You struggle to go to work in the morning, and you still struggle to go home. You worked from 8 in the morning, had lunch for an hour, took coffee around noon and got out at 5 in the afternoon. Stressed? Of course. Who would’nt be with the ton of work spread on your office table and somehow within that 8-hours of focused work, they are still not finished and you go home feeling the ache on your shoulders and looking a year older.
You wanted to be on top and so you work til you drop. You wanted that promotion for a long time and this time, it won’t land on your colleague who seems to be at the top of his health, looking younger everyday. Want to get that edge? How? Let your brain work. And I bet you would stare at me while saying “are you blind?” Read on.
“The lifestyle decisions we make day by day can profoundly influence whether or not our brains work at their peak potential,” says Jeff Victoroff, M.D., a professor of clinical neurology at the University of Southern California medical school and author of Saving Your Brain. By being at your optimum potential, you mean business, you qualify for that promotion. Here’s how:
While your colleagues are stuck at a traffic, you try taking a new route to work. It’s luck that you may pull at the parking lot earlier but eventhough you show up later than they do, at least, you are much smarter. In a study conducted by British researchers on London taxi drivers, they found out that the drivers with the most experience in driving had the largest posterior hippocampo, the area that is responsible for memory.
Taxi drivers have to familiarize themselve with the geographical layout of a complex city and needs to recall this information every day. In doing so, the are unaware that they are building bigger brains. It is the challenge that stimulates your brain. It charges to life as you look for alternative paths to make it easier for you to go to work. Just like any organ in the body, the more you use it, the more it grows.
During snack time, you see your colleagues munching on their bagels. However much you want the same, resist the temptation and think that you would be better off with a protein shake. According to Swiss researchers, of the three different breakfasts—high-carbohydrate, high-protein, and a balance of both—it is the high-protein meal that helped men score highest on a computer memory test. “Short-term memory can be better after a protein-rich meal because the food increases your levels of the amino acids tyrosine and phenylalanine,” says Karina Fischer, Ph.D., the lead study author.
While your competitors swear at the water cooler, listen to a white noise. An example of this is a consistent swooshing sound, like that of a untuned radio station. Studies show that listening to white nois while you work may actually improve your concentration. “A steady, smooth sound of a constant intensity and regularity reduces the impact of unpredictable noises by making it harder for the brain to process them,” says Mary Anne Baker, Ph.D., a professor of psychology at Indiana University Southeast. White noise is produced at a constant low level, so it can screen out random, distracting sounds without being a distraction itself thereby helping your mind to be free to concentrate on the job at hand.
Alcohol can lower your cholesterol, so you’ll have better bloodflow and more glucose and oxygen reaching your brain – says Dr. Victoroff
Celebration time, and tempting as it may seem, do not go and jump in the bandwagon of your colleagues downing the martini, instead have a white wine. European studies recently revealed that people who drink one or two alcoholic beverage a day retain their memories better than heavy drinkers. “Alcohol can lower your cholesterol, so you’ll have better bloodflow and more glucose and oxygen reaching your brain,” says Dr. Victoroff. Why not red? Red wine gives many people headaches, hard liquor sometimes contains toxins, and beer can sabotage your waistline but a glass of white wine may be a great way to keep your brain cells running strong.
It is customary for you to grab the remote and see what’s on. But this time, instead of the remote, why not try the joystick? Not that joystick in your trousers, but that of your kids’ or your cousins’ attached to the Xbox. British researchers found that people who play video games longer, have higher levels of concentration. Notice how your kid answers you appropriately or exactly even if he is busy trying to dodge the opponent’s race car? We can learn a thing or two from children. After all, sometimes, they are far more intelligent than us and it is only because they never stop using their brains.
Photo by philcampbell
