10 Unhealthy Habits That Damage Your Brain
Our brain is a great mystery, which scientists still have not been able to solve. Nevertheless, the best minds of mankind have figured out which habits prevent them from working productively, reduce cognitive abilities, and gradually make a person stupider. So what should you give up in order to have a fully functional brain? We have all the answers here!
Worst Habits For Your Brain
Some of our daily habits make our brain dull; you must eradicate these habits so you can have a healthy brain.
1. Sleeping In The Wrong Position
Are there bad sleeping positions? Of course, scientists are sure. Sleeping on your side or back is beneficial for spinal health and provides good oxygen for productive brain function. However, when you dive headlong under a blanket, the oxygen supply to your lungs decreases while the concentration of carbon dioxide increases.
Given that oxygen is the key to maintaining brain function, oxygen deficiency can contribute to cell damage. Thus, if you sleep by covering yourself in a blanket, you are harming your brain’s health, and you must quit this habit.
2. Drinking Alcoholic Beverages
Drinking alcoholic beverages to relax the brain or improving its health is just a myth, which many people in the US believe. But, in reality, excessive consumption of alcoholic beverages leads to deterioration of brain function. And if you don’t put a stop to this, problems with the formation and growth of brain cells may arise. Thus, quitting alcohol is the only solution here.
For your assistance, there are many rehab services available all across the US; however, some States have facilities better than others. For example, rehabilitation centers in NH or New Hampshire mostly offer tailored programs according to person-to-person needs. Thus, if you are having mental health problems along with alcohol addiction, you can easily get effective treatment tailored specially for your need.
3. Breaking The Daily Routine
Day for work and night for sleep: compliance with this rule has a positive effect on thought processes. During the night’s rest, the brain is actively working, assimilating the information received and putting it in its right place.
A short, superficial sleep disrupts this process, which negatively affects a person’s ability to learn new things. As a result, concentration decreases, attention suffers, and memory problems arise. So do not interfere with the internal clock and sleep timely for better brain health.
4. Lean On Salty Foods
If you want your brain to function at full capacity, you should steer clear of high-salt diets. Research carried out in 2014, the results of which were published in the Neuroscience, showed that with high blood pressure, the heart, blood vessels, and the brain are most affected.
Besides, eating salty foods reduce blood flow to the brain and damage blood vessels, which contributes to a decrease in cognitive abilities. Thus, researchers recommend that a person should not eat excess salt in food and keep it to a minimum.
5. Refuse To Take Sick Leave
The best thing a sick person can do for the company is to stay at home and not infect others. Taking a firm stance on this issue will help keep your brain healthy. When the body devotes all its resources to fighting bacteria and viruses and overcoming a disease state, it cannot work as efficiently as it normally does.
If you strain and force it, in spite of everything, to enter a working rhythm, this can even cause brain damage in the future. So do yourself and your company a favor and take sick leave when you don’t feel well.
6. Love For Sweet Desserts
Anyone who starts the morning with sweets is by no means wise. Research published in Neuroscience shows that a diet high in sugar can significantly reduce cognitive function, including impairment of short-term and long-term memory. Even people who drink orange juice in the morning are at risk. And this is because 350 ml of orange juice from the store contains 33 grams of sugar, so quit this habit.
7. Living In Pitch Darkness
Lack of sunlight can also jeopardize brain function, as it increases the likelihood of depression and, as a result, cognitive abilities decline. Scientists from the National Institutes of Health, USA, have found that sunlight affects the productivity of the brain and contributes to increasing the productivity of a person. So if your work isn’t going well, take a walk in the fresh air or open wide your windows to let the sun into your home. Trust us; even such a little action will improve your mental health a lot.
8. Smoking At An Early Age
Being addicted to nicotine at any age is dangerous to your health. But the one who starts smoking in youth may suffer more. Research from the University of California, Los Angeles has shown that the longer adolescents smoke and the higher their dependence on nicotine, the less active the prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for a colossal number of functions.
At the same time, even if you started smoking as an adult, going out for a smoke break during the day over time will lead to a decrease in concentration and a decrease in the ability to remember.
9. Skipping Fitness Classes
Regular physical activity not only strengthens muscles but also increases mental capacity. During exercise, the production of protein hormones gets stimulated, which are produced in the hypothalamus and pituitary gland.
They, in turn, improve memory and make us more focused and alert. Just 12 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise per day improves cognitive function and provides an energy boost. So do not skip fitness classes, and even if you do, try to compensate for it by working out at home.
10. Listening To Music At Maximum Volume
Listening to music with headphones at maximum volume damages not only the hearing but also the brain. Scientists identified a link between hearing loss in the elderly and damage to brain tissue.
Listening to music at full volume puts an extra load on the hearing organ; thus, it takes more effort to recognize and process information. If you want to make sure you’re not overloading your hearing, keep your device volume at 60%, and take breaks from listening to tracks every two hours.
Be healthy and cultivate only good habits in yourself!
