How to Stay Active for a Healthy Brain
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Keep Your Brain Healthy

Staying Active for a Healthy Brain

Research finds that staying socially engaged addresses one of the key risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease: social isolation.1 Socializing helps keep your brain active and healthy, and this is especially important as you or a loved one grows older.
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You Can Take Action

Try these tips to help you or a family member stay more socially connected and reap the brain health benefits:

Spend more time with family and friends.

Talking and spending time with those closest to you – even virtually – is the easiest way to get the brain health benefits of social engagement. Set a time to eat a meal together, share stories, or do another activity you enjoy, and try to continue socializing regularly.

Find a new activity.

If you’re looking for new connections, you can try volunteering, joining a book club, starting a hobby or sport, going back to school, or taking an exercise class. These activities can connect you to other people with similar interests and help make social activities a part of your weekly or daily routine. Activities such as reading, writing, and playing games have also been found to be good for your brain health.2

Get involved with your community.

Local organizations like senior centers, churches, gyms, volunteer groups, or civic associations can help you meet new people while giving back to your community. Check out the CDC’s social engagement website to get started and find a group in your area.

Take advantage of technology.

New technology, like video-calls and social media, make staying in touch easier than ever. While technology shouldn’t replace time spent in person, it can help you strengthen relationships, meet new people, and stay connected to family or friends even if they live far away. It can also help connect you to online support groups that specialize in what you’re going through.

  1. https://www.thelancet.com/article/S0140-6736(20)30367-6/fulltext
  2. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/reading-writing-and-playing-games-delay-alzheimers-by-5-years

Spend more time with family and friends.

Talking and spending time with those closest to you – even virtually – is the easiest way to get the brain health benefits of social engagement. Set a time to eat a meal together, share stories, or do another activity you enjoy, and try to continue socializing regularly.

Find a new activity.

If you’re looking for new connections, you can try volunteering, joining a book club, starting a hobby or sport, going back to school, or taking an exercise class. These activities can connect you to other people with similar interests and help make social activities a part of your weekly or daily routine. Activities such as reading, writing, and playing games have also been found to be good for your brain health.2

Get involved with your community.

Local organizations like senior centers, churches, gyms, volunteer groups, or civic associations can help you meet new people while giving back to your community. Check out the CDC’s social engagement website to get started and find a group in your area.

Take advantage of technology.

New technology, like video-calls and social media, make staying in touch easier than ever. While technology shouldn’t replace time spent in person, it can help you strengthen relationships, meet new people, and stay connected to family or friends even if they live far away. It can also help connect you to online support groups that specialize in what you’re going through.

  1. https://www.thelancet.com/article/S0140-6736(20)30367-6/fulltext
  2. https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/reading-writing-and-playing-games-delay-alzheimers-by-5-years