Episode 1: How to Change your Brain with Dr. Andrea Wilkinson
Welcome to the BrainShape Podcast!
I am your host Dr. Andrea Wilkinson. I have a PhD in Psychology with a specialization in cognitive aging. In 2006, I completed my Bachelor of Arts in Psychology & Gerontology at McMaster University, and in 2009 & 2013, I completed my Master of Arts and Doctorate in Psychology at Ryerson University.
I have been studying brain fitness and cognitive maintenance for over 15 years and I am passionate about sharing research knowledge, and what I've learned over the years about how to optimize brain health with increasing age through social engagement, physical activity and mental challenges.
From the presentations that I have given, in the past, on brain fitness, it has became clear to me that the information on brain fitness that people were given wasn’t clear. What people needed to do to keep their brains healthy and fit - as they aged - was really vague and left people uncertain of what they needed to do next. So, to help offer some clarity, in 2014, I started my company BrainShape.ca – an online community for adults aged 60 and above who want to stay mentally and physically active.
I am so excited to share information with you about brain health and aging well. We all know, there’s a lot of information out there – but, there is also a lack of clarity. The general literature on the topic of brain fitness (in magazines or newspapers) is vague at best: do puzzles (like crosswords), socialize, read, seek novelty. What is missing is information on how to personalize our approach to brain fitness. How can we begin to carve out individual plans to maintain our brain health? We are not all the same. What my dad needs to do to keep his brain fit and challenged, is completely different from what my mom needs to do. One of the main goals of this podcast is to share with you - the listeners - valuable information coming from academic literature and experts to empower you with the tools to make choices and take action that will help keep you and your brain healthy for as long as possible.
Today, I am going to talk about my favourite subject and one that I have studied for most of my academic career and that is BRAIN PLASTICITY.
What is brain plasticity? Brain plasticity is our brain’s ability to change itself in response to our experiences and environment, and it occurs in three key ways:
Physically (size) – the thickness of the different types of neuronal layers in our brains
Functionally (how quickly and efficiently our brain works)
Chemically (concentration of brain chemicals called neurotransmitters)
Donald Hebb – a Canadian psychologist – coined the saying “neurons [brain cells] that fire together, wire together”. This saying describes the adaptation of neurons in the brain during the learning process. What this means is that the connections between the cells in our brains get stronger and more effective the more they repeatedly fire together. As you learn, your brain cells begin to connect in new ways.
Neural plasticity works under the same conditions as physical exercise does for the body – a single strength building class, or one run is not going to make much of a difference. However, the same practices done with consistency, over time, will gradually have noticeable and lasting effects on your body. BUT – you have to keep at it! Consistency is the keyword. The same is true when you exercise your brain.
But, traditional learning isn’t the only driver of changes in our brains. Research has shown that the rate at which we can form new brain cells is enhanced by physical activity (we’ll talk more about physical exercise in a future episode – so you’ll want to stay tuned for that!). It used to be thought that human adults already had all of the brain cells they were ever going to have. That’s not true. We’re actually making hundreds of new brain cells every single day. Now, I should note that the concept of neurogenesis (our ability to grow new brain cells) is currently a hotly debated topic in the scientific community; but, studies - from as recent as 2018 - show that humans create approximately 700 new brain cells in the hippocampus (our brain’s memory centre) each day and that we can double or even triple the number of brain cells we make by doing physical exercise. BUT, research also notes that the survival of these new neurons increases when we are immersed in a constantly challenging environment. It is like a kind of neural Darwinism. Neural connections that are relatively inactive wither away, and only the busiest brain cells (also called neurons) survive. So, it isn’t just a matter of making new brain cells, you need to use them consistently and persistently. “Use it or lose it”.
What else helps to promote brain changes? Sleep! Getting a good night sleep helps your brain consolidate the brain changes that are taking place. After learning stuff during the day - during sleep - you replay and rebroadcast the memories of the day, rehearsing those memories (again – strengthening the associations between brain cells).
We also know that eating well promotes brain plasticity
Blueberries
Omega 3 fatty acids
So, if we want to create a life that promotes the production of new brain cells, we need to EXERCISE, GET ENOUGH SLEEP, AND EAT WELL. But, as I mentioned, brain plasticity isn’t just about growing new brain cells, it is also about keeping them. We can do this through creating enriched and challenging environments.
Just like you can build muscle in the gym through consistent and increasingly challenging physical activity, you can change your brain by challenging yourself through novel experiences and learning, which ultimately creates new connections between existing brain cells. This is brain plasticity – the brain’s ability to change itself.
So – to reiterate, we can encourage the growth of new brain cells by exercising, getting enough sleep, and eating well – but, we also need to submerge ourselves in challenging environments that are rich with new experiences and novels ways of thinking.
What is missing from the current conversation on brain health and fitness is that the enriched and challenging environments that we create are unique to us. What I need to do to keep my brain fit and challenged, is completely different from what you need to do. The challenging environments we create for ourselves to promote our own brain plasticity is unique to us and should also be grounded in what interests us. Remember, a key component of brain plasticity (our brain’s ability to change itself) is consistency and persistence of the new neural activity. “Use it or lose it”.
So, I hope that this podcast can serve as the missing link when we talk about brain health and fitness – here I want to bring the conversation back to how to personalize your approach to brain fitness. There is no one size fits all solution.
I get so frustrated when I keep reading the same old advice in magazines, books and newspaper articles:
Do a crossword or Sudoku
Learn a new language
Play an instrument
Seek novelty
Be active
It isn’t that this list is wrong – it is just that it isn’t considering who the person is that is trying to exercise their brain. If I don’t play musical instruments, and have no interest in learning to play an instrument, this is not MY path to brain fitness. What’s more – some of the items (like seek novelty) is too vague.
There isn’t a laundry list of ways to keep your mind engaged and stimulated. We have to start thinking about requirements to achieve brain health and fitness from a person-centred approach. How can we begin to carve out individual plans to maintain our brain health?
My hope is that this podcast will provide you with the knowledge and tools that will help guide you in taking the appropriate action for you. I hope that it will inspire you and empower you to make the right choices that will help keep you and your brain healthy for as long as possible.
What are the best approaches to mentally challenge ourselves? Stick with this podcast to find out!