Did you know cognitive decline can happen from your midlife and onwards?
Yes, it's true. While most research shows it typically speeds up around 70 years old and onwards, it can start to happen from your mid-30s.
Cognitive decline can be associated with many diseases and problems affecting your memory, concentration and movement.
While you can't stop it, you can take supplements and implement certain behaviours to slow it down.
If you don't, you could be at risk of getting certain cognitive disorders like dementia, Parkinson's disease, traumatic brain injuries, Alzheimer's and more.
Basically, your brain is your best friend. To know how to nurture that relationship, keep on reading.
Why are memory and concentration important?
Before fully learning about how to slow down cognitive decline, we must address memory and concentration first.
Memory
Basically, your memory is essential in how you learn and do things. It allows you to easily acquire, store and retrieve information about the past, present or future.
Memories are formed through a process called encoding, where information is typically stored and then used later for another purpose. Generally, you have three types of memory short term, long term and sensory, that help you operate on a day to day basis. Just like cognitive decline, as you get older, your memory becomes impacted and harder to recall.
Concentration
Concentration is how you use your mind to focus on a single task or thought. Just think of your brain as a computer processing the information and then verbalising it. Concentration is the key to having good memories and functioning well daily.
What can cause cognitive decline?
While increasing age can be one of the main risks of cognitive decline, there are also additional risk factors such as:
- Depression
- Obesity
- Diabetes
- Lack of sleep
- High cholesterol
- High blood pressure
- Smoking
- Carrying a specific gene such as APOE e4 linked to Alzheimer's
Signs of cognitive decline
Cognitive problems can come in numerous forms; however, the signs tend to be the same. What's important to know that these signs may not be visible immediately if you don't know how to spot them. They might not hinder your family life, social functioning or work performance. If they do occur, it may be likely your friends and family will notice the changes before you do.
The typical signs are:
- Difficulty organising tasks and managing events
- Making more rash decisions
- Losing your sense of direction
- Becoming confused
- Finding it difficult to recall recent memories or conversations
- Forgetting significant calendar dates, events and appointments
Natural exercises to maintain cognitive health
To keep your brain in good health there are many natural exercises you can do, such as the following:
Meditation
Practising mediation a few times a week can allow you to stay calm and keep focused on your days. Much research shows that it can slow down the way your brain ages and enhance your brain's ability to process information. It's not difficult to get started either; there are many free resources on Youtube.
Socialising
Simple activities like socialising with friends and family may help you preserve your cognitive state. There's research that supports this; a study was conducted in 2019 showing that those who socialised frequently had a lower risk of getting cognitive decline and dementia.
Visualise more
If you start imagining images or situations more in your mind, this activity can help keep it in shape, preventing cognitive decline. It also can help you organise information more easily and make more informed decisions. It's really simple to visualise; you can even do it by imaging directions to and from your house or what you will buy when shopping. But, to visualise properly, you will want to think about the scenes with as much detail as possible.
Playing memory recall games
Another way to help keep your cognitive health intact is by playing memory recall games. Card games exist that can help test your short-term memory and allow you to remember patterns or symbols more easily. Often memory recall tasks are simple to do and fun to undergo.
Foods known to boost brain health
- Coffee
- Fatty fish
- Blueberries
- Broccoli
- Dark chocolate
- Oranges
- Green tea
- Eggs
- Nuts
- Pumpkin seeds
Cognitive support supplements
Alongside exercise and adding brain-boosting foods to your diet, you can take supplements to enhance your brain health. Some of the best cognitive supplements to take are:
Choline Bitartrate is a supplement your gut breaks down into two components known as choline and tartaric acid. Tartaric acid helps transport choline to the brain, optimising its health.
Once it reaches your brain, it helps with the production of acetylcholine. This neurotransmitter allows you to make, store and retrieve memories. It is also associated with attention, motivation, balance, coordination and critical thinking.
Lion's Mane
Lion's mane is a supplement that comes from a white mushroom species and has a similar appearance to a lion's mane. This mushroom is found growing all over the world in cold climates in Europe, Asia and North America. The main benefit of this supplement is that it helps with mood and cognitive function.
Final thoughts
Overall, cognitive decline affects us all as we get older. While certain risk factors can speed it up, you can undergo certain exercises, eat brain-boosting foods and take supplements to reduce it. When trying supplements to support cognitive decline, you might want to check out our range, all of which are vegan friendly.