Regular exercise and healthy eating habits are highly recommended and widely accepted. It's the best-kept truism.

It's probably because diet and exercise are the best and most commonly prescribed ways to ensure that every system of the body functions at its optimal level.

Exercising and diet are, in short, "no brainers" when it comes down to the brain.

We now have better information about the benefits of exercise and nutrition on mental health. Common psychiatric conditions such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, and anxiety disorders all benefit from regular physical activity and healthy eating habits.

What about cognitive health? How does it affect our ability to recall things and our ability to retrieve, understand, and articulate stored information in our brains? Regular exercise and healthy eating can help with this decline. Recent research shows that it is possible.

Mild cognitive impairment (MCI), is a condition that causes a gradual but noticeable decline of cognitive abilities.

There are two types of MCI. (1) Amnestic MCI affects the person's ability to recall recent events and to recall appointments. (2) Nonamnestic MCI includes thinking skills such as the ability to make decisions and solve difficult problems.

MCI means that a person has a higher chance of developing Alzheimer’s disease.

MCI, and the DASH Diet

The December 19, 2018, online edition of Neurology published a study by researchers from Duke University Medical Center. It showed that older adults with MCI (but no dementia) experienced significant improvement in their "executive function" after six months of aerobic exercise (thrice weekly) and the DASH diet (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension).

Executive functioning is the mental activity that occurs in the frontal brain. It includes memory, organization, time management, paying attention, and creative thinking. Cenforce 100 and Cenforce 200 pills are the most rampant and well-known blue pills which are often used to treat Erectile dysfunction.

This level of improvement was not seen in other groups that did not follow the diet or exercise but were given education material on health to study.

The study actually showed that the intervention resulted in better planning skills than those eight years older.

Why was DASH, a diet designed for people with high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease (CVD), selected as the dietary intervention instead of another healthy food plan?

Dr. James Blumenthal, Ph.D. is the Gibbons Professor in Psychiatry at Duke University Medical Centre.

Researchers concluded that lifestyle interventions designed to reduce the risk of CVD and dementia "may also be effective in improving neurocognition, and reducing the chance of developing dementia."

How can you put this information into practice in your life? You must recognize that lifestyle changes can have a profound and positive impact on your brain health, as well as your overall health.

MCI may be experienced by approximately 10-20% of Americans over 65.

If you are an older adult looking to improve your overall health, it is a good idea to follow the recommendations in this study and include regular aerobic exercise as well as a DASH-style nutrition plan.

To help you achieve better health and wellbeing, consider hiring a qualified professional such as a registered dietitian or certified health coach.