It's amazing how little we know about the brain and how it works. It is well known that the brain is capable of producing electrical impulses and can power a 25 watt light bulb! Now imagine how much effort and energy is spent on maintaining all vital processes in the norm, how many resources are needed to control vital activity at the highest levels. How does this happen and why? And where does the brain get the energy for such powerful organizational work? Whether it is possible to prolong the tone and youth of the brain and how to fill the brain, we will say in the article.
How the brain works
The brain is like jelly and jelly is fragile. To avoid damage and injury, nature has made sure it is reliably protected. First, a strong skull, and second, a soft connective tissue membrane that prevents the brain from hitting the walls of the skull. And finally, the cerebrospinal fluid inside the skull protects the brain from concussions and injuries.
What is a brain?It is about one and a half kilograms of "smart" mass in the human body, which consists of billions of neurons, processes of nerve cells (axons), through which nerve impulses and signals are transmitted. Moreover, each signal generates and receives a specific part of the brain. To prevent malfunctions, the brain needs 20% of the total oxygen carried by the body’s cells, fats and carbohydrates in sufficient quantities. Their lack leads to impaired concentration of attention, memory, causes psychosis, depressive states and disables other systems and organs. Disorders are often seen in those who regularly experiment with diet and dietary restrictions. People who feel hungry are also among those who primarily suffer from brain cells - irritation and aggression appear.
What functions does the brain have?
The brain is our everything! It depends on him whether we raise our hand, scratch the back of our heads, cry or laugh, fall in love, remember or forget. Whether we live happily ever after or suffer, whether we are healthy or sick depends on the quality of the processes taking place in the brain. Who we will or will not become, what talents we will develop and what characters we will possess. The brain controls everything, even a little more than we think. As the main organ of the central nervous system, it has a clear hierarchy of functions. Each zone is responsible for certain functions.
- The front lobe is responsible for conscious movements, for speaking and writing skills, for our will and desire to achieve results.
- Time zones are responsible for speech perception, auditory and visual information, long-term memory, facial recognition and are responsible for the ear for music, rhythm and musical perception.
- The parietal zone is responsible for orientation in space, conscious movements, sensation of the body and its parts, recognition of objects, calculation in the mind, feeling of pain, touch, high and low temperatures.
- The occipital area is responsible for processing visual information. The eyes are a device that reads the image of the world around us by exposing it to light. But the back of the brain transforms it, converting light into electrical impulses.
- The cerebellum is responsible for maintaining balance and coordinating movement.
The brain works always, constantly and constantly, not 3-5%, as said. Even in a dream. The statement that the brain rests at night is not entirely correct. The work of the brain at rest differs only in the activity of the region. More precisely, the frequency of impulses in the cerebral cortex increases. But what's going on there? At the moment of sleep the subconscious enters the scene, experience, emotions and knowledge are sorted and arranged, and most importantly, the renewal of body systems and organs. He argues that drowsiness is a signal to the body that it needs “examination” and recovery.
How many resources does the brain need every day
Understanding how much data the brain contains and how many functions it performs, a reasonable question arises - what is needed to improve the quality of the brain, improve its capabilities and prolong the youth of its cells? And are there pills that, like in the movies, would turn the brain into a supercomputer?
Brain Nutrition
The brain consumes the lion's share of resources that come in one day. So, for daily self-care at rest (we will assume that this is a normal day in "easy" mode, without physical effort and expensive intellectual activities), the brain will consume 250 kcal. If a person turns on the mode of increased complexity, the brain will take the prescribed 750-1000 of the daily calorie intake. Now imagine that a diet with a calorie intake of 1300-1500 will simply be knocked down at the end of the day, even in light mode. After all, to go to work every day, manage a baby at home, do physical work, exercise sit-ups, cook food, eat and digest, the body needs at least 2000 kcal, not counting the cost of maintaining the brain on average + 500 kcal. You will definitely be able to lose weight fast. But it goes without saying that a person with a restricted diet will successfully overcome everyday stressful situations and burdens and achieve good results in the professional field or in sports.
Vitamins for the mind
In addition to energy costs, the brain needs vitamins and minerals to function normally. Their deficiency in the body can be constantly created. The reason may be regular physical activity, unhealthy diet, diet, stress, lack of sleep, changes in seasons, disorders of some organs and systems (gastrointestinal tract or endocrine system), for which, again, the brain is responsible.
Do you remember this famous phrase - all diseases are caused by nerves? That is absolutely true! And the leader of the entire nervous system is the brain! So, by controlling the brain, feeding it regularly, you can not only pump the nervous system, but protect yourself from many diseases.
Scientists agree that the average human lifespan is greatly underestimated. In reality, under ideal conditions, healthy sleep, high-quality diet, regular meditation practices (a tool for relieving stress, improving the nervous system, intellectual and spiritual growth), Homo Sapiens can reach up to 150. Of course, vitamin supplements will not make you live up to150 years, but he will certainly be able to help on the way to the desired figure.
Vitamins for the mind
Intelligence, like the triceps, can be pumped. And to ensure the youth and plasticity of the mind, its clarity and freshness, it is better to pump it daily. What vitamins can help in this difficult but extremely important thing?
B vitamins - ensure the normal functioning of the transmission of nerve impulses from neuron to neuron, improve the blood supply to the brain, and thus increase access to oxygen - one of the main resources of the brain. They feed the nervous system, preventing insomnia, depression and fatigue, which directly affects the quality of brain cells, the quality of neural connections and transmitted impulses.
Vitamins of group P. Today, 5000 substances are known that are identical in properties to vitamins of group P. These include flavonoids, anthocyanidins, isoflavonoids - powerful antioxidants. P vitamins protect the brain and blood vessels, improve their tone. They slow down oxidative processes in the body, improve cellular metabolism.
Vitamin C - whose deficiency causes connective tissue degeneration in the body, slowing down or stopping collagen production. Due to the lack of vitamin C, the balance of enzymes necessary for the work of organs and systems is disturbed. The vitamin acts as a catalyst for metabolic processes. Protects the body and brain, protects against mental or physical overload.
Omega-3 is a source of docosahexaenoic, eicosapentaenoic and linolenic acids, which the body cannot synthesize on its own. And they have an important function - neuroprotective. Omega-3 helps increase and maintain mental alertness, especially in case of stress and seasonal blues.
Vitamin E is a valuable substance of the cell membrane in brain cells. Due to vitamins, the body produces a DHA-PC biomarker, the lack of which increases the chances of getting Alzheimer’s disease. Vitamin E prevents significant loss of molecules very important for brain and neuronal death.
Multivitamins and drugs that improve brain activity and nutrition of brain cells with proven effectiveness: dry extract of Ginkgo biloba leaves, glycine.
How to improve brain function
As long as I think, I live. Truly a rational man is capable of moving all mankind by the power of thought and thanks to thought. But the coin also has a downside. A lot of thinking is really harmful. A wandering stream of thought can deactivate the brain into a state of “squeezed lemon”. After all, every thought is a wasted energy if it does not receive a physical incarnation. And the constant energy gap in our head is not able to give us the strength to do something real and valuable instead of thoughts. Thus, laziness, depression, internal aggression are born, the brain begins to work differently and certainly not for the better. Learn to stop the flow of faces, memories, dreams, dialogue within yourself, learn to relax and meditate. Special exercises for developing attention and concentration will help you with that.
Feed your brain. In all the senses. Do not insult or deprive him, because he contains you and you contain him. A one-goal match ends sooner or later with a defeat. Give your brain a good intellectual dinner, eat a nutritious breakfast, play educational games for lunch. And very quickly it will respond to your concern 10 times stronger. It will give new ideas, strength, good figure and youth, good sleep, good mood and harmonious relationships. That's what you want, isn't it? Then feed your brain nuts, fish, delicious books and smart people.
Stimulate pleasure centers. The brain really needs pleasure. For him, it is the engine of progress. The best helper in this matter is serotonin. Get it every day: any creativity you like, your favorite hobby and self-realization, sports, laughing, walking, singing, dancing. And if you think you don’t have time for that, it will be useful for you to find out about it.
Learn something new every day. A new foreign word, a new state and its capital, a new word from a dictionary with explanations, new useful information. This can be easily done by special mobile apps that will tell you one new word every day. The lecture is easy. And this is the case when the brain will create it in the form of energy for all desires and achievements!
Sport is also capable of pumping the brain and, in addition, protects neurons and neural connections. Strangely, a potato couch that reads a book will remember less information than someone who plays sports regularly and reads “smart” books in their spare time.
In any unclear situation - sleep! This joke has a right to life, because in a dream the brain patches, repairs, heals not only itself, but the whole body as a whole. What do you usually do when you do not know the way out of the current situation, what is the best solution? You're wasting energy! Give your brain enough sleep to provide you with the best solution to a dead end and the correct answer to your life question. The answer will come quickly and you will surely find a way out. Lack of sleep, accompanied by endless thoughts before falling asleep, can lead to bad consequences.