To quickly boost your brainpower, pull down the shades, close your eyes, and catch some winks. It’s found that people who take daytime naps outperform non-nappers on memory exercises. And, surprisingly, a mere six minutes of shuteye is enough to refresh the mind.
Shut your eyes
How does a quick catnap power up your thinker? It seems the mere act of falling asleep triggers a brainboosting neurobiological process that remains effective regardless of how long you snooze.
More ways to sharpen your memory
Go ahead. Be like a battery and recharge. And while you’re at it, here are a few more ways to sharpen your wit:
Flex it: You’ve got to use your brain to make it stronger. Try a fun memory-strengthening exercise like a crossword or puzzle.
Feed it: These folate-rich foods may protect your brain just like a bike helmet does. Good sources of folate include orange juice, fortified whole-grain breads and cereals, and black-eyed peas.
Socialise it: Staying in touch with friends fires up your neurons. Interacting with friends and loved ones could slow the pace at which your memory dwindles with age.
Here’s how long the mind-boosting powers of a nap can last: Napping it Smart
Becoming older and wiser may be especially easy for people who nap regularly. A recent study of men between the ages of 55 and 85 revealed that taking an afternoon nap enhanced cognitive function not only immediately after the nap, but throughout the next day as well. Naps can be especially healthy for people who are not able to get the required amount of sleep at night. Many people experience a dip in energy levels in the afternoon and find it difficult to concentrate. Some of that dip may be due to a lack of quality, restful sleep. Many older people do not get the requisite six to eight hours of sleep per night to maintain optimal health. Poor sleep habits are sometimes to blame. To get the most out of your snooze time, keep a regular sleep schedule; strictly avoid stimulants, such as caffeine close to bedtime; perform strenuous activities, such as exercise, during early day hours; and designate a cool, dark, quiet room as your regular sleep area. Often, an underlying medical condition is the root of sleep problems, so it’s important to see your healthcare provider if you suffer from chronic daytime sleepiness.
6 minutes to a better memory
Curb your cravings to lose weight
Being on a diet seems to be the in-thing today. At any social gathering, the conversation will turn to fitness or weight loss at least once through the evening. It’s good to be health conscious and being careful about shedding those extra kilos.
But we also need to be careful about what we are doing about it. Most of these pills, diets and equipment available to help us reduce can have adverse effects on your body. The biggest damage that can be done is to lose weight and ruin one’s body composition. The normal body is composed of 30 per cent bone and fluid, 15 per cent fat mass and 55 per cent muscle mass. The 30 per cent bone and fluid is constant in an adult body. When you are over weight or obese the fat mass may become 30-40 per cent and reducing the muscle mass to 30-40 per cent only. The ideal weight loss procedure is to bring down or reduce the fat mass while trying to preserve and build up the muscle mass.
In order to do so, one must be aware of the composition of food, the fat content of food and the importance of exercise in building up your muscle mass. If you decide to eat only boiled vegetables and chapatti for a month but occasionally indulge in a spicy dish or a cream pastry, by the end of the month you may lose 6 kg. However, along with your weight loss, you may start losing hair and your skin may begin to sag. The reason for this could be that there is not enough protein in your diet and you have lost a lot of muscle mass too.
Vegetables and chapattis are only rich in carbohydrates but you need protein too which is available in milk, curd, dal/pulses, egg or non-veg food. These will help in building up your muscles and necessary in hair growth as well.
Every day, the body requires a balanced amount of carbohydrate food — bread, rice, cereal, chapatti, vegetables, fruits etc. plus protein food as mentioned above and 2-4 tsp unsaturated oil which is used for seasoning of vegetables, dal, etc. Even while losing weight, this basic carbohydrate, protein and little fat requirement of the body must be met on a daily basis. If you are on a diet, even for a day, without this basic nutrients of food, the body’s composition will be disturbed and it’ll lead to vitamin, mineral deficiency.
The correct method of weight reduction is healthy balanced diet and cutting out on fatty food completely.
