Episode 3: Grey Matters

Grey matter, well, matters as our brains age. Does mindfulness help it stay strong?

We all know how physical exercise, especially when we crosstrain our bodies through different sorts of challenge, helps us stay fit and strong, even as we age.

Look no further than the beautiful Debbie Rosas, founder of Nia, a globally followed movement arts practice, to see. Debbie is 72 years old in the clip below.

Brains also benefit from fitness training, of the mental sort.

Researching for this episode an insight about mindfulness practice really captured my curiosity.

It’s well known that a considerable amount of later-life cognitive and functional decline might stem from the loss of density and tone in grey matter - the stuff that about 40% of the brain is comprised of.

What is less well-known – it was news to me – is that mindfulness practices seem to “densify” (a real world) the “matter” in that grey matter.

This totally makes sense when you think about “what you fire you wire.” Activation of cognitive and functional processes happens in the brain’s neurons, along with their axons and dendrites, of course. What activates in the brain tends to become easier to activate, which is why “your brain will do more of whatever it’s doing right now.”

Look at how beautiful neurons, axons, and dendrites are:

The magnificent work of Santiago Ramón y Cajal, who translated the wonders he saw through his microscope into a glorious celebration of the brain and its cells.

The graceful forms of neurons. Around 86 billion of these marvels send and receive signals throughout your brain.

As I learned more about how mindfulness practices can actually alter the structure of the brain, it became at least worth considering that practicing mindfulness with the brain in mind – in other words, using the practice as an intentional way of increasing grey matter density and tone – might be a health-building workout as we, and our brains, age.

And we are all, along with our brains, aging. Lucky us.

I have – and love – the times when I drop in to meditation. It’s an important part of my routine.

Yet mindfulness is something we can practice anywhere, anytime. We can invite it in on-demand no matter what we are doing. It’s like a “shift of gears” into a different type of mental awareness and processing than the “regular world” demands.

Yet you can use it, easily, in nearly any “regular world” scenario. Especially as you practice. Your brain, after all, will do more – and will do more EASILY – whatever it is you are doing right now.

Explore this episode and my upcoming “Everyday Mindfulness” series to start awakening your grey matter to some potentially meaningful workout. Whatever the outcome, you’ll be giving your brain – and your body – an excellent regimen, for life.

Here’s a helpful peek at what a neuron is:

You might enjoy exploring this article about grey and white matter.

And although “grey matter” doesn’t seem to be the star of many videos any of us would actually like to watch, the one below is actually quite good. And watchable.

Thank you and more to come.

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You’ll also find info on our beautiful theme song, used with permission from the artist, below.

Best, Ellen
ellen@thebrainandbeyond.com

I hope you enjoy the music I’ve arranged with artist Lucia Lilikoi to share on my podcast.

Here’s her website, lilikoimusic.com … and you can listen to the full version here, and follow her on Apple Music and Spotify. Her website links to a range listening platforms. Enjoy.