Sunday, 6 October 2013

Top 5 Ways to Get Smarter

Meditate
For thousands of years, we've known the benefits of meditation. The practice of meditation can be different for each person, but it generally involves quiet, focused breathing exercises in which the practitioner is able to achieve a state of mental calm. Regardless of whether you believe that this mental calm is an enlightened state of consciousness, no one can deny the benefits of relaxed, focused breathing.

Exercise Your Brain
The brain, like many parts of the human body, needs regular exercise in order to maintain strength and vitality. Some more common brain strengthening exercises include fun activities like crossword puzzles, Sudoku, and other word- and number-based brain teasers.

Ingest Bacteria
In June 2010, researchers at The Sage Colleges presented findings that show certain types of bacteria commonly found in dirt made mice "smarter." The mice given Mycobacterium vaccae performed better in maze tests and showed fewer signs of anxiety and higher levels of serotonin in the forebrain, the area that takes care of higher-order thinking. The bacteria seem to promote the growth of neurons as well.

Get Some Sleep
Wakeful exercises for the brain are great and necessary to help improve brain function so you can get smarter. But what about sleep? Not a whole lot is known about sleep, but we know now that scientists were wrong for years with the belief that the brain simply shut down during sleep to recharge. Research now indicates that the brain may actually do a little nighttime filing during sleep.

Take Care of Your Body
The human body is all connected, so you can't take care of one part of it without benefiting some other part. Physical exercise is important for good health, for both the body and the brain. Simply increasing your blood flow kicks up the oxygen and glucose levels in the brain. The coordination it takes to perform exercises also gives the brain a workout, especially if you're trying something new. Exercise also means you're battling sedentary lifestyle, or one free from mental stimuli.

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