Certain activities can be good – and some bad – for our grey matter, so see which you should carry on doing... or ditch.
有些活動可以使我們的大腦更加敏銳，而有些則會使大腦變得更加遲鈍。下面讓我們來看看哪些生活習慣該保持，哪些該丟棄吧！

SITTING STILL: DRAIN
坐著保持不動：讓大腦變得更遲鈍

“When we sit for long periods (more than three hours), our inactivity leads to reduced blood flow to the brain and less oxygenation and nutrient supply,” says Dr Jenny Brockis, author of Future Brain: The 12 Keys to Create Your High-Performance Brain.
《未來大腦：十二大方法打造高效大腦》的作者杰尼?布羅基斯博士稱：“坐著不動超過三小時，就會導致流向大腦的血液減少，從而使所需的氧氣和營養供應匱乏。”

“This leads to reduced brain activity in the part of the brain we use for heavy-duty thinking, planning, ?organising and decision-making.”
“這會導致高壓下思考、謀劃、組織和決策的大腦區域的活動量下降。”

ACTION: Take brain breaks by getting up to stretch and move around every 30 minutes. The new FitBit Alta monitors your movements and prompts you to move.
建議：每半小時起身伸展身體，四處走動，讓大腦得以休息調整。可以使用Fitbit Alta 智能手環監測督促自己的行動。

STAYING CURIOUS: BOOSTER
保持好奇心：讓大腦變得更敏銳

Learning new skills leads to better neuroplasticity – the brain’s ability to form new connections between existing neurons, explains Dr Brockis.
布羅基斯博士對此做出了解釋，學習新技能可增強神經可塑性——指大腦在現有神經元之間形成新連接的一種能力。

“It used to be thought we only had a short period of relative plasticity in early childhood.”
“人們過去認為我們只在幼兒早期的一小段時間里才有相對可塑性。”

"But although our brain’s plasticity does decline with age, we don’t lose it.”
“然而，盡管隨著年齡的增長，我們的可塑性有所下降，但它沒有完全消失。”

ACTION : Why not take up a musical instrument or an evening class?
建議：為什么不去學習一種樂器或去夜校上課呢？

FAST FOOD: DRAIN
快餐：讓大腦變得更遲鈍

“The quickest way to stuff up our brains is to stuff our bodies with fast food,” says Dr Brockis.
布羅斯基說，“用快餐填滿肚子是讓我們大腦堵塞的最快方法。”

“Too much sugar, trans fat and salt leads to greater inflammation and brain shrinkage.”
“快餐里包含太多的糖分、反式脂肪和鹽，這會導致大腦炎癥和大腦萎縮。”

ACTION: Eat fresh and unprocessed foods as much as you can.
建議：盡可能多吃新鮮和未經加工的食品。

GOOD QUALITY SLEEP: BOOSTER
高質量睡眠：讓大腦變得更敏銳

“Studies have shown being deprived of sleep for 24 hours decreases memory and concentration,” says Dr Michael Wasserman of the American Geriatric Society. “But regular, restful sleep improves memory.”
美國老年協會的邁克爾?沃瑟曼博士說，“研究表明24個小時不睡覺會降低人的記憶力和集中力，但有規律的安穩睡眠能提高記憶力。”

Scientists think that while asleep, we shift recent experiences over to more efficient storage regions in the brain where they become long-term memories.
科學家認為在睡眠中，我們會將最近的經歷轉移到大腦有效存儲區，從而變為長期記憶。

It’s how we learn and remember facts and skills.
我們正是通過此種方式學習和記憶知識與技能。

ACTION : Try and get to bed before midnight and aim for 7-8 hours kip.
建議：爭取在半夜12點前上床睡覺，保證每天7-8個小時睡眠時間。

BEING OVERWEIGHT: DRAIN
超重：讓大腦變得更遲鈍

“Minding your mind includes minding your weight,” says Dr Brockis. “Obesity shrinks the brain and is also a risk factor for cognitive decline.” Studies have shown having more fat tissue leads to a greater release of cytokines, messenger proteins that contribute to greater brain atrophy (decline) in areas linked with executive function, learning and memory.”
布羅基斯說，“想讓大腦變得更聰明還要懂得控制自己的體重。過度肥胖會造成腦萎縮，還極有可能導致認知能力下降。”研究表明，脂肪組織越多，釋放出細胞因子和蛋白質信使也越多，而這兩種物質會導致與執行功能、學習和記憶能力相關的大腦區域腦萎縮。

ACTION: See your GP about losing some weight if you are obese.
建議：如果你過度肥胖，要在醫生的指導下減肥。

CROSSWORDS BY THE CLOCK: BOOSTER
計時填字游戲：讓大腦變得更敏銳

You’ve probably read how doing puzzles can help keep your brain young.
你或許已經閱讀過如何通過益智游戲來保持大腦活力。高速運轉。

But if you want to stoke up synapses, get out the stopwatch.
但如果你想建立更多的神經突觸，拿出你的秒表開始計時。

“Studies have found timed tests train your brain to work quickly,” says Dr Wasserman.
沃瑟曼醫生說：“研究發現，計時測試能加速大腦運轉。”

ACTION : “Try timing -yourself when you solve a crossword or Sudoku,” he adds. “You’ll get faster and even eliminate that tip-of-the-tongue phenomenon (where you can describe a word but can’t remember it).”
建議：“試著在做填字和數獨游戲的時候給自己計時。”他補充道。“你會思考得更快，還可能徹底告別欲言難吐的情況，就是你可以描述這個詞，但就是不記得確切說法。”

DRINKING ALCOHOL REGULARLY: DRAIN
時常飲酒：讓大腦變得更遲鈍

Regular drinking lowers the levels of serotonin in your brain and can lead to depression, says Dr Sarah Jarvis, GP and medical adviser to alcohol -education charity Drinkaware.
Drinkaware協會（一家傳播酒精知識的慈善機構）的醫學顧問、家庭醫生薩拉?賈維斯認為，經常飲酒會降低大腦的血清素含量，易導致抑郁。

“Drinking heavily over a long period of time can also have long-term effects on memory,” she adds. “Even on days when you don’t drink, recalling what you did yesterday, or where you have been earlier that day, is difficult.”
她補充說：“長時間飲酒過量也會對記憶力產生長期影響，即使白天不喝酒時，也很難記起昨天干了什么，或幾個小時前去過哪兒。”

ACTION: Many medical experts recommend taking regular days off from drinking to ensure you don’t become addicted. However, it’s important not to assume that taking a break means it’s OK to drink to excess the rest of the time.
建議：許多醫學專家建議定期禁酒，以免上癮。不過需要注意的是，定期禁酒并不意味著可以在其他時候無節制地喝酒。

AEOBIC EXERCISE: BOOSTER
有氧運動：讓大腦變得更敏銳

Besides increasing blood flow, exercise leads to an increase in the BDNF (brain-derived neurotrophic factor) our brain secretes, says Dr Brockis. BDNF has been dubbed Miracle-Gro for brains as it helps grow and strengthen them, allowing us to learn and remember information better.
布洛克斯醫生稱，運動除了可以提高血流量外，還能提高大腦分泌物中腦源性神經營養因子（BDNF）的含量。BDNF素有大腦“美樂棵”之稱，它能強健大腦，提高我們的學習和記憶能力。

ACTION: The best exercise for brains? “Anything that gets your heart rate up and makes you puff a bit,” says Dr Brockis. “A 30-minute plus session of aerobic exercise is ideal. Whether it’s walking, swimming, running, cycling, table tennis, kayaking, rugby or golf, the trick is to schedule it on a regular basis, start slow and gradually increase the number of sessions each week, and their duration.”
建議：想知道益于大腦的最佳運動？布洛克斯醫生表示：“任何能夠讓你心跳和呼吸加速的運動都可以。最理想的是進行一組30分鐘的有氧運動。慢步、游泳、跑步、騎車，劃皮艇，或是打乒乓球、橄欖球、高爾夫，這些都可以，關鍵是要有規律，開始先慢慢來，之后逐漸增加每周的運動次數和時長。”

EATING SUGAR: DRAIN
吃糖：讓大腦變得更遲鈍

It’s tempting to reach for a can of cola or a bar of choc when your body and brain is flagging, but excess sugar is associated with obesity and Type 2 diabetes, both risk factors for cognitive decline and dementia, says Dr Brockis.
布洛克斯醫生稱，當身體和大腦感到疲憊時，人們常常想來聽可樂，或吃塊巧克力，但是過多攝入糖分容易誘發肥胖癥和II型糖尿病，這兩者都易導致認知能力下降和癡呆。

“Plus, animal studies have shown that adolescents who drink sugar-sweetened drinks daily show increased inflammation of the hippocampus, the area of the brain associated with learning and memory, leading to an impaired ability to remember,” she says.
“此外，動物研究報告表明，每天都喝含糖飲料的青少年，海馬體的發炎概率會上升，進而導致記憶力受損。海馬體是大腦中負責學習和記憶的區域。”

ACTION: Boost your glucose levels (and cognitive stamina) with the carbohydrates found in fruit and vegetables instead, says Dr Brockis. “Eating a small banana will do the trick, as will snacking on blueberries, shown to boost memory and concentration for up to five hours.”
建議：布洛克斯醫生建議說，可以通過攝入水果和蔬菜中的碳水化合物提高體內的葡萄糖含量（和認知能力）。“研究表明，正如藍莓可以增強記憶，讓人的注意力集中長達5小時，香蕉也有這樣的效果。”

英文來源：鏡報
翻譯：張金瑤、秦悅（中國日報網愛新聞iNews譯者）
審校&編輯：丹妮