Exercise, cutting out sugar, eating a low glycemic diet with lots of fresh fruits and vegetables and healthy oils.  So far all the tips for a youthful brain are the same as for a youthful body!  Well, your brain is part of your body, after all.

Just as your muscles are strengthened with exercise, your brain can become stronger by working out “the little gray cells” as Agatha Christie’s Poirot calls them. How can you do that?  Here are some suggestions I found:

Change up your schedule.  We tend to get in a rut of doing the same thing the same way every single day.  Doing something simple like taking an alternate route to work can give a little poke to the sleepy neurons in your cranium.

Learn something new.  Always wanted to learn a new language?  Learn to knit?  Play an instrument?  Now is the time to do it.  Taking on a new challenge will stimulate your brain and keep it active.

Be creative.  You don’t have to win a prize with your artwork, but you can take a free course at your local hobby store.  You can make cards, learn to decorate cakes, or take up beadwork, for example.  Maybe you can’t write a best-seller, but you can write down your life story for your children and grandchildren.  You can write a blog. Try something new.  You may find you like it — and your brain will start moving again.

Get involved.  What matters to you?  Find a way to volunteer and become active in that cause.  You can be an advocate for children in the foster care system, help at the local homeless shelter, teach someone to read.  The list is endless.  There are people out there who need  you.  Go make a difference!  You will feel happier, and your brain will appreciate all the new stimuli you are giving it.

Pay attention.  Take a conscious moment to notice the things around you.  Look for beauty in unexpected places.  Really look at  the people around you. Notice their expressions and listen to the nuances of what they are saying.  Make an effort to do it daily and you will find you have given yourself a habit that is life-enriching as well as a brain booster.

Surf the Internet.  What?  Yes.  Scientists have proved it by brain scans.  Surfing the net causes the parts of your brain that learn new things and make decisions to  light up.  That’s good news for me, since I have spent countless hours on the Internet doing research for this blog!

Look for the humor in life.  Laughter is good for you, and good for your brain.

Doing all these things will keep your brain young and healthy.  It will also make your life more interesting and worth living!

Eating to live and living for Christ,

Susan Jordan Brown