Keeping your brain sharp as you age might bring to mind crossword puzzles, memory games, or learning a new language. Those can all challenge the brain, but according to one neurologist who specializes in memory disorders, one of the best forms of brain stimulation is something much simpler: talking to other people.
Dr. Douglas Scharre, a neurologist and medical director of the Center for Cognitive and Memory Disorders at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, recently spoke with the New York Post about the everyday habits he believes can help people protect their brains as they age.
“Use it or lose it,” Scharre told the Post. “The mental activity of socializing is wonderful for the brain.”
Think about what happens during an ordinary conversation. You’re listening to someone, interpreting what they mean, reading their facial expressions, searching your memory for relevant information, deciding how to respond, and putting your thoughts into words. Unlike passively watching television or scrolling through a phone, your brain is constantly reacting and adapting.
And Scharre says it’s worth thinking about this long before memory problems appear.
“Middle-aged or younger will be a perfect time to start brain healthy habits,” he said. Building a stronger “brain reserve,” he explained, could potentially delay the point at which age-related memory problems begin to show themselves.
Socializing isn’t his only recommendation. Puzzles, games, reading, music, art, sports, and learning a new language can all keep the mind engaged. But Scharre’s broader message is that protecting the brain isn’t about finding one magic exercise. Sleep, physical activity, diet, metabolic health, mental health, and the way we spend our downtime all matter.
Why Passive Screen Time Works Against You
Scharre draws an important distinction between activities that make the brain work and those that simply keep us occupied.
Watching television or endlessly scrolling through a phone may be entertaining, but these activities generally demand far less active engagement than conversation, learning, problem-solving, or other mentally challenging activities. Research has also linked more mentally passive sedentary behavior with poorer cognitive outcomes and a greater risk of dementia.
That doesn’t mean screens themselves are inherently bad. Video calling a friend, learning something new, writing, playing a challenging game, or completing a mentally demanding task on a computer can all require considerable cognitive effort.
Scharre’s recommendation is essentially to cut back on passive stimulation rather than treating all screen use the same way. The more useful question may be less “Am I looking at a screen?” and more “What is my brain actually doing while I’m looking at it?”
Sleep Gives the Brain Time to Recover
Keeping the brain active matters, but so does giving it adequate time to rest.
During sleep, activity in the glymphatic system, a network involved in clearing waste from brain tissue, appears to increase. Scharre describes deep sleep as “critical to remove toxins from the brain.”
Research has offered some striking clues about why this might matter. In one study, a single night of complete sleep deprivation in healthy adults was associated with an increase in amyloid beta, a protein associated with Alzheimer’s disease, in the hippocampus, a brain region important for memory.
Scharre recommends getting enough quality sleep, turning off lights and screens at bedtime, maintaining a consistent routine, and addressing conditions such as sleep apnea that can interfere with restorative sleep.
Metabolic Health Is a Brain Health Issue
High blood pressure, diabetes, and elevated cholesterol are usually framed as cardiovascular or metabolic problems. Scharre says they should be thought of as brain health issues too.
High blood pressure in midlife, from the 40s through the early 60s, has been associated with greater risk of cognitive decline later in life, according to the National Institute on Aging.
Researchers at the Feil Family Brain and Mind Research Institute at Weill Cornell Medicine have also found evidence that hypertension may begin producing changes in brain cells earlier than previously recognized. People with hypertension have a higher risk of developing cognitive disorders, and researchers have identified early changes in gene activity within individual brain cells that could eventually interfere with thinking and memory.
There is a straightforward biological connection. The brain depends on an enormous network of blood vessels to continuously deliver oxygen and nutrients. Over time, damage to those vessels can affect the brain tissue they supply.
Managing blood pressure, blood sugar, and cholesterol during middle age therefore isn’t only about protecting the heart. It’s part of protecting the brain as well.
Stress and Depression Matter Too
Scharre also includes managing stress, anxiety, and depression among the factors people should take seriously when thinking about long-term brain health.
Chronic stress can affect brain regions involved in memory and emotional regulation. Prolonged exposure to stress hormones has been associated with changes involving the hippocampus, while research into depression has found alterations in communication and connections between nerve cells.
Depression and chronic anxiety can also affect concentration, memory, decision-making, and emotional regulation, all functions that depend on healthy communication between different regions of the brain.
That makes mental health part of brain health rather than something separate from it. Persistent depression, anxiety, or overwhelming stress shouldn’t simply be accepted as an inevitable part of a busy life.
Exercise Challenges the Brain in Different Ways
Physical activity is another major part of Scharre’s approach, but he doesn’t recommend only one kind.
As Scharre explained to the New York Post, he recommends incorporating different forms of physical activity, including aerobic exercise, strength training, flexibility, and balance work.
Research provides some biological support for the brain benefits of exercise. Aerobic activity has been associated with changes in brain-derived neurotrophic factor, or BDNF, a protein involved in the brain’s ability to adapt and form connections. Research published in Frontiers in Neuroscience has examined the relationship between exercise intensity, BDNF, and neurological function. A 2024 study also found that aerobic exercise at different intensities can influence cortical excitability, with potential implications for cognitive function.
The practical message doesn’t require an elaborate exercise program. Moving regularly and incorporating different kinds of physical activity can challenge more than just your muscles.
You can read more about the daily habits consistently recommended for brain-boosting daily routines, many of which complement structured exercise.
What You Eat Reaches Your Brain Too
Scharre also recommends a Mediterranean-style diet, emphasizing foods such as fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, and healthy plant-based oils while limiting processed sugars and excessive red meat.
“The brain needs vitamins as it cannot make them internally,” Scharre explained, “and so it is important to eat foods that contain them.”
The recommendation is consistent with a growing body of research examining Mediterranean-style eating patterns and cognitive health. Research published in Frontiers in Nutrition, for example, has linked greater adherence to the Mediterranean diet with better cardiovascular and cognitive outcomes.
A Mediterranean-style diet also tends to provide antioxidants, vitamins, polyphenols, unsaturated fats, and other nutrients being investigated for their roles in healthy brain aging.
Read More: 10 Brain-Boosting Superfoods That May Help Support Memory and Reduce Dementia Risk
The Bottom Line
If there’s one idea running through Scharre’s recommendations, it’s that keeping the brain healthy doesn’t require discovering a secret brain hack. Instead, it means repeatedly giving the brain reasons to work while taking care of the body that supports it.
Exercise. Get enough quality sleep. Eat well. Keep blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar under control. Challenge yourself mentally. Manage chronic stress and mental health concerns. And perhaps most surprisingly, don’t underestimate something as ordinary as having a conversation with another person.
For his own brain health, Scharre also recommends tracking these habits.
“You can track your diet, sleep, exercise, brain stimulation activities, socialization, blood pressure, labs for cholesterol and sugar,” he said.
The advice is particularly relevant because many people already want to protect their brains but aren’t sure where to begin. A 2026 Ohio State survey of 1,000 U.S. adults found that 60% wished they had started prioritizing brain health earlier in life but didn’t know where to begin.
Scharre’s recommendations make the starting point considerably less mysterious: use your brain, look after your body, stay connected to other people, and start doing it before you think you need to.
Disclaimer: This information is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment and is for information only. Always seek the advice of your physician or another qualified health provider with any questions about your medical condition and/or current medication. Do not disregard professional medical advice or delay seeking advice or treatment because of something you have read here.
AI Disclaimer: This article was created with the assistance of AI tools and reviewed by a human editor.