How Fidgeting Increases Brain Activity
Are you the type to tap your foot – or drum your fingers? Sure it may annoy other people – but according to research from MIT, it’s a signal of “cognitive restlessness” – and it means your mental wheels are turning.
That type of fidgeting increases levels of neurotransmitters in the brain that control focus and attention.
There was one study that found that people who were allowed to doodle while on a conference call remembered more facts and details about the call later than those who weren’t. It’s also been shown that people with ADHD do better on some cognitive tasks when they’re occupied by “spontaneous bodily activity” – also known as fidgeting.
That’s because movements, like foot tapping, increase blood flow to the brain – specifically the region that controls executive function – which helps us focus, governs our decision-making skills, and our self-control.
How Pets show us the healthiest way to get up in the Morning
What can our PETS teach us about how to get up in the morning?
According to sleep medicine expert Dr. Joanne Getsy, pets RARELY ever start their day in a panic!
They don’t scramble out of bed to turn off an alarm…… and then rush to hit the shower before begging someone for food and a walk! Instead, most pets wake up slowly and spend time stretching and yawning before getting going.
And Dr. Getsy says we humans could benefit from taking the same slow approach each morning:
First, because stretching BEFORE getting out of bed helps gently increase your heart rate and blood pressure. And that’s important since the sudden switch to being active – after being unconscious while asleep – makes us THREE TIMES more likely to have a heart attack in the morning, compared to later in the day.
Plus, slow waking causes less of a spike to your blood sugar and adrenaline levels. And by increasing your energy slowly in the morning, you’ll be less likely to experience a dramatic energy CRASH in the afternoon.
There you go. What our PETS can teach us about how to spend our mornings.
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