What Do-Gooding Does for Your Brain

Are you a do-gooder? If you are, chances are you'll stay sharp as a tack as you age. Volunteering in a social setting -- tutoring kids in a library or school, for example -- can help reverse or delay declines in brain function that happen with aging, research shows.

Plastic Brains Are Good
The thing is, your brain is plastic. No, not like those jelly bracelets from the '80s. Brain plasticity refers to its ability to change and form new connections between neurons in response to novel situations. Unfortunately, it's natural to lose a little of this plasticity over time. And when you don't use your brain, the sluggishness gets worse. So it's essential to stay active -- not just mentally but physically and socially.

So what's the price of plastic? About the cost of a pair of walking shoes. People who are fit have more plastic brains. Get in step and you'll boost circulation in all parts of your body, including your brain. That's probably why the folks who walked regularly in a recent study were able to focus better on a task, compared to the people who performed only stretching and toning exercises. Walking is so good for your brain that it may lower your risk of dementia as you get older. In fact, walking may be just about the best thing you can do for your overall well-being. Walking can:

• Decrease osteoarthritis pain and improve stability, endurance, and agility
• Reduce the risk of colon cancer and possibly breast cancer
• Protect against diabetes in high-risk people and lower blood glucose and improve insulin action in people who already have the disease
• Lower blood pressure and reduce the risk of heart attack

Grab 30 minutes a day (broken into three 10-minute segments, if need be) and you'll also help keep your weight in check, boost your energy and stamina levels, and probably handle stress better, too. It's pretty hard to come up with an excuse when you see the laundry list of health benefits, isn't it?

Get Your Good Deed On
Volunteering fits the bill on many fronts. It challenges the brain to think critically and learn new things. It creates a social outlet (also good for the brain). And getting involved in a good cause can add meaning and a sense of purpose in life -- all good things for mental well-being. So do your brain a favor and find a volunteering effort that captures your interest, whether it's helping children find books in the library or cooking meals for shut-ins. And try these other brain boosters as well:

• Spending time with a first grader can make you smarter: When older adults joined kindergarten through third-grade classrooms -- to help out, of course -- the kids achieved more. And the grown-ups had an even greater benefit: They shored up parts of their brains in ways that could protect them from Alzheimer's disease.
• Work your brain with a daily sudoku puzzle or challenging crossword puzzle.
• Your brain benefits from surfing the Web and being computer savvy: Brain scans of a computer-adept group showed more activity during Internet searches, compared with the brain scans of people who weren't so handy with a browser!
• Get up and play Ping-Pong... or tennis! In addition to keeping you active, playing Ping-Pong or tennis does help shore up defenses against Alzheimer's!

:: Information in this post is from RealAge.com

References

Published on 03/12/2010

Evidence for neurocognitive plasticity in at-risk older adults: the experience corps program. Carlson, M. C. et al., Journals of Gerontology. Series A, Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences 2009 Dec;64(12):1275-1282