Dear LPG readers,

Do you remember being told that we humans don’t ever allow our brains to act at full capacity or, that during every day that we live, a certain number of our brain cells get lost?  I always thought our diminishing number of the little bits of grey matter to be at least one of the reasons that so many of us older people become the victims of dementia.  But I asked google about this recently and found information to indicate that, while those facts are true, it has also been shown that we can produce new ones too which I think gives a little scope for hope. 

 
I am no doctor and I know that dementia is not only about the amount of brain cells you have but, just coming across that bit of internet information got me doing some basic maths.  Logic surely has to dictate that if you can encourage the growth of some new, young brain cells, perhaps they will be able to delay your risk of getting dementia to an extent; no matter how small that extent might be. 

I googled a bit more to ask how we can best make sure that we keep them coming and, after finding a lot of information about what you need to eat and not eat, the next best answer I could find was that we need to exercise.

There was nothing new there.  We get told how important it is to exercise during our whole lives and, although the extent of activity has to change as our aches and pains limit what we can actually do, our brains are organs too and keeping them focussed is as important as it is with all the others. 

So learning something new or pursuing something old that you never got around to advancing in must be the way forward, and even though it can be argued that working the brain is a lot less painful than exercising, I have now learned that forcing the issue can be a challenge too.  

I also recently read that one of the best ways to maximise the exercise that you offer your grey matter is to enter a state of ‘flow’, but there are many things that can get in the way.  Life’s many varying distractions are always there for us all; both the ones around us and the ones in our heads.  From what I understand a good mental work out can be achieved with ‘flow’ which can best be described as those times when you are so engrossed in what you are doing that you really don’t want to be disturbed. 

Many of us are at our most productive when we first get up in the mornings because it takes time for us to get bogged down in all the residue that impedes our progress the day before.  (the person we forgot to phone yesterday, the fact that we forgot to say happy birthday to a cousin etc. and before we pick up our mobile phones).  and the last thing that seems to keep being said is that it is important to have an expectation or goal. 

The videos mention things like job promotions, or the passing of some exam, but we can substitute making something we might like to show off to friends and family or learning a new language in preparation for a trip to the country where it is spoken.  Perhaps making a foreign pen pal (or video calling partner) might also be a way forward.

The bottom line is that we need to allow our brains to ‘flow’.  We each need to find something to do that occupies our minds to such an extent that we feel the need to lose track of time and even forget that we could do with a meal break, even if getting started is a bit of a chore.   I have found some videos that explain it all much better than I ever will be able to although they are, as ever predominantly aimed at a much younger audience than us pensioners.  I hope that sharing some of what has been said makes for interesting listening and I think that some of the links will give a bit of food for thought…

JN, Surrey 

JN shares the basis for her theory…

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