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Robin Nixon, LiveScience Staff Writer
作者：罗宾•尼克松（Robin Nixon），《生活科学》的特约撰稿人
Date: 18 February 2011 Time: 11:56 AM ET
日期：2011年2月18日，时间：美国东部时间上午11:56
We expect the prowess of our joints and lungs to slowly decline as we age, but the thought of our minds doing the same is intolerable. Here are some top prevention tips worth their weight in wits, plus a few to forget.
当我们的年龄变老时，都希望自己的关节和肺部的功能衰退得慢一些，可是我们头脑思维的功能如果也随着年龄一样衰老，那是我们所无法忍受的。这里有一些最重要的预防头脑衰老、理智上值得重视的诀窍，常被我们所忽略。
Do something! 做些事情!
Scientists are starting to think that regular aerobic exercise may be the single most important thing you can do for the long-term health of your brain. While the heart and lungs respond loudly to a sprint on the treadmill, the brain is quietly getting fitter with each step, too. For mental fitness, aim for at least 30 minutes of physical activity every other day.
科学家们正在开始认为，有规律的有氧运动可能是你使头脑长期健康要做的最重要事情。当你的心脏和肺在为跑步等冲刺作出强烈的反应时，大脑也在平静地适应着每一步的动作。对精神病患者，要力争每天有30分钟以上的体育活动。
Eat, eat, eat 吃，吃，吃
Too much or too little energy throws a kink in the brain’s delicate machinery. A low glycemic diet — high fiber, with moderate amounts of fat and protein — is broken down more slowly in the body than high glycemic foods, such as sweets and white starches. A steady pace of digestion in the gut gives a more reliable flow of energy to the brain, likely optimizing the organ’s long-term health and performance.
摄入过多或过少的能量会在大脑中形成一个结构微妙的扭结。低血糖饮食（ 高纤维、适量的脂肪和蛋白质） 在体内的分解速度低于高血糖的食物，如甜食和白色淀粉质食物等。肠道里稳健和缓慢的消化步伐，会对大脑提供一个比较可靠的能量流动，它有可能优化身体各器官的长期健康和功能。
Watch that diet 监视那些饮食
While overindulging can make the brain sluggish and lead to long-term detriments to your brain, too few calories can also impair brain function. Extreme dieting can cause some diehards to feel stretches of calm — a feeling that may underlie the addiction of anorexia — but many studies have also linked dieting with distraction, confusion and memory impairment.
尽管进食过量会使得大脑呆滞，导致你头脑长期的损伤，可是摄入的卡路里太少，也可以损害大脑的功能。极端的节食减肥可使一些倔强的人感觉到绵延的平静，是一种构成厌食成瘾基础的一种感觉，也有许多研究把节食与注意力分散、思维混乱和记忆障碍联系在一起。
Take care of your body 照顾好你的身体
Largely preventable diseases — such as Type II diabetes, obesity and hypertension — all affect your brain, too. System-wide health concerns have been linked to an increased risk of cognitive decline and memory impairments. Keeping your circulatory system in working order, by, say, avoiding cigarettes and saturated fat, lessens the onslaught of age-related damage to the brain.
有许多疾病在很大程度上是可以预防的。这些疾病， 如II型糖尿病，肥胖和高血压等，它们也都会影响你的大脑。对身体整个系统健康的关注与认知能力衰退和记忆障碍所冒的风险有着一定的联系。保持你循环系统的正常运转，比方说，避开香烟和饱和脂肪，减少与年龄有关的损害大脑的刺激。
Get your beauty rest 要有美好的休息
When we rest and dream, memories are sifted through, some discarded, others consolidated and saved. When we don't sleep, a recent study found, proteins build up on synapses, possibly making it hard to think and learn new things. Furthermore, chronically sleeping poorly (in contrast to not enough) is linked to cognitive decline in old age, although the relationship may not be causal.
当我们在睡眠和做梦的时候，头脑里的记忆会通过筛选，一些被丢弃，而另外一些得到了巩固和保存。最近的一项研究发现，如果我们不睡觉，在神经元突触上蛋白质会有所增加，使它难于去思考问题和学习新事物。此外，长期的睡眠不佳（与“不够”形成对照）与老年认知能力的衰退有关，尽管还可能没有一定的因果关系。
Enjoy your coffee 享用咖啡
Growing evidence suggests a caffeine habit may protect the brain. According to large longitudinal studies, two to four perk-me-ups a day may stave off normal cognitive decline and decrease the incidence of Alzheimer's by 30 to 60 percent. It is unclear whether the benefits come from caffeine or the antioxidants found in coffee and tea, but that latte may improve cognition this afternoon and several decades from now
越来越多的证据表明，饮食咖啡因的习惯可以保护大脑。根据大型的纵向研究，每天2到4次饮用咖啡来振作精神可以延缓正常认知能力的衰退，并减少阿兹海默症（即老年痴呆症）30％至60％的发病率。目前还不清楚是否是于咖啡因，或者是咖啡和茶中的抗氧化剂所带来的好处，但拿铁咖啡（latte） 可能改善当天下午和从现在开始几十年认知能力。
Eat fish 吃鱼
Some theories credit the introduction of fish into the human diet with the evolution of our tremendous cognitive prowess. Essential fatty acids, such as Omega 3s, are critical to brain function and are proving beneficial for treating such as depression. Studies on the efficacy of Omega 3 supplements, however, have had mixed results, so get doses from food sources, such as flax seeds, fatty fish and grass-fed animals.
有些理论把人类由进化而来的巨大认知能力归功于在人类的食物中引进了鱼类。鱼类具有人类所必需的脂肪酸，如欧米茄3S，它对大脑的功能是至关重要的，并正在证明它有利于治疗像抑郁症那样的脑耗尽型的疾病(brain-sapping ailments) 。人们对欧米茄3补充剂功效进行了研究，然而，其结果有好有坏，所以要从食物来源中来摄欧米茄3，如亚麻种子，多脂肪的鱼类和吃草动物等。
Chill out 放松
Stress takes a toll on the brain by washing harmful chemicals over the hippocampus and other brain areas involved in memory. Some scientists suspect that living a balanced lifestyle and pursuing relaxing activities such as yoga, socializing and crafting may delay memory impairment by reducing stress.
紧张会通过使头脑里的海马体以及与记忆有关的头脑其他区域受到有害化学物质的冲蚀而产生负面的影响。某些科学家认为，和谐的生活方式和从事轻松的活动，如瑜伽，社交活动和工艺制作活动，可能会因减少紧张而延迟记忆障碍。
Skip the supplements 不要去服用补充品
Supplements have been getting a bad rap recently, with even the familiar multivitamin now looking like a waste of money — or worse. Brain pills, such as ginkgo and melatonin, likely belong in the trash as well. Despite their "natural" origins, they are not free of potential side effects, such as high blood pressure, digestion trouble, fertility problems and depression. And among healthy individuals, ginkgo offers no brain benefits beyond that of a placebo. (In some cases, the placebo worked better.)
补充品最近声名狼藉，即使是我们所熟悉的多种维生素，现在看起来也是在浪费金钱或者更糟。脑丸，如银杏、褪黑激素(melatonin，松果体素俗称为脑白金) 可能也属于此类垃圾。尽管它们来源于“自然界”，但它们不能摆脱潜在的副作用，如高血压，消化麻烦，生育问题和抑郁症等。在健康的人群中，银杏对大脑不能提供比安慰剂有更多的好处。（在某些情况下，安慰剂甚至还更有效一些。）
Tease your brain 梳理你的大脑
Whether crossword puzzles, sudokus and other brain teasers actually keep your brain in shape, has not been well-established. However, lack of education is a strong predictor of cognitive decline. The more you've tried to learn, the better you'll be at mental sit-ups in old age. The key may be tackling something new; the challenge of the unknown is likely more beneficial than putting together the same jigsaw puzzle over and over again.
无论是填字游戏、九宫格游戏和使其他使脑筋急转弯的活动，其实是在保持你的大脑处于良好的状态，可是一直没有很好地建立起来。然而，缺乏教育会强有力地预示着认知功能的衰退。你越是努力学习，就会更好地帮助你在年老时，精神上的“仰卧起坐”。关键在于尽可能去处理一些新问题; 挑战未知的事物，很可能比一遍又一遍地做相同的拼图游戏更为有益。
