Lifestyle change for inflammation

Lifestyle changes Many aspects of a person’s lifestyle can influence inflammation levels. These include: sleep exercise mental health environmental factors, such as pollution smoking drinking alcohol hormone levels aging The following may help someone lower their inflammation levels: Stopping smoking Giving up smoking can help reduce inflammationTrusted Source. It also lowers the risk of many inflammatory conditions and, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), adds up to 10 yearsTrusted Source to a person’s life expectancy. Getting regular exercise Regular exercise works to reduce inflammation in several ways. For example, it can help people maintain a moderate weight, benefit their mental health, and directly reduce the amount of inflammatory chemicals in the body. One 2017 study suggests that getting just 20 minutes of moderate exercise may be enough to reduce TNF levels. The authors note that this may benefit people with low grade inflammation. Looking after mental health Stress is a risk factor for many mental health conditions, and it can also increase inflammation. Depending on a person’s circumstances, they may wish to try: being mindful of when stress arises noticing situations or thoughts that often cause it thinking about ways to manage the triggers, such as asking for help, delegating tasks, or talking with a friend creating time for relaxing activities, such as yoga, meditation, creative hobbies, or being in nature speaking with a therapist or counselor, particularly if chronic stress or anxiety is having an impact on daily life or physical health 4. Relational skills Relational Frame Theory (RFT) relates to human cognition and language development through relational associations. Relational frame theory argues that the building block of human language and higher cognition is relating, i.e. the human ability to create bidirectional links between things. For example, understanding that the words ‘dinner’ and ‘supper’ are two different ways to explain the same thing. Research from 2016 echoes older research that indicates using RFT as an intervention can significantly improve IQ scores in children. The same study found that children also had improved verbal and numeric reasoning skills after the RFT intervention. Activities that involve relational training include: language learning books (“this is a…” and “that is a…”) object comparisons (full cup versus empty cup) amount comparisons (penny versus dime) 5. Musical instruments You don’t have to become the next famous musician to benefit from learning a musical instrument. One study found that just 75 minutesTrusted Source of music lessons per week for 12 weeks significantly increased IQ scores in preschool-aged children. A newer 2021 study also showed that instrumental music training may improve some executive functioning in children ages 6-7. Adults can benefit from music training, too. Another studyTrusted Source found a positive relationship between the duration of musical practice in adults and executive functioning. Given memory’s important role in intelligence, it may benefit your IQ to finally pick up that musical instrument you’ve always wanted to learn. However, just listening to music has benefits, too. A 2018 studyTrusted Source found that a musically-enriched environment could improve children’s verbal IQ scores. 6. New languages It should come as no surprise that learning multiple languages is beneficial to the human brain — and the earlier, the better. However, the age at which you learn a new language may dictate whether or not the practice is helpful in improving your intelligence. A studyTrusted Source from 2020 found that adults who took 11 weeks of language training did not improve their intelligence or IQ scores. However, a recent studyTrusted Source investigated the relationship between early language learning and IQ. The results indicated that language learning through talk and interaction from 18 to 24 months was most beneficial for cognitive outcomes later in life. While learning a new language at any age can helpTrusted Source improve overall cognitive abilities, the critical window for influencing IQ scores is during toddlerhood. 7. Frequent reading There’s no denying how beneficial books are in human cognitive development. In fact, the benefits of development are even more pronounced when books become part of parental bonding activities. In one recent study, researchers discoveredTrusted Source that when parents read aloud to their children, the child had greater language and cognitive development skills. 8. Continued education Education, in any form, is crucial to the development of human intelligence. In a reviewTrusted Source of studies on IQ and education, over 600,000 participants were studied to determine the effect of education on IQ levels. Researchers found that participants experienced a boost of one to five IQ points for every additional year of formal education.