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Ways to Maintain Your Brain Health as You Age

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Ways to Maintain Your Brain Health as You Age

Your brain — weighing only 3 pounds yet containing nearly 100 billion neurons — is your body’s central command center. While memory and thinking challenges often accompany aging, dementia is a more serious condition when neurons and the connections between them are damaged or dying. 

The Growing Concern of Dementia 

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia. A study published in Nature Medicine in January 2025 revealed alarming statistics: the lifetime risk of dementia after age 55 has more than doubled to 42%. This trajectory could result in approximately 1 million new dementia cases in the U.S. by 2060. 

Now more than ever, it’s time to do everything possible to maintain your brain health. Here are science-based strategies to protect your cognitive function as you age. 

Nourish Your Brain: The Best Foods for Brain Health After 50

The food you eat impacts your health. The MIND diet combines the Mediterranean and Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diets. It has been shown to reduce Alzheimer’s risk by up to 50% while also protecting against heart attack, stroke, and hypertension. 

Here are the foods to add to your diet for better brain health after 50: 

  • Berries: While there’s a link between fruit and better brain health, berries were shown to have the most significant benefits. 
  • Fish: Try to eat fish once weekly and choose a fatty fish such as tuna, sardine, salmon, or sardines. 
  • Vegetables: You need six or more servings of green, leafy vegetables a week, but a serving of vegetables daily. 
  • Olive oil: Cook with olive oil. 
  • Beans: This includes lentils and soybeans. 
  • Whole grains: Whole wheat pasta and bread, brown rice, quinoa, and oatmeal are great choices. 
  • Nuts: Packed with nutrients that protect the brain, nuts are rich in antioxidants. Try almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, pistachios, and pecans.

Cultivate Social Connections

Studies have reported severe loneliness for adults aged 65 and older. But staying social is another key ingredient to keeping your brain healthy as you age. People who are more connected with friends and activities scored higher in cognitive tests than those with lower levels. Being social exercises our brains because it uses all of our senses. When our brains work, it strengthens the connections between brain cells and creates new connections. 

Staying active socially isn’t just good for cognition. It promotes longevity, reduces stress, and improves your mood. 

Strive for a mix of new and old friendships, in-person and long-distance. Look for clubs or groups with similar interests. Volunteer. The goal is quality connections rather than a certain number. If a friend adds stress to your life, the connection might have adverse effects. 

Prioritize Quality Sleep

Without proper sleep, your brain can atrophy. Short sleep was associated with more age-related cognitive decline. Sleep allows your brain to process new information you’ve received each day, “filing” it from short-term memory to long-term memory. It’s also when the brain can clean out toxic proteins that are found in patients with Alzheimer’s. 

One way to improve your sleep is to minimize stress. High levels of stress increase cortisol; cortisol can interfere with brain function, damage brain cells, and shrink the brain. Focus on clearing out stress with meditation, mindfulness, and gratitude. 

Embrace Regular Exercise 

Exercise is the “E” in The NEURO Plan, the comprehensive method developed by The Brain Docs to promote cognitive resilience. A study published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia discovered active adults had higher levels of proteins important for healthy connections between neurons, improving memory and cognition. You can reap the benefits of exercise at any age. 

Research confirms that any type of exercise is good for your brain health. Since it’s never too late to start, consider a mix of: 

  • Aerobic exercise: Moderate-intensity exercise for 150 minutes a week is recommended. 
  • Strength training: Over time, strength training can help reduce the shrinkage of the hippocampus. The hippocampus is essential for learning, spatial navigation, and memory consolidation, allowing your brain to form new memories and retrieve past ones.  

Use Pilates to Maintain Brain Health as You Age

Our Pilates instructors provide individualized Pilates sessions to help you move well, feel well, and continue to live well with each passing year. Pilates is an exercise method that trains whole-body movement and emphasizes the body/mind connection. Give us a call or text at 303-472-6743 to schedule Pilates for seniors session.