It's amazing how little we know what the brain is and how it works. It is reliably known that the brain is capable of generating electrical impulses and is capable of powering a 25-watt light bulb! Now imagine how much effort and energy is expended to maintain 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 its energy for such powerful organizational work? Is it possible to prolong the tone and youth of the brain and how to charge the brains, we will tell in the article.
How the brain works
The brain is like jelly, and it is fragile jelly. To avoid damage and injury, nature took care that he was reliably protected. Firstly, a strong cranium, and secondly, a soft membrane of connective tissue, which prevents the brain from hitting the walls of the skull. Finally, the cerebrospinal fluid inside the cranium protects the brain from concussions and injuries . .
What is the brain?This is approximately one and a half kilograms of "smart" mass in the human body, consisting of billions of neurons, processes of nerve cells (axons), through which nerve impulses and signals are transmitted. Moreover, each signal is generated and received by a certain part of the brain. In order to prevent malfunctions in its work, the brain needs 20% of all oxygen carried by the body cells, fats and carbohydrates in sufficient quantities. Their lack leads to impaired concentration of attention, memory, provokes psychosis, depressive states and disables other systems and organs. Disorders often occur in those who regularly experiment with diets 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 head, cry or laugh, fall in love, remember it or forget it. 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 and 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 frontal lobe is responsible for conscious movements, for speech and writing skills, for our will and desire to achieve results.
- The temporal zones are responsible for the perception of speech, auditory and visual information, for long-term memory, face recognition, and is responsible for ear for music, rhythm and musical perception.
- The parietal zone is responsible for orientation in space, conscious movements, sensing one's body and its parts, recognizing objects, calculating in the mind, feeling pain, touching, high and low temperatures.
- The occipital area is responsible for the processing of visual information. Eyes are a device that reads a picture of the world around us by exposure to light. But the rear part of the brain converts it, converting light into electrical impulses.
- The cerebellum is responsible for maintaining balance and coordinating movements.
The brain works all the time, all the time and all, and not 3-5%, as it was stated. Even in a dream. The statement that the brain rests at night is not entirely true. The work of the brain in a state of rest at night differs only in the activity of the regions. More precisely, the frequency of impulses in the cerebral cortex increases. But what is going on there? It is at the moment of sleep that the subconscious enters the scene, the experience, emotions and knowledge are sorted and distributed, and most importantly, the restoration of the body's systems and organs. He argues that sleepiness is a signal from the body that it needs a "checkup" and recovery.
How many resources the brain needs daily
Understanding how much data is contained in the brain 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 any pills that, like in the movies, would turn the brain into a supercomputer?
Brain nutrition
The brain spends the lion's share of the resources that come in one day. So, for daily self-care at rest (we will assume that this is a normal day in "light" mode, without physical exertion and costly intellectual activity), the brain will consume 250 kcal. If a person turns on the mode of increased complexity, the brain will take the prescribed 750-1000 from the daily calorie intake. Now imagine a dieter with a calorie intake of 1300-1500 will simply fall off his feet at the end of the day, even in the "light" mode. After all, in order to go to work every day, manage the baby at home, engage in physical labor, exercise abs, cook food, eat and digest, the body needs at least 2000 kcal, not counting the cost of maintaining the brain +500 kcal on average. You will definitely succeed in losing weight rapidly. But it is not necessary to say that a person with a limited diet will successfully overcome everyday stressful situations and loads, 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 for normal functioning. Their deficiency in the body can be created constantly. The reason may be regular physical activity, unhealthy diet, diet, stress, lack of sleep, change of seasons, disturbances in the functioning 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 from nerves? This is absolutely true! And the leader of the entire nervous system is the brain! So, by controlling the brain, regularly feeding it, you can not only pump the nervous system, but also protect yourself from many diseases.
Scientists agree that the average human life expectancy is greatly underestimated. In reality, under ideal conditions, healthy sleep, high-quality nutrition, regular meditation practices (a tool for relieving stress, improving the nervous system, intellectual and spiritual growth), Homo Sapiens may well make it to 150. Of course, vitamin supplements alone will not make you live to 150years, but they will definitely be able to help on the way to the coveted figure.
Vitamins for the mind
Intelligence, like triceps, can be pumped. And in order 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 matter?
Vitamins of group B - ensure the normal functioning of the transmission of nerve impulses from neuron to neuron, improve the blood supply to the brain, and with it, increase the access of oxygen - one of the main resources of the brain. They nourish 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. Vitamins of group P protect the brain and blood vessels, improve their tone. They slow down oxidative processes in the body, improve cell metabolism.
Vitamin C - a lack of which causes degeneration of the connective tissue in the body, slowing down or stopping the production of collagen. Due to the lack of vitamin C, the balance of enzymes necessary for the functioning of organs and systems is disturbed. Vitamin acts as a catalyst for metabolic processes. Protects the body and the 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 to increase and maintain mental alertness, especially in stressful conditions and seasonal blues.
Vitamin E is a valuable substance of the cell membrane in the brain cells. Due to the vitamin, the body produces the biomarker DHA-PC, the lack of which increases the chances of getting Alzheimer's disease. Vitamin E prevents significant loss of molecules very important for the brain and the death of neurons.
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. Indeed, a reasonable man is capable of moving the whole of humanity with the power of thought and thanks to thought. But, there is also a downside to the coin. Thinking a lot is really harmful. A wandering stream of thoughts can de-energize the brain to the state of "squeezed lemon". After all, every thought is energy thrown away if it does not receive physical embodiment. And the constant energy gap in the head is not able to give strength to do something real and worthwhile instead of thoughts. This is how 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, dialogues within yourself, learn to relax and meditate. Special exercises to develop attention and concentration will help you do this.
Feed your brain. In all senses. Do not offend or deprive him, because he contains you, and you - him. The game with one goal ends sooner or later in defeat. Give your brain a good intellectual dinner, eat a nutritious breakfast, play educational games for lunch. And very soon he will respond to your care 10 times stronger. Will give new ideas, strength, a good figure and youth, good sleep, good mood and harmonious relationships. That's what you want, right? Then feed your brain with 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 that you like, your favorite hobby and self-realization, sports, laughter, walking, singing, dancing. And if you think that you do not have time for this, then it will be useful for you to find out about it.
Learn something new every day. A new foreign word, a new country and its capital, a new word from an explanatory dictionary, new useful information. This can be easily done by special mobile applications that will tell you one new word every day. Teaching is light. And this is the case when the brain generates it in the form of energy for all desires and accomplishments!
Sport is also capable of pumping the brain and, moreover, protects neurons and neural connections. Oddly enough, but a couch potato who reads a book will remember less information than someone who regularly goes in for sports and reads “smart” books in their free time.
In any unclear situation - sleep! This joke has the right to life, because in a dream, the brain patches, mends, heals not only itself, but the entire 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 are wasting energy! Give your brain enough sleep to give you the best solution to the dead end and the correct answer to your life question. The answer will come quickly and you will definitely find a way out. Lack of sleep accompanied by endless thoughts before falling asleep can lead to bad consequences.