Updated 10/11/2024

Table of Content

1. Introduction

2. NEURON

   -Nutrition

  -Exercise

  -Unwind

  -Restorative Sleep

  -Optimize Cognitive Activity

  -Nurture Your Passion

Conclusion

Introduction

The brain is like the body’s computer and has billions of brain cells called neurons. It uses about 25% of the body’s energy. After a stroke, around 60% of people might have trouble with memory or making decisions. If an older person already had a little bit of memory loss before the stroke, these problems can get even worse.

Here are 5 easy Lifestyle Medicine tips to help make your brain healthier. We’ll use the word N.E.U.R.O.N. to explain them, which stands for nerve cells in the brain.

Nutrition

One of the best ways to keep your brain healthy is by eating a Whole Food Plant-Based (WFPB) diet. This type of eating mainly focuses on plant foods and includes lots of berries and other fruits, beans, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and whole grains. These foods are good for your overall health and especially help keep your brain strong and healthy.

Tip: Re: imagine breakfast and have a bowl of sautéed vegetables or fresh fruits instead of white bread, eggs, and bacon. 

Exercise

Exercise helps more blood flow to the brain, which can reduce problems with thinking and memory. It also makes the part of the brain that helps with memory and thinking get bigger. Exercise is thought to help build more connections in the brain. Older people who exercise have shown better skills in planning, organizing, solving problems, and thinking quickly—things that can be harder after a stroke.

Tip:  Take a brisk daily walk.

Unwind

High levels of stress hormones can harm the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex, which are parts of the brain that help with memory and thinking. Long-term stress can even make the brain smaller and lower the amount of a protein called BDNF. BDNF helps brain cells grow and stay healthy and is important for learning, and memory.  It also helps the brain make new connections. When there is less BDNF, it becomes more difficult for new brain cells to grow, and the brain’s connections can get weaker.

Tip: Learn to meditate as it has been shown to improve cortical thickness and improve cognition.

Restorative Sleep

Sleep helps your brain remember things, get rid of waste, and makes you feel better overall. Not getting enough sleep can cause the brain to get smaller and has been linked to diseases like dementia. After a stroke, good sleep is especially important because it helps the brain heal, reduces swelling, and allows the brain to make new connections, which can help bring back lost skills and improve thinking.

Tip: Make sleep a priority and develop rituals around sleep so that your brain gets the message that it is time for sleep. To learn more about improving sleep after a stroke, download our free eBook, Sleep Reset. 

Optimize Cognitive Activity

A study found that London taxi drivers had bigger hippocampi, probably because their job is hard and they have to keep training their brains to remember all the streets. Training the brain can help it grow stronger, improve memory, and make thinking skills better. This is really important for stroke recovery because it helps the brain heal and make new connections.

Tip: Learn a new language or take a dance class.

Nurture Your Passion

Having a passion can make your mind curious and excited, which keeps your brain active and helps it get stronger. This can help your brain make new connections, which is important for getting better after a stroke.

Tip:  Find your Ikigai (the Japanese word for passion or reason for being) and pursue it fully.

A healthy brain is important for a healthy life. The above simple tips can make a tremendous difference in your brain’s health and your well-being.

Conclusion

Taking care of your brain is essential for living a healthy life, especially after a stroke. The N.E.U.R.O.N. tips—Nutrition, Exercise, Unwind, Restorative Sleep, Optimize Cognitive Activity, and Nurture Your Passion—offer simple yet powerful ways to support your brain's health and recovery. By focusing on these areas, you can help your brain heal, grow stronger, and improve its ability to think and remember.

Even small changes, like eating more plant-based foods, taking a daily walk, or practicing meditation, can have a big impact on your brain’s well-being. Remember, your brain has an amazing ability to adapt and make new connections, and these lifestyle choices can help it do just that. So, start taking these steps today to protect your brain and enhance your quality of life.

Dr. Diane Thompson, MD is board-certified in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation with a subspecialty in Brain Injury Medicine. She is also board-certified in Lifestyle Medicine and Age Management Medicine and a certified health coach who helps women over 50 use Lifestyle Medicine and longevity science to reverse and help control chronic diseases and age healthfully. She is the author of this Amazon bestseller.

Disclosure:  The information presented is for educational purposes and is not meant for diagnosis or treatment. No physician-patient relationship is intended. Discuss with your physician prior to making any changes to your health. Some of the links in this blog may be affiliate links, which are of no additional cost to you and allow me to keep the content free. These are products I’ve personally used.

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