Who has not heard "Use It or Lose It". Now, what is "It"?
Last week I gave a talk at the Italian Consulate in San
Francisco, and one of the areas attendants seemed to enjoy
the most was learning what our brains are and how they
work, peaking into the "black box" of our minds. Without
understanding at least the basics, how can we make good
decisions about our own brain health and fitness?
Let's review at a glance:
The brain is composed of 3 "brains" or main sub-systems,
each named after the evolutionary moment in which the
sub-system is believed to have appeared.
1) Neocortex, or Human Brain, is the most recent area,
where we perform high-level thinking and complex
integrative tasks. Other mammals do have this part too, but
in smaller proportion of the whole brain volume. This is
where we have our right and left hemispheres.
The Neocortex is composed of
-Frontal Lobes: or the CEO of the Brain, for sophisticated
brain functions such as planning and conceptualizing.
-Parietal lobes: dealing with movement, the senses, and
some forms of recognition
-Temporal lobes: auditory processes and language
-Occipital: visual processing center (credit: Morphonix)
B) Limbic System, or Mammalian Brain, critical for emotions
and for memory,
Emotions are generated here, as well as the appetites and
urges that help us survive. For instance, the amygdala gets
triggered to prepare us to deal with a threatening
situation, resulting in our feeling of fear. The
hippocampus is key in the formation of memory.
C) Cerebellum and Stem, or Reptilian Brain, that regulates
basic vital variables such as breathing, heartbeat and
motor coordination.
When we exercise our brains, we put our Neurons and
connections between neurons in action.
Given the diversity of functions outlined above, it is
clear that different activities are going to activate
different brain areas, which scientists now know thanks to
neuroimaging techniques. There is no one magic bullet that
is best (either crosswords puzzles, or computer-based
programs, or physical exercise): we do need a variety of
mental stimulation or "brain exercises".
"Cells that fire together wire together" means that
synapses-unions between neurons- get solidified the more
often the respective neurons "talk" to each other.
Here you have some tips that can help you put all this
theory into practice:
- Be curious! Get to know your local library and community
college, look for local organizations or churches that
offer classes or workshops
- Do a variety of things, including things you aren't good
at (if you like to sing, try painting too)
- Work puzzles like crosswords and sudoku or play games
like chess and bridge
- Try a computerized brain fitness program for a customized
workout
- If you can only do one thing, learn something new every
day!
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Alvaro Fernandez is the CEO and Co-Founder of
SharpBrains.com, which provides the latest science-based
information for Cognitive Fitness and Cognitive Training,
and has been recognized by Scientific American Mind,
MarketWatch, Forbes, and more. Alvaro holds MA in Education
and MBA from Stanford University, and teaches The Science
of Brain Health at UC-Berkeley Lifelong Learning Institute.
You can learn more at http://www.sharpbrains.com/
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