强健大脑的十一种方式。

译者 王思琪

1. Volunteer

1.参加志愿者活动。

Stimulates: The prefrontal cortex, which analyzes, plans, andproblem-solves

刺激区域：前额叶皮层，一个分析，计划和解决问题的区域。

Why: A study found that older women who tutored kids for six monthsdeveloped sharper cognitive skills. The social and mental activity required forteaching sends blood rushing to this part of the brain.

原因：研究表明，年龄大的妇女在教导小孩6个月之后会有更敏锐的认知能力，因为这种教导实践所需要的思维活动会把血液运输到大脑的这个区域。

2. Work out

2.勤锻炼。

Stimulates: The hippocampus, which forms memories

刺激区域：海马区，发挥着储存记忆的作用。

Why: Arthur Kramer, PhD, a researcher at the UniversityofIllinois,used MRIs to show that exercise actually makes your hippocampus bigger.Physical activity may increase the number of capillaries in the region, whichin turn helps new cells grow. Kramer prescribes one-hour sweat sessions three

原因：亚瑟 克雷默是伊利诺斯大学的一位博士，他借助磁共振发现运动的确可以让海马区变大。锻炼身体或许会增加该区域的毛细血管数量，这有利于促进新细胞的生长。克雷默指出每周三次一小时以上的流汗运动才会有效。

times a week.

3. Learn a skill

3.学会一种技能。

Stimulates: The intraparietal sulcus, which directs hand-eyecoordination

刺激区域：顶内沟，作用于手眼协调性。

Why: At Oxford University, researchers taught 24 people to juggle andfound that after six weeks this region had a higher density of white matter(the fibers that let neurons communicate). Any novel activity that is practicedintently, such as tennis or guitar playing, will likely have this effect, says study author Heidi Johansen-Berg.

原因：在哈佛大学，研究者们教会24个人玩杂耍戏法，2周之后发现这些人的脑白质密度增加了（脑白质是帮助大脑各部分互相沟通的物质）。研究者海蒂说,任何新颖的活动，例如打网球和练吉他等，只要专心的去练了，都会有这种效果。

4. Keep the weight off

4.保持合适的体重。

As the number on the scale creeps upward, it's hard to imagine that anything'sgetting smaller, but extra pounds can actually shrink your brain. In a 2009study, brain scans of older adults revealed that overweight individuals had anaverage of 4 percent less brain tissue than normal-weight folks. And in obesepeople the loss of tissue was so significant that their brains appeared 16years older than those of thinner people.

随着体重秤上的数字不断往上飙，很难想象身体中某个部分会缩小，但是，多余的重量的确会让你的大脑缩水。2009年，在对一些中老年人进行脑扫描后发现，超重的人的大脑比正常体重人的脑组织平均小了4%。对其中那些肥胖的人来说，他们的脑组织缩水过于厉害，以至于他们的大脑看起来比那些瘦人老了16年！

"By eating more calories, you're also consuming more fat," says studyauthor Paul Thompson, PhD, a neurology professor at UCLA School of Medicine.The fat clogs arteries that feed the brain, which in turn causes braincells to wither." That loss can impair memory, mood, movement, speech, and

一位加州大学医学院的神经学博士保罗汤姆森说：“在吃下更多卡路里的同时你也在消耗脂肪，脂肪会堵塞给大脑运输营养的动脉，从而使脑细胞枯萎“。这种缩水会给记忆力、情绪调节、运动、言语以及其他更多方面带来负面影响。

more.

Though the first priority is getting down to a healthier weight, you can alsofocus on strengthening the brain cells you've got. Aerobic activity will notonly help you shed pounds but increase the amount of blood, oxygen, and nutrients flowing north to your neurons. And more nourishment means a faster

虽然你的首要任务是减到一个健康的体重，但你仍然可以着重训练你现有的脑细胞。有氧运动不仅可以减肥，还能活血供氧，让养料流向大脑神经元，养料越多意味着思维越敏捷。

processor.

5. Wiggle your eyes

5.多转转眼珠。

Can't remember where you stashed your glasses? Try looking from side to side.Rapid horizontal eye movements cause the brain's two hemispheres to interactwith each other more efficiently, explains memory researcher Andrew Parker,PhD. In moments of temporary amnesia, that action may help you pull up information.

忘记把眼镜放哪了？左右两边找找看吧。记忆力研究者安德鲁帕克博士表明，左右快速的转眼珠能增加大脑两边海马区的互动。如果你有暂时性遗忘症，那这种方法可以帮助你回忆起丢失的信息。

6. Take a snooze

6.小睡一下。

In a University of California,Berkeley,study, participants improved their scores on a memory test by 10 percent whenthey repeated the test after catching some z's. (Nonnappers saw a 10percent decline in their scores the second time they took the quiz.) Here'swhy: New facts enter your brain like e-mails arriving in your in-box. And asyour in-box can overflow over the course of a day, so can your brain. Duringsleep, your brain shuffles recently received data into storage, creating space

在加利福尼亚的一所大学里，伯克利开展了一次研究，结果表示：小睡了一下后，测试者的成绩比之前没睡就考的成绩提高了10%。没小睡的测试者的第二次成绩比第一次降低了10%。这是因为一些新的信息进入了你的大脑，就像你的邮箱新收了一封邮件一样。邮箱里的新邮件能保留一天，你大脑里的新信息也是如此。在你睡觉时，大脑里的数据会重新洗牌、分类整理，为新的信息腾出空间。

for fresh info.

7. Eat brain foods—rich in B12, antioxidants, or essential fatty acid

7.多吃有益大脑的食物（含丰富维生素B12，抗氧化物和必须脂肪酸）

Bananas

香蕉

Kale

甘蓝

Tomatoes

番茄

Blueberries

蓝莓

Swiss cheese

瑞士奶酪

Chocolate

巧克力

Salmon

三文鱼

Brussels sprouts

芽甘蓝

Apples

苹果

Olive oil

橄榄油

Coffee beans

咖啡豆

orange

橙子

How to avoid health

怎样避免出现伤害大脑的身体问题？

problems that can hurt your brain.

8. Thief: Chronic Stress

8.不利因素：长期的压力

The Damage: Prolonged exposure to the fight-or-flight hormone cortisoland other brain chemicals can actually kill neurons by exciting them to death.

  危害：  对大脑中 的激素皮质醇和其他化学物质长期的刺激会使这些神经元过于兴奋致死。

The Fix: Stay connected. A six-yearHarvardUniversitystudy of 16,638 people found that those with the largest social networks hadthe slowest rate of memory decline. Family and friends can mute the intensity

  解决方法：  与朋友们保持联系。哈佛大学的一项六年研究对16638个人进行了测试，发现那些社交圈最广的人记忆力减退速度最慢。亲人和朋友可以帮助减轻压力，从而减少大脑的化学反应。

of stress—and the brain's chemical response.

9. Thief: Cholesterol

9.不利因素：胆固醇

The Damage: If plaque gets lodged inside one of the tiny blood vesselsin your brain, it can cause a "silent" stroke (the kind you don'teven know you've had). The harm this can do to your brain tissue could slow the

 危害：  如果斑块在大脑中的某一毛细血管停止运动了，那将会带来一次小型的脑中风（你自己甚至感觉不到）。这会给你的脑组织带来伤害，要记住新信息自然而然就慢了。

speed at which you absorb new information.

The Fix: In addition to eating a healthy diet and getting plenty ofexercise, go nuts for nuts. Eating about 2.4 ounces a day can lower badcholesterol by ten points. The type of nut doesn't seem to matter, though raw

解决方法：  除了饮食健康和运动足量之外，你应该多吃点坚果。每天吃2.4盎司有利于降低10个点的胆固醇。哪种坚果都可以，不过生吃更好。

nuts are healthiest.

10. Thief: Sleep Apnea

10.不利因素：睡眠呼吸暂停

The Damage: In this disorder (marked by loud snoring and exhaustion uponwaking), your airway spontaneously closes or becomes blocked for severalseconds at a time. The result—a dip in the oxygen level in your blood, whichcan cause brain cells to starve.

危害：   这种紊乱主要表现为呼噜声大，呼吸短暂停止，你的呼吸道时不时的关闭，抑或某个时候突然堵住了几秒。结果是，你血液中的氧气量降低，而这会使脑细胞缺氧。

The Fix: Studies show that losing 10 percent of your body weight isenough to improve symptoms. And your doctor may recommend using a CPAP(continuous positive airway pressure) machine while you sleep. It fits over your nose and mouth and generates a steady flow of air to keep the airway open.

解决方法：    研究表明，体重减下10斤能帮助缓解这些症状。你的医生或许会建议你睡觉时使用呼吸机，把那个套在你的鼻子和嘴上可以避免呼吸道关闭，保持稳定气流。

11. Thief: Hypothyroidism

11.不利因素：甲状腺功能减退

The Damage: An underactive thyroid slows metabolism, which leads tofatigue, which leads to a foggy brain. One of the symptoms of this disorder,affecting about 17 percent of women 60 and over, is difficulty committing newinfo to long-term memory.

危害：  甲状腺功能衰退会减缓新陈代谢，造成疲劳，大脑会因此变得混沌。这种紊乱的一个症状是很容易忘记大脑储存的新信息，60岁及以上的女性17%受此困扰。

The Fix: A common cause of the problem is insufficient levels of iodine,which the body needs in order to produce thyroid hormones, so seek out lots ofiodine-rich foods, such as seafood and dairy products.

解决方案：  这种问题出现的一个常见原因是缺碘。碘在身体分泌甲状腺激素时起重要作用，因此，应该多吃碘含量丰富的食品，例如海产品和乳制品。