ROBISON SISTERHOOD PRESIDENT Jean Rivin, center, presents a pot of flowers to Paul Burnstein and Ines de Souza of Sinai Family Home Services to thank the two for their presentation to the sisterhood’s March 3 meeting at Robison Jewish Health Center.

Sisterhood learns about brain health

By DEBORAH MOON

article created on: 2009-03-15T00:00:00

The Robison Sisterhood learned about “Brain Health: Tips for Mental Agility” when they hosted two Sinai Family Home Services staffers at the March meeting.

SFHS Executive Director Paul Burnstein and Home Care Manager Ines de Souza told sisterhood members that brain stimulation, the right foods, a healthy weight and technology can all help stave off the onset of dementia. SFHS is the non-profit home care agency created by Jewish Family and Child Service and Cedar Sinai Park, home of Robison Jewish Health Center.

“To remain ourselves, who we are as people, we need to keep ourselves sharp and aware,” said Burnstein. “Avoiding dementia is only so much under our control, but we should do all in our power to push off dementia.”

Burnstein recommended stimulating brain activity with puzzles and games such as crosswords, Monopoly, Sudoka, Scrabble and card games, which require “you to figure out strategy or recall information from the past.”

Scrapbooking also requires recalling people and events to create captions for photos. Storytelling and writing stimulate creative thought for fiction writing or memory for documenting personal and family history.

“Comedy—laughing is so important for the mind and body,” said Burnstein, noting the health benefits of endorphins released during laughter.

Friendship and purpose in life also stimulate the brain, he said.

Burnstein also suggested making use of new technology such as Nintendo’s Wii to preserve and build hand-eye coordination by allowing people to “play” games such as tennis and bowling in their living room.

De Sousa discussed the importance of a healthy weight and diet as ways to combat the onset of dementia.

“One study of the Alzeheimr Association found if you are obese in middle age, you have twice the risk of developing dementia,” de Sousa said.

Aerobic exercise, walking, yoga and dancing are all excellent forms of exercise, she said.

Talking about the right foods, de Sousa said the darker the better. For example, dark chocolate and espresso coffee have the most benefits. And dark vegetables have the highest nutrient content.

Omega-3 fatty acids, green tea, Acai berries and blueberries are other good foods to add, she said.

SFHS can be reached at 503-542-0088.