Sharpen Your Memory with This 6-Calorie Snack
For a razor-sharp memory, give your mouth this 6-calorie snack to munch on: a stalk of celery.
Celery is a top source of a high-powered flavonoid known as luteolin, and these compounds may help cool off destructive inflammation in the brain's memory center (otherwise known as the hippocampus). Not a bad trade for 6 calories.
Sending a Signal
Over time, brain inflammation can interfere with memory, magnify depressed feelings, accelerate dementia, and perhaps even play a role in the development of Alzheimer's disease and other aging-brain conditions. Enter luteolin. New cell studies suggest that it may mute the nerve signals that tell immune cells in the brain to release inflammatory chemicals called cytokines. (Are you keeping your gray cells young? Find out by taking this memory quiz.)
Munch, Sip, Sprinkle
You can eat celery stalks as a snack, blend celery into smoothies, or sprinkle chopped celery onto salads for extra crunch. No celery lurking about in the back of your fridge? No problem. Respectable levels of luteolin can also be found in green peppers, chili peppers, spinach, lettuce, chamomile tea, and thyme. Put these four other brain-building habits into play as well:
- Set aside time for a snooze. Find out why a mini nap is your brain's best friend.
- Give your mind a workout. Discover how mental challenges help build and maintain brain connections.
- Build more buddies. Here's how your social network can help cut the risk of mental decline in half.
- Work those feet. Exercise "feeds" brain cells, and this indoor walking workout with fitness trainer Leslie Sansone really fits the bill.
RealAge Benefit:
Learning a new game that requires brainpower can make your RealAge 1.3 years younger.
