It has been said that the human brain is the most powerful thing in the entire world and it is also the greatest asset a human being could ever have.
It has been said that the human brain is the most powerful thing in the entire world and it is also the greatest asset a human being could ever have. It is because of this very reason that brain fitness should be taken seriously by every individual; you do not have to have a degree in neuroscience to be able to learn how to ensure you have sufficient brain health. But before you even go into brain fitness you should at least have a background or basic information on how the brain works and how information is received, processed and interpreted.
They say that the brain works in ways similar to that of a computer. Well, a feature of the brain that cannot be matched to that of a computer is how it the nervous system can completely change its entire structure and function over a life time in reaction to environmental diversities. The changes in question refer to both genetic and behavioral changes. The three main forms of brain plasticity are neurogenesis, functional compensatory processing and synaptic plasticity. Each type of brain plasticity refers to a specific change in your brain that affects your entire body.
Synaptic plasticity is mainly contributed to daily activities; that is things that you do on a regular basis. This type of brain plasticity occurs when an individual is introduced to new learning or experience; the brain immediately establishes neural pathways or circuits which basically act as routes made of neurons that are in constant communication. This phenomenon has been described as a path in a field that gradually forms over time when the same route is used to cut across the field on a daily basis. The communicating neurons follow the pathway and converge at a central location called the synapse.
The reason the neuron have to converge at the synapse is because human beings react to the environment based on their five main senses; you will use your eyes to see, your nose to smell your skin to feel, your tongue to taste and your ears to hear all these are combined when gathering information and the neurons in the nerves found in each of the body parts responsible for each of the five senses have to communicate. Just as the path is formed through repeated use, so must the new knowledge be acquired through repeated practice. Synaptic communication and response is enhanced between communicating neurons and better inter neuron communication means that electrical signals will travel more efficiently long the new pathway.
Each time you revisit the neural circuit and re-establish neural transmission between the implicated neurons each time you revisit the knowledge then the efficiency of synaptic transmission will be enhanced. Despite the fact that there are three types of brain plasticity, synaptic plasticity is the main one because it is the one that is put in motion every time you come across new information. Brain fitness involves the maintenance and improvement of synaptic and cognitive abilities of the brain by exercising the brain.
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Thomas Mann is the author of this article on Mental Health.
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Author: Thomas Manned.
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