Mental as anything! How mental activity affects your health

When it comes to the positive effects of mental activity, the jury is definitely in. By paying a little attention to how you use mind, you can reap so many benefits. There are protective, emotional, physical, psychological and neurological rewards you can reap just by a small amount of work.

And by work, we don't mean it has to be a chore. No one is saying you to have to go back to school. Even socialising, taking up hobbies or internal thinking can stimulate your super-melon and have a ten-fold effect.

Be 'mind-kind'

Cognitive decline and getting brain-fuzzy as we get older is unfortunately associated with dementia. But it's not entirely out of our hands. Studies have shown the greater the mental stimulation, the lower the risk of developing dementia.

There is a 46% lower risk of developing dementia in people who regularly exercise their mind, compared with those that don't.

There are activities you can start right now to power up your inner office-space:

Reasoning training: Reasoning training is a test in logic and teaches a person how to come up with conclusions based on previous evidence. The reasoning starts quite simply and works up to more difficult tasks. An example of a simple task that requires logical reasoning may be: Sally's sister was born in 1990, one year after Sally was, and Sally's brother was born 2 years before Sally. How old is Sally's brother?
Memory tasks: Memory tasks are, as the name suggests, tasks that test a person's memory. An example of a memory task would be the seven digit-span task, where the tester reads a number sequence with 7 digits and asks for them to be repeated back in order.

There are also memory tasks, attention tasks, information-processing tasks and problem-solving tasks, which you can find online.

Be kind to your mind and your mind will be kind to you!

Brain burst, just by reading this next paragraph

Here we go ...

Mental activity increases the flow of blood, oxygen and nutrients to the brain. It also acts as a signal which promotes the expression of brain-derived neurotrophic growth factor (BDGF). BDGF is a protective chemical that induces growth and survival of neurons.

The importance of BDGF has been determined through knockout studies. Knockout studies are studies carried out on animals, usually rats, where a certain physiologically important element such as a chemical, receptor or enzyme are "knocked out" of the animal through genetic manipulation.

These studies have enabled scientists to determine the impact that not having a certain substance has on the animal. Without BDGF, learning and attention is impaired because the transmission between neurons, (known as synaptic plasticity) is reduced. Synaptic plasticity increases after just a few weeks of mental stimulation.

So that was a snippet from our scientists. Just by taking it all in, you have created new thought processes and new synaptic activity.

Ok, we promise not to talk about brain-derived neurotrophic growth factor again for the rest of the article ...

Brain train

There is a type of mental training called "motor imagery" which involves focusing and imagining motor actions. Athletes use this technique to visualise the motor skills they use in their given sport.

It's thought that the mental planning and anticipation before an event work to prepare an athlete, both mentally and physically. Motor imagery induces physiological responses in the autonomic nervous system, including the release of adrenaline and the elevation of heart rate and blood pressure.

It's also used in rehabilitating people with stroke or other conditions where movement is affected. However, you can also use this technique while you are doing crunches or any other physical activity you enjoy, just by focusing your attention.

Depression: Use it or lose it

When you activate your mind, there are physiological responses and you are actually increasing the flow of oxygen, blood and nutrients. If you don't activate your mind, your neurons literally shrink! Don't shrink your brain.

If you are bored, get out there and get stuck into what you enjoy, even if it's a bit of gardening on a Saturday. If you are experiencing depression, don't be afraid to talk to your doctor about the best ways to help out your mind, because it will help you back.

Oh to be young ...

Stimulating your mind when young is, without a doubt, one of the most important aspects to focus on as children grow. If children don't get enough mental stimulation in their first five years, they risk learning, attention, behaviour and language difficulties later in life. So if they don't receive this at home, they will likely have trouble later at school, work and with social relationships.

Luckily, little minds are filled with wonder and there is an endless supply of fun books and activities to keep them constantly nourished.

Seize the day

The great thing about getting a more active mind is that you can start right now. All environmental stimuli are a potential way to kick-start your synapses and rev that ol' engine up top.

Set yourself some realistic challenges and do things that you love – and your brain will thank you!