Ready to give your brain a workout? Take this quiz to find out how much you know about healthy brain habits. T F 1. n n Less than 8 hours of sleep a day can limit your bain’s abttod reall infomatin. 2. n n Exercise at any age improves brain fcod moy reall. 3. n n Iu are oee, yoisk foeoinem is 8erent hier than a healght psn. 4. n n Solving crossword puzzles, Sudoku puzzles, and getrgelps maintruntin. 5. n n Yood anspnsms neer decision making and memory recall are impd whu drogh w Cek yower. Hd yoo? Yorrs best when you make it your habit to challenge it to sre ancrod moisp nuioatin, slep, anxerisan all hYour daily habits also help keep your brain healthy and atid pemd bain dise. Monthly Health Challenge ™ Give Your Brain a Workout Use it or lose it. Baseball trivia, fun facts, or important phone numbers. They won’t stay in your memory bank forever. So how do you hang on to that stuff? And how do you keep your brain healthy? Give your brain a workout. That’s how. Ever lost your keys? Walked into a room and forgot why you were there? Missed an important meeting because it slipped your mind? Healthy brain habits can help with that too. If you’ve ever felt like your memory was slipping, you’re not alone. Brain function is always in flux. A number of factors influence memory, like: ✔ Drinking enough water ✔ Eating healthy foods ✔ Getting good sleep ✔ Feeling connected with others ✔ Being physically active ✔ Keeping your mind engaged. Giving your brain what it needs can improve your memory, recall speed, problem-solving skills, and attention span. It can even help prevent age-related brain diseases. Take the month-long Health Challenge and Give Your Brain a Workout . CHALLENGE Develop habits to keep your brain healthy Workouts to Build a Better Brain Before birth your brain starts to form links that help you store and recall things. About 100 billion neurons process 70,000 thoughts, decisions, and ideas a day. But that takes a lot of energy. Your brain uses about 25 percent of your body’s energy and oxygen supply. And just like the rest of your body, your brain needs its own regimen of nutrition and exercise. Practice these six healthy habits to boost your brain power: 1. Drink More Water Your brain is about 75 percent water. A thirsty brain can’t recall or focus very well. Motivation lags. Research shows that memory, thinking, and mood improve when the brain and body are well hydrated.1 Drinking plenty of water may also help reduce, depression, and confusion. • Carry a water bottle with you • Aim to drink 40 to 64 ounces of water a day. Requirements to complete this HEALTH CHALLENGE ™ 1. Reave Yorru.” 2. Create your own plan to develop habits to keur bain heal 3. Keep a record of your completed health challenge in ce yoranizoquireoento Answ ers: 1. True. 2. True. 3. True. 4. True. 5. True benefits of drinking water y4daszfp © Wellsource, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Take the April Health Challenge! Give Your Brain a Workout: Develop habits to keep your brain healthy Ask the Wellness Doctor: This month Dr. Brittany Carter answers the question: What can I do to control allergy and asthma symptoms at home? To Drink or Not to Drink? The Right Mix for Health and Happiness April is Alcohol Awareness Month. How much is safe to drink? Country music star Keith Urban had to fight his way to the top of the charts as a struggling artist. But it’s not the only thing he’s struggled with. He also overcame an addiction to alcohol after decades of heavy drinking. “I was going to lose it all,” Urban said, reflecting on his years battling alcohol addiction. It took three separate stints in treatment to finally quit drinking. Today, he’s been sober for 12 years and counting. How much do you drink? A little or a lot? About 70 percent of all adults in the United States drink alcohol at least once a year. And 21 percent of them – about 15 million – have a serious drinking problem. 5 Only 3 million, like Urban, ever seek treatment. You may not drink too much. And some research shows red wine may support heart health. But even a little alcohol can be harmful to your health. 6 Southwestern Quinoa Breakfast Bowl Hungry for breakfast? Skip the donuts and sweet cereal. It takes just a few minutes to cook this tasty and healthy meal.7 Ingredients 1/4 C runa 1/2 avcdie2 medium tomatoes, chopped 1 C fozeon (thawed) 1/4 C copd gen onions 1/2 C clnto4 eggs (or egg sbtiue) 1. Couna according to the package. Remove from heat. 2. Dvduna between 4 bowls. Arrange the avocado, tomatoes, corn, scallions, and cilantro in each bowl. 3. Caoscskillet with cooking spray and warm over medium-high heat. Scramble or crack each egg into the skillet and season with salt and pepper. 4. Cvr ad co utighis ad ylrr. Toeach bowl with a cooked egg. 5. Serves 4. 244 calories per serving References 1. Mossavar-Rahmani, Y., et al. (2019). Artificially sweetened beverages and stroke, coronary heart disease, and all-cause mortality in the Women’s Health Initiative. Stroke, 50(3): 555-562. From: https://tinyurl.com/y6pfm2tu 2. Journal of the American College of Nutrition , 32(4): 272-279. From: 3. Yang, J. et al. (209). Association between push-up exercise capacity and future cardiovascular events among active adult men. JAMA Network Open , 2(2): e188341. From: https://tinyurl.com/y6exnt8h 4. Guidelines for Exercise Testing and Prescription , 9th edition. Wolters Kluwer/Lippincott Williams & Wilkins Health, p. 101. 5. National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. (2018). Alcohol facts and statistics. From: https://tinyurl. 6. Harvard University. (2019). Alcohol: Balancing risks and benefits. The Nutrition Source. From: https://tinyurl. 7. https:// tinyurl.com/y4a5y3j7 How much alcohol is safe to drink? If you don’t drink, stick with the habit. Not drinking is the best way to protect yourself from the harmful effects of alcohol. If you do drink, follow these guidelines: Women: No more than 1 drink per day. Zero if pregnant. Men: No more than 2 drinks per day if under age 65. Seniors: No more than 1 drink daily for people age 65 and older. How alcohol affects the body tinyurl.com/hddk587 M O R E How much is a drink? Alooirns dfies: Oe 1ozer (5% achl) Oe 8-. gas oliur (7loo Oe 5ozlsf wn2% achl) Oe 3-. gas ohry Oe 1-½ozht obrandy, cognac, or 8-roiur