People Who Care About Protecting Their Brains Avoid Doing These 3 Things, Says A Neuroscientist
If you want a healthy brain, avoid the following activities.
PeopleImages.com - Yuri A | Shutterstock Maintaining a healthy brain has many benefits. It supports overall function, improves balance and coordination, protects against memory loss, lowers the risk of age-related illnesses, increases longevity, and helps people live happier lives overall. Most people don't actually think about their brain's health until they have to, however. But they should. According to the Mayo Clinic, the brain is the body's "powerhouse," but it's also quite fragile. That's because once brain neurons are damaged, they don't get replaced or heal.
Neuroscientist Emily McDonald knows a thing or two about brain health, and she agrees that it's important to prioritize your noggin when thinking about your physical health. In fact, she went so far as to say that certain common activities are just not worth the risk when it comes to brain health and she took to TikTok to share the three activities she never engages in for that very reason.
The three things people who want to protect their brains never do:
1. Look at their phones as soon as they wake up
With the rise of electronic devices and social media, it’s easy to develop the habit of using screens first thing in the morning. This addictive habit programs your mood for the day. “The content that you consume during this time will have a greater impact on your mindset,” explained McDonald.
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Social media can contribute to anxiety and depression. The content you consume online directly affects your mood. Exposure to the latest news, whether political or related to your friends or school, can lead to excessive worrying and a harmful cycle of comparing yourself to others.
“When we go into social media and post, we’re posting a manufactured life—picking the best pictures of ourselves or the nicest picture from our trip. The problem is that when we see that from other people, we start to question why we can’t be having that same experience,” according to neurologist Jorge L. Almodóvar-Suárez.
Stanford health experts recommend avoiding phone screens for the first hour of the day and replacing them with lifestyle medicine activities such as exercise, time outdoors, exposure to morning light, and meditation, to name a few.
2. Negative self-talk
Another common addictive behavior is negative self-talk. It's easy to think negatively, especially when comparing yourself to others or after a bad experience. While it's easier said than done, avoiding putting yourself down is crucial because you can become your biggest villain.
“What you say to yourself matters, and the more you put that into your brain, the more it gets wired in,” McDonald noted. If you frequently put yourself down and think you’re alone in this, you’re not. It’s more common than you might think. This pattern is called negative bias.
“We humans have a tendency to give more importance to negative experiences than to positive or neutral experiences," explains Healthline writer Scott Frothingham.
3. Eat processed foods
Processed foods are everywhere in the U.S. They’re cheap in price and low in quality. Their addictive nature is taking a toll on your brain health. “There’s plenty of science now to support that what you eat impacts your brain, but especially highly processed foods lead to brain aging, and we don’t want that," said McDonald.
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Research by nutrition and epidemiology professor Frank Hu suggests that processed foods may contribute to chronic inflammation linked to mental and physical health issues. While limiting processed foods can be challenging in American households, Hu recommends replacing them with the MIND diet, a combination of Mediterranean and DASH diets that promote brain health. The MIND diet emphasizes plant-based foods and limits animal and high-saturated-fat foods.
When prioritizing health, it's easy to forget that our brains need as much attention as our bones and muscles. Although these three habits are common and seemingly innocuous, they are a huge step toward giving your brain the optimal opportunity to perform its best for a long and happy life.
Mina Rose Morales is a writer and photojournalist with a degree in journalism. She covers a wide range of topics, including psychology, self-help, relationships, and the human experience.