With advancing age, it is natural that concentration and memory ability to change, as brain efficiency gradually decreases with aging. Many people notice that they become more distracted and find it harder to focus on simple everyday tasks, such as completing a job, retaining information from a book or even following a conversation.
“When we talk about concentration capacity, we have to talk about brain, but also behavioral standard. One of them is sleep quality, for example. A person who suffers from apnea will probably have difficulties in concentration. Overweight people can also suffer more from this problem,” says doctor Sley Tanigawa Guimarães, coordinator of the Albert Einstein HEALTH COLLEGE MEDICAL MEDICINE.
Generally, focus and attention problems become more evident from the age of 50, but may arise well before, especially in women in perimenopausal – the transitional period that begins about ten years before menopause. In this phase, marked by hormonal changes in the female body, it is common for women to begin to realize difficulties of concentration from the age of 40.
However, while these changes are expected to some degree, there are several ways to keep their minds active and prevent these problems from becoming more intense over time. Small changes in habits can be enough.
“People don’t have to despair and look for medical diagnoses, type ADHH [Transtorno de Déficit de Atenção e Hiperatividade] or dementia. However, when concentration difficulties become frequent and significantly impact daily life, bringing losses to work and day to day, then it is important to seek medical help, ”guides Guimarães.
Here are some strategies to improve concentration:
1. Prepare the environment
Before performing any activity that requires concentration, it is important to choose a suitable place – the mess can distract your mind and “steal” your attention. Try to organize your working space so that it is a pleasant, silent, well -lit, airy, and preferably away from television. “The person needs to feel as comfortable as possible to complete the task,” says Sley Guimarães.
2. Eliminate distractions
The brain takes time to resume focus after an interruption. So when you start working on a task, turn off the TV, set messages on your computer, silence your smartphone (disable notifications from the mobile phone or turn on the “don’t disturb” mode) and close unnecessary tabs on the computer.
If you think some background noise helps in concentration, use headphones and turn on some soft sounds such as bird corners or instrumental music. If you need total silence, a suggestion is to use ear protectors or headphones that block surrounding sounds. “We have access to a lot of information all the time, many times without even asking or going after. This has been distracted a lot of people,” says the doctor.
3. Avoid multitasking
The ability to concentrate can be impaired when we take many demands at once. “If the mind keeps thinking of several things at the same time, jumping from one subject to another, our body is in a state of stress,” warns Guimarães.
Do one task at a time until you are completed and then go to the next – avoid starting something while performing other activities. “This is time management. It’s no use starting a job, answering an email and paying attention to your child at the same time,” says the doctor.
When you have several simultaneous obligations, choose the two more essential and leave the others for another time. Set very very specific goals: Determine date and time to accomplish that task.
Our brain works better when it has a goal and this helps to reduce procrastination. “When we overwhelm of actions and do not end them, besides the effect of not being over, the brain cannot ignore that it was not done. This generates stress and distraction,” explains Guimarães.
4. Make scheduled breaks
It is normal to get tired after performing a task that requires a lot of concentration. Hence because making small breaks is essential to recharge the energy. You can put an alarm on your cell phone to warn the timing moment, or realize when the body begins to give signs that it is tired and the mind is starting to ramble. Five minutes to stretch the body and take a short walk can be enough to recharge the energies.
“We say that resilience is not about how much you can handle, but about how you recharge. Making small breaks during the task not to get to the staff is very important. We have the biggest breaks, such as bedtime, weekend, vacation, but these small interruptions are also key,” points out the expert.
5.
Physical activity also plays a very important role for concentration capacity. Aerobic exercise or even bodybuilding, when done regularly, help to improve blood circulation and oxygenation of the brain.
If you realize that you are very distracted during a task and need a quick increase in concentration, do any physical activity, even for a few minutes. “Every movement matters. Climbing a staircase on your building, for example, already helps to recharge the focus,” proposes the doctor.
6. Train your mind
Concentration can also be strengthened with meditation practice and relaxation techniques. “They help us get out of this very busy state of mind that makes us feel stress and causes so much distraction,” says Guimarães.
According to the doctor, these practices contribute to maintain the focus and calm the mind – and the more this becomes a daily action, the more it is possible to improve the ability to concentrate and not react on impulse.
Meditation applications or a trained professional can help, but the main recommendation is to keep the body and mind always active. “This is the biggest secret of all. Keep your brain active, bring new stimuli, learn other languages, learn to play instruments, read more books,” says Einstein doctor.
7.
The trend of those who eat many ultra -processed – products full of sugar, fat, sodium and chemical additives – is to be more sleepy, less carefully. “In the long run, if we maintain a more balanced eating pattern, with a rainbow of vegetables on the plate, this will help us maintain the intestinal microbiota in order, and it has a direct relationship with brain health,” says Guimarães.
It is also not recommended to consume energy or caffeine to combat an exhaustion moment – exaggerated use can cause tachycardia, agitation and worsening concentration.
8. Reward your achievements
Knowing that you will have a reward can motivate to keep the focus. After finishing a task, celebrate this little achievement and take a moment to relax. “This also provides a dose of satisfaction and reward for the brain. It is becoming more engaged and helps us maintain that behavior [de concentração]”Says Sley Guimarães.
Was this content originally published in has difficulty focusing? Check out 8 tips to maintain focus on CNN Brazil.
Source: CNN Brasil
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