Stop the brain rot! 12 ways to stay sharp in a mind-frazzling world | Health & wellbeing

Have you ever had one of those days where you don’t do anything but still feel exhausted? Of course it is: brain rot, the Oxford word of the year 2024, is not yet in any medical dictionary, but it is probably best understood as the decline in cognitive abilities that results from endless exposure to easily digestible information. And, thanks to the ubiquity of short-form videos and social media, this trend is almost certainly on the rise.

“When we interact with this type of media, our brains are both underutilized – because the information is easy to understand – And “You’re overworked because there’s so much information to absorb,” says Dr Wendy Ross, a lecturer in psychology at London Metropolitan University. “That’s why you end up feeling tired even if you’re just scrolling on your couch.” Want to reverse the process and get your attention back? Here’s how.

Learn to do cryptic crosswords

“Don’t be afraid to find some things difficult,” says Ross. “Things that require considerable mental effort, like cryptic crosswords, can restore the balance between effort and reward, and evidence shows that getting stuck and succeeding leads to feelings of mastery and achievement that last and increase over time. Putting moments of cognitive friction into your life rather than finding the information instantly is a good safeguard.”

A good place to start is Minute Cryptic – it will guide you through the fundamentals of solving crosswords, with just one clue (plus clues!) each day – and the Guardian’s quick cryptic crossword page.

Stop Using AI for Easy Answers

“In the age of AI, the biggest cognitive pitfall is outsourcing your thinking before your brain even has a chance to begin its work. Many people have heard the phrase ‘use it or lose it’ when it comes to the brain, but if you don’t practice a skill or challenge your brain, you won’t build these pathways at all,” says Dr. Lila Landowski, a neuroscientist and senior lecturer in biomedical sciences at the University of Tasmania. “Relying overly on AI is like asking a personal trainer to lift weights for you – it may do the job, but you don’t get any of the benefits. Resist the temptation to use it, especially at first. Generate drafts and ideas yourself. Allow yourself to make mistakes. Coming up with your own answers (even if they’re wrong), then checking to see if they’re correct, improves learning. Through education, work complexity, socialization, and variety – basically anything that challenges you in a productive way – you build cognitive reserve. And the more cognitive reserve you build, the more you can delay cognitive decline.

Exercise at different intensities

Almost any type of physical exercise can improve mood, learning and memory, and even increase brain volume — but you’ll get the most benefit if you mix them up, says Landowski. “Aerobic exercise supports the formation of new brain cells in the hippocampus, the brain’s memory center, by increasing the production of proteins like brain-derived neurotrophic factor, or BDNF. At the same time, resistance exercise promotes the production of hormones like osteocalcin, a crucial endocrine regulator of brain development and function. Together, these factors act a bit like brain fertilizer, helping brain cells grow and connect.”

Ideally, you should do a bit of low-intensity cardiovascular exercise each week – think walking, slow running or cycling – combined with some strength training or push-ups and squats. But if you’re up to it, the most anti-brain rot workout might also be the most intense. “Doing high-intensity interval training (Hiit) three times per week is one of the only forms of exercise that not only delays cognitive decline, but actually improves cognition,” says Landowski. “And there’s a bonus: people who did Hiit for six months and then stopped still had cognitive benefits five years later. » Don’t jump in too quickly: a “reverse Tabata” – 10 seconds of maximum effort and 20 seconds of rest, repeated eight times – is a good place to start.

‘Wash“your brain with sleep

No one feels good after a disturbed night’s sleep, but good rest is also essential in the long term: it is during deep sleep phases that the brain’s glymphatic system kicks in, acting like a soft reset. “During the day, metabolic waste accumulates in the brain and is only eliminated when the glymphatic system is active,” explains Landowski. “Sleep, and particularly non-rapid eye movement sleep, doubles the elimination of waste through the glymphatic system.” Your body position can make a difference – studies in mice suggest that sleeping on your side improves clearance the most. But the best intervention is to establish a consistent sleep schedule and stick to it.

Schedule screen breaks

It’s nice to think you’ll spend less time on your devices, but without a plan, it’s unlikely to happen. “Treat screen-free breaks as non-negotiable commitments, like you would a work meeting or family obligation,” says Alison Campbell, wellness coach and founder of corporate wellness company unBurnt. “Leave your phone in another room so you’re not distracted by notifications, and try to set aside 30 minutes of digital detox a day to give yourself space to cognitively reset from all the noise.” The real trick is to make off-screen time a treat rather than an obligation. “Choose a few things you enjoy having in your go-to toolbox,” suggests Campbell. “This could be reading a physical book, gardening (indoor potted plants count!), or creative expression like journaling, painting, or drawing. Even short windows help break the cycle of mental fatigue that leads to brain rot.”

Read (a little) faster

Having trouble concentrating on your book? One explanation could be that you don’t find it difficult enough. “Estimates vary slightly, but it is thought that our brains process information at a speed of around 1,400 words per minute,” says Oscar de Bos, the author of Focus On-Off. “The average reading rate, for example, is around 250 words per minute, which is significantly slower. So perhaps it’s not surprising that our brains start thinking about other things when the texts are a little dry. My solution is that when I find my mind starting to wander, I move my eyes across the lines a little faster. By increasing my reading speed, the task becomes more difficult. This draws me deeper into the stories while increasing my concentration, which makes much easier to absorb and remember information. This method works just as well for people with dyslexia as it does for anyone else struggling with common tasks we encounter at work.

Stop task switching

“Every time we change, part of our brain clings to what we were doing before, making it harder to continue working,” says De Bos. “Management professor Sophie Leroy calls this attention residue: part of our attention lingers on the previous activity, which slows us down and makes us make more mistakes. This phenomenon occurs even after the most subtle shifts in attention: after a quick glance at your inbox or your phone, it takes a while for your brain to return to the previous task.” A practical way to avoid this, De Bos suggests, is to turn off all your “non-human” notifications, whether they’re from a social media app or a pizza delivery company. Another solution is to schedule your most important tasks earlier in the day, so that there is no lingering attention residue from other tasks distracting you while you complete them.

Train your awareness

If things seem chaotic, listen to what’s going on around you, then choose a particular sound – birds singing, a ticking clock, distant traffic – and briefly focus on it. “This awareness training is derived from a treatment technique for anxiety and depression,” explains clinical hypnotherapist Paul Levrant. “This naturally develops the ‘attention muscle’. It may be best to start with an artificial soundtrack – there are plenty of them on YouTube – but the more you practice, the better you get. To take it a step further, using the same approach to using your other senses – for example, focusing on the way your clothes feel on your skin or where your body is in contact with your chair – can greatly accelerate progress.”

Do a “stress analysis”

“Take 10 minutes to pause and think about the things that make you nervous or feel the heaviest,” suggests Campbell. “When we name our stressors, it helps restore cognitive and executive functioning and reduce the intensity of the emotional response. We can more easily return to rational thinking and create a plan for how we will manage the circumstances, rather than seeking an escape like excessive monitoring or doom scrolling.”

Walk mindfully

Going out for a walk at lunchtime? If you don’t need to go further than Ready, you might as well slow him down. “Become aware of every movement your body makes as it walks: feeling your feet on the ground, the shift of weight, the use of individual muscles and tendons, etc. », explains Levrant. “Once the habit of focusing in this way becomes more natural, it’s not a big change to benefit from increased attention in all other areas.”

Revisit an old hobby

“There is strong evidence that reviving old hobbies, such as continuing to learn the language you always wanted to master, learning a musical instrument, singing, dancing or photography, simultaneously stimulate multiple areas of the brain while building new circuits,” says Roxi Carare, professor of clinical neuroanatomy at the University of Southampton. “It helps a lot in slowing or preventing cognitive decline.”

Make sure your health checks are up to date

If you’re in your 40s or older, staying on top of your health is a major concern. “High blood pressure or abnormal cholesterol levels are very important risk factors for dementia,” says Carare. “A combination of a healthy diet, some exercise and some socializing will help, but if you are in a high-risk group you should find out first.”