Your Habits That Can Damage Your Brain!!

Our brain is the single most important organ in our body.  It’s the central processor for all our bodily functions, the part that interprets what we see and hear, smell and taste, and even a place where the chemical reaction associated with love occurs.

Sleep loss, junk food, inactivity — these things and more can take a toll on our brain health. Here are some issues to pay attention if we would like to keep our brain healthy.

Smoking
We know cigarettes cause cancer, but did you know that the addictive nicotine in the cigarettes can cause your brain to shrink? Not only that, but prolonged brain-shrinkage can lead to Alzheimer’s disease!
   

Rarely Talking
Introverts and people who tend to speak less face a higher risk of reducing the efficiency of their brains. Intellectual conversations are exercise for the brain, like the gym is for the muscles.

Not Eating Breakfast
Be it for diet or to save time, many people choose to skip breakfast, and in the process they damage their brain. After your sleep, your brain requires nutrients. Skipping breakfast deprives the brain of these much-needed nutrients. Not eating breakfast will also lead to low blood sugar, which is also bad for your health.

Overeating
Whether you’re feeling very hungry or you’re simply enjoying your dish too much, stuffing your face when you’re full is a bad idea. Overeating causes the brain arteries to harden – leading to decreased mental capabilities.

Too Much Sugar
Consuming too much sugar will interrupt with the absorption of nutrients and proteins and can lead to malnutrition. A malnourished body hinders the development of the brain, so minimize the amounts of sugary foods and drinks you consume and give your kids.

Too much salt
After all these years of sugar-bashing, you can add another ingredient to the list of nutritional villains: salt. A study published in the journal of JAMA Neurology, exposed salt as one factor contributing to high blood pressure. And indeed, research has proven that a high intake of salt can increase the risk of high blood pressure, which in turn can lead to minor cognitive deficits and an increased risk of stroke [1]. A higher risk of stroke can cause quite severe damage to your brain.

Air Pollution
This may not be a habit per-se, but breathing polluted air leads to lower amounts of oxygen reaching your brain, and without oxygen – the brain cannot function.

You blast your headphones
With your earbuds at full volume, you can permanently damage your hearing in only 30 minutes. But it is not just your ears: Hearing loss in older adults is linked to brain problems, such as Alzheimer’s and loss of brain tissue. This may be because your brain has to work so hard to understand what’s being said around you that it cannot store what you have heard into memory. So turn it down — no louder than 60% of your device’s maximum volume — and try not to listen for more than a couple of hours at a time.

Sleeping With Your Head Covered
You might find it comforting and warm, but sleeping with a covered head leads to increased intake of carbon dioxide and decreased intake of oxygen. As mentioned before, oxygen is vital for brain function, and not getting enough can damage your brain cells.

Not Engaging In Stimulating Thoughts
Your brain is like a muscle, and if you don’t exercise it – it will shrink. The deeper the thoughts – the better the exercise your brain gets, and the healthier it will be in the long-term. So read a book, watch a documentary or play some puzzle games, just keep that thinker working.

Working When You’re Sick
Many adults and students tend to forgo their health for their careers and studies. When you are sick, your body and mind both need rest, so taxing them by working when you’re sick will reduce the efficiency of your brain and can even lead to long-term brain damage.

Not Getting Enough Sleep
Sleep is essential for your physical and mental health. A good night’s sleep (8 hours) is vital for your brain, as well as your internal organs. It has been recently discovered that the brain cleanses itself of toxins only during the deep sleep cycle. Sleep deprivation also accelerates the death of brain cells, which can lead to impaired memory and reduced faculties.

Stay in the dark too much
If you do not get enough natural light, you may get depressed, and that can slow your brain. Research also shows that sunlight helps keep your brain working well.