Spring Cleaning for Your Brain
Written by Barb Fricke, Director of Marketing
The calendar says it is spring even though our Manitowoc weather hasn’t been very spring-like yet. One of the traditional duties of homeowners has each spring are the annual spring house cleaning chores. Usually the home would be scrubbed top to bottom, walls and windows washed and the entire home would be given a good cleaning and “airing out”. In addition to our homes, we can also spring clean our brains.
Here are five tips you can do to help spring clean your brain this year.
#1 – Make sure you are getting enough sleep and that it is good sleep. Research has found that when we sleep and sleep deeply, our brains flush out all the toxins we’ve accumulated throughout the day. And even as we age we still need 7-9 hours of sleep per night. It’s a myth that older people don’t need as much sleep.
#2 - Get some exercise every day. Exercise has been shown to help with our brain health. It has also been linked to improving cognitive abilities as we age, including better retention of memories. The brain chemicals produced when we exercise can help hold our attention longer when engaging in mental tasks.
#3 – Healthy eating is important. A healthy diet contributes to a healthy mind and a healthy mind contributes to a healthy gut. Eating healthy reduces toxins and inflammation. Large amounts of sugar cause inflammation in the body so be cognizant of how much sugar you are eating and the hidden sources of sugar.
#4 - Clear your mind of clutter. On a daily basis we clutter our brains with social media, the news, family issues, etc. Our brains become overloaded and can’t focus on critical tasks. So what can we do to help this? Set time limits on news watching, unfollow some social media accounts. Basically, do a digital detox.
#5 - Spend time outdoors. This definitely gets easier as the weather becomes nicer. Take time to breathe in the outdoor air, listen to the birds sing. Be attune to outdoor noises. Open some windows and let fresh air in your house. Even if you are not very active, a short walk outdoors can help clear your mind, bring new perspectives and help with better sleep.
Felician Village is a Dementia Center of Excellence. It is not a specific building, but rather weaves our commitment to exceed industry standards by delivering quality, compassionate care to those we serve with dementia on our campus and throughout the community.