Want to keep your brain resilient as you age? Dementia specialist shares 7 everyday habits

If you want to age with a healthier brain, add these expert-recommended habits to your routine.

As one ages, forgetfulness may gradually creep in. It can be a normal part of ageing and may vary from person to person. But the extent of cognitive decline also depends on one's cognitive reserve, the brain's ability to adapt, reorganise, and continue functioning despite age-related changes or damage.ALSO READ: Good news for coffee lovers: Study links caffeine to reduced dementia risk, reveals how much to drink

It is important to safeguard your brain and strengthen the cognitive reserve, as with age you are also at risk of many neurodegenerative diseases. This can be achieved through simple but consistent lifestyle habits that support your long-term brain health.

Neha Sinha, dementia specialist, CEO and co-founder of Epoch Elder Care, shared with HT Lifestyle some simple everyday habits that can help strengthen cognitive reserve and support long-term brain health.

Revealing the brain's remarkable ability to adapt and change, Neha explained how cognitive reserve influences the way one processes memories, and it also provides protection against cognitive decline.

She said, "Our brains are more dynamic than we realise - and our cognitive reserve shows us exactly how our memories are stored and builds our reality. Dementia is a condition that affects these cognitive functions, but when we build our cognitive reserves intentionally, it reduces the risk of dementia.”

Citing WHO findings, she noted that researchers attributed nearly 45 per cent of dementia cases to modifiable everyday risk factors, habits and circumstances that may be within our control rather than determined solely by our genes.

So, how can you strengthen your cognitive reserve and make your brain more resilient? Here are seven everyday habits that may help, according to the expert, who also cited the studies supporting these recommendations:

1. Pick up a language, or an instrument

• Learning a new language, or anything that gets both hands working, like playing an instrument, genuinely reshapes the brain.
• One of the more reliable ways to trigger neuroplasticity and keep both cognitive and motor pathways firing.

Learn a new musical instrument!

2. Don't shortchange sleep

• Chronic insomnia raises cognitive impairment by 40 percent, as per a large neurology study from late 2025.

3. Get the checkups done

• Hearing dips, blurry vision, creeping blood pressure should not be dismissed.
• Hearing loss, vision loss, and hypertension can all lead to brain damage; early diagnosis actually matters.

4. Just move daily

• Even 30 minutes of movement can increase cognitive functioning, as per a 2026 Monash University study.

5. Eat mindfully

• MIND diet with greens, nuts, berries, whole grains, and lean meat shows a lower risk of brain damage.

6. Working on your network and socialising

• Late-life social connection builds real cognitive reserve.

7. Keep brain meaningfully engaged

• Trying to create purpose by reading, journaling, crosswords, or just anything that keeps the brain working instead of working on autopilot is consistently linked to stronger cognitive reserve.

Why is a resilient cognitive reserve important? According to the dementia specialist, it is critical as India's population ages, making it essentially important to understand how to protect cognitive health.

Neha said, “India's elderly population is projected to reach nearly 340 million by 2050, and almost 9 million Indians older than 60 years are estimated to be living with dementia; a number that is projected to rise to 1.7 crore by 2036. This science couldn't be more timely. None of these seven habits demands grand gestures; they're built quietly, in choices most of us already have within reach.”

Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.