Health should come first, but we often overlook it for other commitments and an unhealthy lifestyle. Have you ever wondered what destroys our brain cells?

These are habits that destroy our brain cells.

Sometimes we just want to shut off our brains and relax with a few glasses of wine, a few extra hours of sleep, or endless television watching.

Still, certain choices in life can harm our brains, even when we can’t see the connection between those two things.

Living habits that deprive our brain of the nutrients we need or rapidly destroy brain cells put us at risk for mental disorders such as depression or anxiety, as well as Alzheimer’s disease, stroke, epilepsy, and even cancer.

Skipping breakfast



There is a reason why breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Skipping breakfast can lead to decreased blood sugar levels, which is very damaging to the brain, especially if you do it often.

Your brain consumes more energy than any other organ and consumes up to 20 percent of total body glucose per day.

About two-thirds of the brain energy is used to help neurons transmit signals to other parts of the body.

The remaining third is for cell maintenance. Regularly denying food to your brain causes a shortage of energy supplies. Your brain cells also won’t get the care they need to stay healthy and will die very quickly.

Lack of sleep



It’s probably not an unknown fact that if you don’t have enough sleep, you will feel sluggish and forgetful the next day. The reason is that not enough sleep deprives your neurons of the ability to function properly.

This leads to mental failures that can affect your business and your relationships. Worse than that, your senses and reflexes are muted which increases the chance of experiencing a serious accident.

Chronic sleeplessness can make these effects permanent. So the next time you think you’re too busy to sleep enough, keep in mind that until you don’t get a good night of sleep, you won’t even be able to function.

Take the time to get a good night’s sleep and do more work for a shorter period time the next day.

Overeating



Research has shown a surprising correlation between obesity and dementia.

The reasons are unclear, but researchers suspect that obesity occurs when the food we eat does not contain enough nutrients, causing us to overeat to meet the body’s need for vitamins and minerals. So, even if you eat a lot, you can still starve your brain.

Looking at certain data, we can see that in 2015, the number of patients diagnosed with dementia was nearly 45 million, double than it was in 1990. At the same time, nationwide obesity jumped from 11.1 percent to 30.6 percent in the United States.

The situation is similar in Europe. Of course, more studies are needed to confirm the link between obesity and dementia, but it is clear that some correlation exists.

Smoking



Many studies have been done on the health effects of tobacco, so this link is clear to us.

Smoking damages cell membranes and nerve capabilities in parts of the brain responsible for balance, coordination and motor skills. It also dilutes the cortex in which processes involving memory, language, and perception take place.

Leaving cigarettes is important for your overall health and also helps your brain. However, a certain amount of damage has already been done.

Researchers have found that leaving cigarettes helps to regain a certain thickness of the cortex, but also that former smokers, who used to smoke a lot and then did not smoke a cigarette for more than 25 years, still have a thinner cortex than those who have never smoked.

Dehydration

One of the habits that destroy our brain cells is that we don’t drink enough water.



Our bodies are made up of 70 percent water, so dehydration can be critical to all functions of our body, including brain functions.

The effect of dehydration on the brain happens very quickly, and researchers have found that just two hours of strenuous exercise, without water, can cause cognitive decline.

Studies have shown that dehydration most influences functions such as complex problem solving, coordination, and mindfulness.

You do not have to strain yourself to take a certain amount of fluid every day, but you should constantly bring in water, in smaller amounts, for a sip, two, for example. Because when you realize that you are thirsty, you are already dehydrated.

Too much sugar



Our body, especially the brain, needs sugar to function, but the modern diet involves too much sugar. When you eat too much sugar on a regular basis, your cells, including your brain cells, are in a state of chronic inflammation.

It affects the ability of your body to use important substances from food and thus deprive the brain of what it needs. Ultimately, you will also have a higher risk of dementia and a smaller hippocampus, the part of the brain that manages memory.

Stress



Chronic stress can have a negative effect on your body. Stress in certain situations is actually good, as it prepares the body to fight, run, or face danger. However, when your lifestyle involves chronic stress, the hormone cortisol accumulates in the brain and causes more damage.

Not only can it destroy brain cells, but it also causes the brain to “shrink”. When that “shrinkage” hits the prefrontal cortex, your ability to learn and remember decreases.