If you feel at home in the kitchen, planning and preparing nutritious meals, congratulations. You’re not only refueling your body. You’re stimulating your brain with the type of workout it needs to remain healthy.
Cleveland Clinic is a non-profit academic medical center. Advertising on our site helps support our mission. We do not endorse non-Cleveland Clinic products or services. Policy
“A nourishing, home-cooked meal, shared with friends or family, is a familiar activity that exercises the brain,” says Marwan Sabbagh, MD, Director of Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health. “It provides the nutrition our bodies crave and encourages social interaction, all of which are critical to preserving cognitive fitness.”
Many brain processes involved in getting dinner on the table are classified as executive functions, Dr. Sabbah says. That means they help us plan and control goal-directed thoughts and actions.
“Executive functions test our ability to organize, prioritize, sustain focus, solve problems, retrieve memories and multitask,” he explains. They are located principally in the prefrontal regions of the brain’s frontal lobe, with connections to other brain regions.
Hosting an intricate dinner party will surely tax your executive functioning, but smaller-scale meals demand equivalent skills:
Executive function also applies to another dimension: managing frustration and controlling emotions.
You may have to draw on these cognitive resources if your meal preparation goes awry or your dinner falls flat, despite your best efforts.
“Don’t despair,” Dr. Sabbah reassures. “Grace under pressure is just one more sign of a healthy brain!”
Even one drink can have an impact on your cognitive function leading to slurred speech, blurred vision and impaired memory
The popular cooking method can help you cut down on fat without losing the flavor and texture of your favorite foods
It’s touted as a healthier alternative to cane sugar, but basically, well ... it’s still just sugar
You don’t have to sacrifice your favorite recipes for healthier versions
This first-of-its-kind study aims to identify biomarkers of neurological disorders
Jujube is nutritionally dense, but research is limited
Different parts are responsible for different things, but you use both sides all the time
Mushroom coffee is expensive and has fewer health benefits than eating whole mushrooms
A healthy diet can easily meet your body’s important demands for magnesium
A super high heart rate means you’re burning more than fat
Type 2 diabetes isn’t inevitable with these dietary changes