, bingo and a baseball game of sorts where participants take tosses with cards, says Ruth Isaac, assistant to director Lori Proud.

"The big benefit here is companionship. We have several music nights and Thursday night jams at 6 p.m., where 25 to 30 people will be playing guitars and mandolins.

"At the end of the month, we have a birthday party for everyone who had a birthday in that month. In October, we are going to have a Winter Wonderland Senior Prom. There is something going on all the time. Active seniors do not have to sit home alone," Isaac says.

The most popular activity at the Fayetteville Senior Center is the "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader" videos featuring comedian Jeff Foxworthy.

Director Sherri Napier says chess, drawing lessons, Spanish classes and Brain Teasers keep guests challenged.

A special treat for visitors interested in physical fitness is a professional personal training class offered by Jimmy H. Culp, Masters Mr. America, 1989. He has trained women and men to be professional body builders.

Aubrey Shepherd says he tries to visit the center about three times during the week, mainly to use the exercise equipment and lift weights.

"A lot of seniors come here to stay active. Dementia is a natural part of aging," Shepherd says.

"People who have had strokes come here and share their experience, and that helps other people open up and talk about their experiences. I think it's healthful to have discussions like these. It is inspiring for other people who may face the same problems."

Active Minds

If you forget where you put your glasses, that's a normal sign of aging. If you forget that you wear glasses, then you probably have dementia, Drs. Sandra Aamodt and Sam Wang write in "Welcome To Your Brain: Why You Lose Your Car Keys but Never forget How to Drive and Other Puzzles of Everyday Life."

The authors say "attempts to improve cognitive skills in the elderly through training have yielded mixed results. Although most training programs work to some extent, the gains tend to be specific to the trained task, leading to little improvement in brain functions across tasks.

"On the bright side, though, these gains can last for many years in some cases. One way to get around the problem of task specificity is to practice a variety of skills -- either formally or by staying involved in several hobbies or volunteer projects in retirement."

Even in early stages of dementia, it's possible to use these skills. Connie Lytle-Burklow, a licensed social worker, presented Keys to Enhancing Communication and Behavior in Dementia Aug. 20 at the Schmieding Center for Senior Health & Education in Springdale.

"Focus on current strengths, identify activities enjoyed by the person and decrease perfectionism."

"There was a lady I saw in a nursing home who loved to fold. She must have been an immaculate housekeeper. She folded all her bedclothes and sheets, so staff found her a job putting those skills to use by helping fold towels."

The average life expectancy for women in the United States is estimated at 80 years, and for men, 74.6 years. With those numbers, the search for answers to stave off dementia and Alzheimer's continues to grow.

The old adage "use it or lose it" seems to apply in mental prowess. Aging With Grace: The Nun Study by Dr. David Snowden involved nuns from the Order of Notre Dame who were ages 75 to 106.

An example from the study compares two nuns from opposite backgrounds. One came from privilege, while the other had to care for her sickly parents. The latter nun was found to have a stronger brain, since she had to use her brain more in caring for others.

Although the brain ages "dramatically," older age doesn't automatically come with senility.

Diane Ackerman points out in "An Alchemy of Mind," (Scribner, 2004) that seasoned skills age slowly, and habits and expertise linger.

"One mystery that's tantalized people for ages is how the brain embeds long-term memories. ... Brain cells communicate by sort of shaking hands at hundreds of billions of minute contact points called synapses."

Ackerman continues, "To store a long-term memory, a cell lathers its handlike axon with more protein, which strengthens the grip. Short-term memories may swarm and vanish, but if we clutter our minds with them for long, we drown in a sea of formed and forming memories."

She includes a theory in her book from Eric Kandel of Columbia University suggesting age-related memory loss might have to do with a defective genetic switch, so that short-term memory doesn't convert to long-term with a spurt of new proteins.

"And some people who seem to have an extraordinary memory may simply have a defective part of the switch that inhibits genes," Ackerman says.

"In the mansions of their minds, lamps are mistakenly left on because the switches are broken, so they continue casting light."

Cranium Challenge

It's not enough to exercise the body. The mind also requires puzzles, games and word play to stay fit, experts say.

Plenty of celebrity-driven ads show actors absorbed in Nintendo's Brain Age games, which have sold some 17 million copies. Some challenges require users to tell time on an upside-down clock, memorize numbers or beat the machine at rock-paper-scissors.

Other electronic games are Your Word Coach, Big Brain Academy for the Wii console, games.com or luminosity.com. Brain games are lucrative for companies and more productive than some TV watching, but how effective -- and necessary -- are they in maintaining mental flexibility?

A clinical trial published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 2006 established some success with training groups ages 65 and older in memory, processing and reasoning strategies.

The groups improved in their specific training area and continued to demonstrate improvement for five years, reporting less decline in routine tasks such as balancing a checkbook.

Some pitfalls to computer games are less contact with people and the possibility that games may not be designed properly, causing more frustration.

The most important component of an activity and its usefulness in "sticking" to the mind is that a person must enjoy it, says J. Lee Dockery, a trustee of the McKnight Brain Research Foundation.

Dr. Daniel J. Siegel, author of "The Mindful Brain," (W.W. Norton & Company, 2007) says that one of the many downsides of "self-absenteeism of mindlessness" is the missed ability to develop "mindsight," our capacity to sense the mind in ourselves, and in others.

"Without this skill, our own internal life is a blur, and the minds of others are often missing from our sense of the world. This absence of a focus on mindsight in education is bolstered by technology-driven media that bombard children with stimuli devoid of elements that promote self-understanding and compassion.

"Absent self, missing mind, empty empathy."

QUIZ

How well do you know your brain?

1. When are your last brain cells born?

(a) Before birth

(b) At age 6

(c) Between the ages of 18 and 23

(d) In old age

2. Men and women have inborn differences in

(a) spatial reasoning

(b) strategies for navigation

(c) ability to leave the toilet seat down

(d) Both a and b

(e) Both b and c

3. Which of the following is not likely to improve brain function in old age?

(a) Eating fish with omega-3 fatty acids

(b) Getting regular exercise

(c) Drinking one or two glasses or red wine per day

(d) Drinking a whole bottle of red wine per day

4. Which of the following strategies is the best one for overcoming jet lag?

(a) Taking melatonin the night after you arrive at your destination

(b) Avoiding daylight for several days

(c) Getting sunlight in the afternoon at your destination

(d) Sleeping with the lights on

5. Your brain uses about as much energy as

(a) A refrigerator light

(b) a laptop computer

(c) an idling car

(d) a car moving down a freeway

6. Your friend is trying to tickle your belly. You can reduce the tickling sensation by

(a) putting your hand on his to follow the movement

(b) biting your knuckles

(c) tickling him back

(d) drinking a glass of water

7. Which of the following activities is likely to improve performance in school?

(a) Listening to classical music while you sleep

(b) Listening to classical music while you study

(c) Learning to play a musical instrument as a child

(d) Taking breaks from studying to play video games

(e) Both c and d

8. Which of the following is a blow to the head likely to cause?

(a) Loss of consciousness

(b) Memory loss

(c) Restoration of memory after suffering amnesia

(d) Personality change

9. Which of the following activities before a test might help you to perform better (You may have to choose more than one.)

(a) Having a drink

(b) Having a cigarette

(c) Eating a candy bar

(d) Telling yourself with great conviction that you are good at this kind of test

10. Your are in a noisy room, attempting to talk to your friend on your cell phone. To have a clearer conversation, you should

(a) talk more loudly

(b) cover one ear and listen through the other

(c) cover your ear when you talk

(d) cover the mouthpiece when you listen

11. Which of the following is an effective way to reduce anxiety?

(a) Antidepressant drugs

(b) Exercise

(c) Behavioral therapy

(d) All of the above

12. Which of the following is the hardest thing your brain does?

(a) Doing long division

(b) Looking at a photograph

(c) Playing chess

(d) Sleeping

13. Blind people are better than sighted people at which of the following?

(a) Understanding words

(b) Hearing sounds

(c) Remembering stories

(d) Training dogs

14. Your mother was improving your brain capacity when she told you which of the following things?

(a) Turn that music down

(b) Go out and play

(c) Practice your instrument

(d) All of the above

15. Memory starts to get worse in which decade of life?

(a) Thirties

(b) Forties

(c) Fifties

(d) Sixties

16. Which activities kill brain cells?

(a) Drinking three bottles of beer in an evening

(b) Smoking a joint

(c) Dropping acid

(d) All of the above

(e) None of the above

17. Which depiction of neurological damage is least realistic?

(a) Guy Pearce's character Leonard in "Memento"

(b) Drew Barrymore in "50 First Dates"

(c) Dory in "Finding Nemo"

(d) John Nash in "A Beautiful Mind"

18. What percentage of mammalian species are monogamous?

(a) 5 percent

(b) 25 percent

(c) 50 percent

(d) 90 percent

19. What percentage of your brain do you use?

(a) 10 percent

(b) 5 percent when your are sleeping, 20 percent when you are awake

(c) 100 percent

(d) Varies according to intelligence

20. When Einstein's brain was compared with the average person's, it

(a) was larger

(b) was indistinguishable in size

(c) had more folds on the surface

(d) had an extra part.

Answers: 1) d, 2) d , 3) d, 4) c, 5) a, 6) a, 7) e, 8) c, 9) b and d, 10) d, 11) d, 12) b, 13) c, 14) d, 15) a, 16) e, 17) b, 18) a, 19) c, 20) b

Source: "Welcome To Your Brain: Why You Lose Your Car Keys but Never forget How to Drive and Other Puzzles of Everyday Life" by Drs. Sandra Aamodt and Sam Wang (Bloomsbury 2008)

WEB WATCH

www.alz.org -- The official site for the Alzheimer's Organization

www.snre.umich.edu/eplab/demos/st0/stroopdesc.html -- Take the Stroops Test online. The words are in different colors than the name implies. For example, blue is in yellow, but you are expected to read the word and say the proper color.

Source: Staff Report

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