If you want to stay young, healthy and keep your brain intact, try doing volunteer work. Several recent research studies have shown that volunteer work improves the way your brain works. It can also make you less frail.
And don’t wait until you are old. What you do in midlife can make a tremendous difference later in your life. People in midlife who use their brains in a wide variety of ways, who keep learning new stuff, solve problems and do these things with others, have a lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s Disease when they get to be old.
You know what else is important: having a purpose in life. Do you know why you get up in the morning? Do you feel your life makes a difference?
The way you answer this question is very important for your brain health and memory. The more you value your life and what you do, the better the chances that your memory will stay strong and your brain will keep working well.
It is no wonder that people living in non-western cultures are doing so much better in old age than American people. Older people are highly regarded. And they are involved in raising children, are loving the children and are loved by the children. An African proverb says that when an old person dies, it is like a library that burns down. This statement speaks tremendously to the value that Africans place in their elders.
A few weeks ago I met a man of 89 who was protesting for a single payer health care system. He did’t need the care as far as I could see. He was strong as an ox. No doubt, showing up and volunteering kept him healthy and vigorous.
Pete Seeger still chops wood for his stove in upstate New York. How old is he now?
Stay alive, stay engaged, stay social and keep learning new things. That will do much for the strength and health of your brain.
Citations. M. Carlson, M. Helms, D. Steffens, J. Burke, G. Potter, B. Plassman. Midlife activity predicts risk of dementia in older male twin pairs. Alzheimer’s and Dementia, Volume 4, Issue 5, Pages 324-331
Carlson MC, Seeman T, Fried LP. Importance of generativity for healthy aging in older women. Aging. 2000 Apr;12(2):132-40.
Jung Y, Gruenewald TL, Seeman TE, Sarkisian CA. Productive activities and development of frailty in older adults. The Journals of Gerontology, Series B. 2010 Mar;65B(2):256-61.