Healthy Living for the Mind

The human race has come a long way since our hunter gatherer days. Gone are the times when the majority of our energy and resources were focused on just trying to survive. In the modern industrialized world, we have far more stability in our food supply, health care, and safety. In the past, we relied heavily on physical prowess to prosper and move toward the future, in modern times though the physical has become less important now it our minds that take center stage in our endeavors to continue as a species, and much like our bodies, our minds also need proper nourishment and exercise for us to overcome the trials of the modern age. It is becoming more important to understand how to keep our minds strong and healthy as well as our bodies. Through the course of this article I will discuss some of the methods suggested by scientists and medical professionals that will help to keep the mind healthy and working at its maximum capabilities.

Mental Nutrition

The human brain is a highly specialized bio chemical system designed to process and record information from various external stimuli. To do this requires a wide variety of neurotransmitters produced in the brain to preform these tasks. Much like your body needs certain nutrients to maintain things like your bones and muscles there are also nutrients that are particularly helpful to maintaining proper brain function. Fortunately much like with the body you can also get proper nutrition for your mind through the foods you eat for a more comprehensive explanation and list of beneficial foods check out this article at Psychology Today.

Mental Exercise

The mind much like the body also needs regular exercise, from a personal view point this is the area I prefer to focus on when it comes to keeping my mind in shape. I find it much easier to use mental exercises to keep my mind sharp compared to making sure I eat all the right foods. One of the greatest aspects of exercising your mind is that it can be fun, you might even be doing it without even realizing the full benefits of your activities. Even the simplest things can be beneficial I prefer to switch between crossword puzzles and Sudoku but there are many games out there that are great brain exercise, the best way to know if a particular game will be helpful is to ask yourself whether it requires any type of strategy or forethought to succeed, if the answer is yes then go for it. Games are not the only way to exercise your mind, studies have shown that music is also good for you, not just playing but listening as well.

Last, but not least, taking even a little time out of your day to read, I find the most beneficial approach when reading is to pick a topic you are interested in but that you also find challenging whatever that may be. In my own life I enjoy magazines like Scientific American, Astronomy, and Popular Science. I have to admit I don't understand all of the technical details in a particular article but if I focus the basic concepts are clear, it is strange to say but it's almost like I can feel my brain is working in a similar way to how you can feel it in your muscles when you lift weights.

There are many more techniques for improving mental health that what I've listed here, these are just some of my preferred methods. When all is said and done it is up to each individual to weigh the importance of the mind against any other needs they may have in their lives, just keep in mind that it really doesn't take much effort so it won't hurt to at least give some of these ideas a try.