8 Easy Ways to Make Your Brain Perform Better

Brain fitness ranks as one of the hottest topics at the water cooler these days. Suddenly everyone wants to learn more about what we can do to keep our minds sharp and stay in top intellectual form at the office.

Although the science of brain health remains young, research clearly indicates there is much we can do to improve our everyday memory. Building better brain health can help us boost work skills such as recalling important client information, learning training materials or just keeping track of key documents. It can also lower our risk of serious memory loss.

While many of us want to improve our brain health, we aren't always sure what exactly we need to do, or -- more likely -- simply can't imagine putting one more "must-do" item on our list. Improving your brain fitness doesn't have to be complex, expensive or even time-consuming. The best approach to improving our brain health is one that reflects the current science and blueprints a plan that is practical and actionable. In fact, there are plenty of things we can do to prime our mind while sitting right at our desks.

Here are eight things you can do right now to boost your brain power at work. You can do them all in just five minutes or spend more time on them over the course of the day. All are geared to give your brain an awesome on-the-job workout.

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Rearrange Your Desk

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Clear some clutter from your life! Folks who are organized remember more. Spend five minutes organizing your desk and getting rid of whatever is non-essential. Look over how your desk is organized and see if you can think of a better way to put it all together.

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Clear some clutter from your life! Folks who are organized remember more. Spend five minutes organizing your desk and getting rid of whatever is non-essential. Look over how your desk is organized and see if you can think of a better way to put it all together.

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This Brain-Boosting Tip

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It's okay. Great idea!

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Follow Cynthia R. Green, Ph.D. on Twitter: www.twitter.com/thebrainbuzz

Comments

[Phytoresearcher]

08:31 AM on 07/07/2011

A compound found in blue berries called pterostilbene was shown to restore cognitive function to rats whose cortex was damaged, and to improve short term memory in humans. A new supplement called pteromax contains the amount of this compound found in 200 pounds of blue berries. It is being tested now at a UK medical school on university students and the students were able to remember a string of characters twice as long as without pteromax. Unlike the chemical memory boosters, it is also safe and non toxic.

[aurora1920]

07:59 AM on 07/07/2011

Aurora1920--I sit enough at the computer--don't want to play games there. Instead I deal out a bridge hand and play all four hands for a mental break. Every bridge hand you ever play is unique--and each one therefore teaches one something about the game. Bridge players, whether serious or sociable, are notoriously long-lived dementia-free. Learn to play bridge is my advice. A bridge club in Ohio begun in 1940--70 years ago--still has four original members. And couple weeks ago I came across a 101-year old via Google Alerts who plays bridge who didn't learn to play until she was 87. So it's never too late to learn.

As far as remembering by "connecting" something to something else--when my sister moved to another house years ago, I made the mistake of doing just that--remembering the new street by connecting it to a movie I had just seen--That Hamilton Woman--with Vivian Leigh and Laurence Olivier. How many decades ago was that??? I'm 91 now, and TO THIS DAY, when I send my sister a Christmas card I STILL have to first think Vivian Leigh and then try to recall the name of that damned movie! It's a trap.

[6p023E23]

11:43 PM on 07/06/2011

yoga break and play an online game are totally unproductive activities. if anyone wants to do them they can do it before or after work, not during work.
If you cannot concentrate on work compared to others, ADMIT it, you are inferior. When you are inferior you don't do activities which further waste time and office resources.

[TRene11]

11:02 AM on 07/07/2011

But if I don't waste time and office resources I won't post on Huffpo. :P

[Terrific Tonya Heathco]

07:19 PM on 07/06/2011

Brain health and memory are precious to me as they should be to every human. Your article is very helpful and the information user friendly. I am implementing each of these tips into my daily life in order to increase brain power weakened by seizure medications and seizure disorder. As a believer in the benefits of yoga, I appreciate your openess to including yoga as one of your tips.

[SoundWaves]

06:51 PM on 07/06/2011

I was once a big fan of Sudoku and found that to be a great distraction when I had a break from the office and now yoga has taken its place but great tips thanks. Wouldn't it be nice to have a meditation room or a place for yoga in the office? http://bit.ly/10Tz3M

[maxfax]

10:54 PM on 07/06/2011

Just think how much healthier we would all be; great suggestion.

[TimeMaster]

05:54 PM on 07/06/2011

All good tips and a lot of these are common sense especially as people grow older. The best advice is the same as it always has been: eat right, get plenty of sleep or the right amount of restful sleep (REM/dream), exercise and try to lower your stress and reduce your stress as much as possible. It's all about balance and quality of all the above - if you find you are getting sick more often, you are out of balance. Humans and the human body were designed a certain way and as the old saying goes, your body definitely tells you when you are doing something wrong. If you are prone to genetic disorders it is difficult but not impossible to avoid the pattern, you just have to work to eliminate or prevent the same issue (ie, heart, diabetes, etc.)

[ignacio sanabria]

05:05 PM on 07/06/2011

Actually, the best brain exercise you can do is not doing any thinking at all. In other words, put your mind to rest. Meditation is the best technique to achieve that.

[charleyvldm9]

03:14 PM on 07/06/2011

All you need to do is Read and do a Crossword puzzle everyday like me and you will be fine.I grew up during World War 1,and I can pass any exam you give me now.

[jeffrey678]

01:30 PM on 07/06/2011

Learn a new skill. Language cds, Khan Academy, Ubuntu Linux, Amateur Radio, etc, etc.

[haimchaim]

10:39 AM on 07/06/2011

sleep power at your house hold ..whole lot of good sleep .. means whole lot of brain power .. clear & alert helps get u thru the whole day

[dsws]

09:55 AM on 07/06/2011

On functional MRIs or PET scans, simple speed-oriented tasks like video games activate the entire cortex. Fun is the sensation of learning.

De-cluttering your desk well may make you more efficient, but it won't exercise your brain.

[fumes]

09:45 AM on 07/06/2011

"Scientists from Ohio State University report that marijuana, contrary to the conventional wisdom, may help ward off Alzheimer's and keep recall sharp. Their findings, released today at the Society for Neuroscience meeting in Washington D.C.: chemical components of marijuana reduce inflammation and stimulate the production of new brain cells, thereby enhancing memory."
http://www.scientificamerican.com/blog/post.cfm?id=pot-joins-the-fight-against-alzheim-2008-11-19
----------------------
''stimulate the production of new brain cells, thereby enhancing memory''.. who knew?
---------------
"I experimented with marijuana a time or two, and I didn't like it. I didn't inhale, and never tried it again."
- Bill Clinton

"I never understood that line. The point was to inhale. That was the point."
- Barack Obama, When asked, "Unlike other presidents, did you inhale?'

“When I was a kid, I inhaled… frequently. That was the point.”
- Barack Obama

http://www.dailysmoker.com/cannabis-quotes-9

[hg wells]

09:06 AM on 07/06/2011

want to improve your brain? Take vitamins everyday including lots of vitamin c.

[califson]

08:58 AM on 07/06/2011

Number 1 Read the Holy Bible early in the morning and get your spiritual life in order.

[mary896]

12:09 PM on 07/06/2011

You go right ahead. That's your right. And it's my right NOT to read it. I realize pushing your god is your job....

[Texas Aggie]

01:46 PM on 07/06/2011

For an even better way to get your spiritual life in order, read Kahlil Gibran, the Analects of Confucius, the Upanishads, The Wisdom of Zen, the sayings of Buddha, and for the very best, the writings of Henry David Thoreau.

[fumes]

08:00 AM on 07/06/2011

"I am convinced that there are genuine and valid levels of perception available with cannabis (and probably with other drugs) which are, through the defects of our society and our educational system, unavailable to us without such drugs." ~ Carl Sagan

Carl Sagan (1934-1996) was a lifelong user of marijuana.

http://www.tokeofthetown.com/2011/06/cannabis_quote_of_the_day_carl_sagan.php