10 Habits That Damage Your Brain (and one that helps it!)

If you’re wondering whether you’re setting your brain up for a long, healthy life, consider whether any of your daily habits might be causing you more harm than good. You just might be inadvertently increasing your risks of issues both now and later in life. Through our habits we can cause serious damage, but by developing healthy habits, we can give these wonderful organs of ours the best chance for a long, happy life.

[orirune]

Don't you just love how literally all health advice boils down to the same things? Eat healthy, exercise, get enough sleep.

[auliahuwaida]

1) sleep deprivation
2) sedentary lifestyle
3) smoking
4) dehydration
5) not enough sunlight
6) stress
7) unhealthy diet
8) loud music
9) social isolation
10) not exercising your brain

[ichoosejoy]

The studies mentioned to do with social isolation were incredibly flawed. The experiments were done on people like prisoners in solitary confinement - people who not only had no one to talk to but also, this is the crucial part, nothing to do. They were bored out of their minds - that is what is dangerous to the brain. No books, tv, movies, hobbies nothing. The problem with 'loneliness' is that it depends how someone is spending their time when they are alone. If they are just sitting around feeling sorry for themselves watching TV all the time then of course they will get depressed. But if someone has a full life with lots of hobbies and things that fully stimulate their brain, then unless they are extremely extroverted it will not damage their brain. Statements like this are dangerous because they will frighten people who are alone because of bad circumstances.

[arichiquabtd]

Another note (that just expands on point 4 and will make your life way easier) on dehydration: just get accustomed to carrying water with you everywhere, regardless of the weather. You will quickly take note of how many times you never even realized before that bringing water was a smart idea. You'll never be thirsty or have sticky hands, can quickly do a little bit of fixing-up on some stains you may get on your clothes while outside, don't need to buy any drinks throughout the day and there's tons more small scenarios like that. The main point is you'll always be better off with water on you than without.

[NN-ccuo]

"The brain is a wonderful organ" - brain

[-Hercules-]

10 Habits that Damage your Brain
1. Sleep Deprivation 1:00
2. Sedentary Lifestyle 1:57
3. Smoking 2:40
4. Dehydration 3:16
5. Not Enough Sunlight 3:59
6. Stress 4:40
7. Unhealthy Diet 5:18
8. Loud music 5:54
9. Social Isolation 6:31
10. Not Exercising (Your Brain) 7:08

And 1 habit that helps your brain
1. Drinking Coffee in Moderation 7:35

[anathema]

"Social isolation" has been cited as one of the factors that damage our brains, but I don't think it's necessarily appropriate. This is because for some people, dealing with other people can be very exhausting and stressful. They would feel more comfortable living in a remote mountain hut or deserted island.

[dragonm]

actually this video impresssed me that i realized i should change my daily habits, thanks for video maker

[svmclever]

To reduce stress you need peace of mind. Peace of mind is within you, not on a vacation somewhere.

Your attitude determines if you are going to attain peace of mind. That's why a good attitude is needed. A good attitude is making the good decisions all the time.

Repenting from how you live is an example of making good decisions.

[nonsensespeaks]

Bros literally describing my life these past two months

[ruleram]

I think the point about loud music absolutely checks out. I find it hard to distinguish speech sounds when someone speaks to me and I find mysef asking them to repeat themselves because my brain just won't let me process the information. I have better days and worse days, but it makes learning a language harder.

I drank coffee from the age of two to my mid-thirties. That's when it began making me extremely jittery. I did some research and ended up switching to green tea.

While it has caffeine, it is significantly less than coffee. But it contains the amino acid theanine as well. Theanine not only balances out caffeine but also enhances cognitive function. You may have come across the caffeine/theanine combo in "brain supplements". That's because the combination of caffeine and theanine provides a greater cognitive boost than either in isolation, and it doesn't induce the jittery feeling or crash associated with caffeine alone.

There are five areas of the world with the highest populations of people over the age of a hundred who are still living healthy and active lives. These are known as The Blue Zones, and they have very low rates of cancer, diabetes, heart disease, Alzheimer's, etc. Tea and/or coffee consumption is common to all of them. In Okinawa, the centenarians will sip on green tea all day. In Ikaria Greece, they drink tea made of local herbs. In the Nicoya Peninsula of Costa Rica, they drink coffee.

There is research demonstrating the benefits of coffee, black tea, and green tea. Of the three, coffee provides the most caffeine with black tea coming in second. Green tea provides less caffeine, but it provides a greater balance of the cognitive stimulator theanine as well as anti-aging polyphenols and catechins.

So you have a choice of beverages that can improve brain function. If you can't tolerate caffeine at all, decaffeinated green tea would still provide beneficial compounds. I've heard it said that drinking green tea is kind of like drinking your vegetables.

[PeakMindset]

Right on time. Great content as always. Cheers mate!

[thedarkness]

What should we do when we don't want to socialize with anyone except family and a few close friends?
I just don't want to meet new people, i prefer to be alone and I'm feeling happier and more prone to focusing on my studies, rather than being with people at party... Every time my colleagues invite me to party/concert/etc. I just don't feel like going. Every time I'm somewhere where there is a lot of people I don't know or not doing anything productive I just feel upset and start regretting even going in the first place... I like my colleagues, they are awesome, but I don't drink, smoke or like being at party.
In university we study, work together, share opinions on problems, etc. I'm willing to help them and they are willing to help me. If they want me to be there to help I will, but when it comes to party.. Count me out...

I think there is something wrong with me. But I just don't want to go to parties...

[malliyana]

By this set of measurements, my brain should now have about 2 neurons left.

[boondoggle]

A lot of people focus on exercise for weight loss but exercise is critical for quality of life and vitality, especially the older that you get. It helps with thinking, brain function, and functional strength, preventing you from slowly wasting away if you don't exercise. You don't have to run a marathon or be a triathlete. You just have to move a little every day or do some minor exercises that you can even do in your house (although simply walking seems to be the best for brain functioning, which shouldn't be surprise if you're like me and you do some of your best thinking when going for a walk).

[lkedvenc]

It is a vergy good summary, I agree those points. And it is a huge luck that alcohol drinking was not included!

[ajmc_animations]

I personally have to work on Sleep Deprivation, Dehydration, and Stress in my life, but the others I've either never experienced or worked to improve that aspect of myself.

Ive started exercising more and spending more time outside, while also eating better
I've been spending more time with my friends
I've never smoked

I had a recent wake up call that showed me how I need to cherish where I am in my life, and working on myself as a person has made me cherish life even more.

[lukecronquist]

I like how society literally encourages all of these. Baaa baaa. Yes, even dehydration. I wasn't allowed to drink water in my factory line job.

[elfoxy]

Trying to do all of these is a cause of stress tbh