June is Alzheimer’s & Brain Awareness Month. Here are some fun facts and activities for keeping your brain healthy.
1. Brain-Health Quiz
True or False? Alzheimer’s disease is the same thing as dementia.
False! As many as 40 percent of dementia cases may have a different cause. Dementia is not a disease, but a set of symptoms including:
- Forgetting what one forgot. For instance, many people forget where they left a book, but instantly remember when it turns up, “Oh, yes! I put it there when I answered the door.” A person with dementia, however, may insist that they never took the book off its shelf, and that somebody else must have moved it.
- Becoming confused while performing routine tasks.
- Extreme difficulty with complicated tasks.
- Marked changes in personality or behavior.
True or False? Dementia is the inevitable price of aging.
False! Most people find it harder to “think fast” as they grow older. However, the majority of senior adults never develop true dementia. Also, dementia risk is influenced by living conditions, general health, and education.
True or False? So-called “senior moments” can happen at any age.
True! “Senior moment” is a misnomer, if not an ageist term. And few mental lapses are symptoms of deteriorating brain function. Likelier causes include sleep deprivation, multitasking, and mental overload.
True or False? There is such a thing as “brain food.”
True! Not that extra servings of anything will immediately raise your IQ; but an overall healthy diet does nourish your brain for top function. If you want to know what foods are extra good for your brain, the Harvard Medical School suggests leafy greens, berries, walnuts—and that classic “brain food,” fish.
True or False? Your brain needs regular exercise.
True! Not only does exercising your muscles encourage your brain to run smoother: the brain is like a muscle itself, growing stronger with use and flabby with neglect. If you’re living in a rut—if it’s been a while since your last new challenge or experience—your brain is probably under-exercised.
2. Apps
You don’t have to hike the Appalachian Trail or study for a Ph.D. to find new challenges. You can begin with your own smartphone or tablet. Here’s a sampler of apps that get high ratings for brain-building activities.
Games and creativity:
- Colorfy: Coloring Book Games
- Jigsaw Box Puzzles
- Lumosity: Brain Training
- Memorado (paid subscription required)
- MindMate (comes with brain games, fitness sessions, recipes, and music playlists)
- Peak
Learning and human interaction:
- BridgingApps Social Connection Apps for Older Adults and Seniors
- Explore.org (educational nature videos and live nature cameras)
- Memrise Easy Language Learning
- Overjoyed Accessible Gaming for young adults
- Tech Terms
Good food and physical exercise:
- Exercise Buddy Professional
- HelloFresh (recipes and a meal-delivery-service option)
- Mealime Meal Plans & Recipes
- MyFitnessPal
3. Tips and Tricks
And to put more brain-healthy activities (plus a little advocacy) into your days:
- Read a book that stretches your thinking: a classic; something recommended by a scientist/educator/nonprofit; or (with an open mind) some viewpoint you expect to disagree with.
- Read/watch good clean media that also makes you laugh out loud.
- Share some funny and insightful quotes on brain health. (BrainyQuote.com is a good resource for quips on all topics.)
- Decorate your monitor screen or social media picture in purple (the ribbon color for Alzheimer’s). Or if you do crossword puzzles/Sudoku/etc. in hard copy, trade your ordinary gray pencil for a purple one.
- Sign up for an online (or in-person) course on a topic you’ve always wanted to know more about. (Set a calendar reminder so your brain will remember to show up for class!)
- To improve your sleep, make a nightly habit of unwinding with your favorite relaxation activities.
- Don’t ever feel guilty about doing things you enjoy. When something nurtures your brain and body, time spent on it is never wasted.