{"id":513868,"date":"2026-04-05T08:08:15","date_gmt":"2026-04-05T08:08:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/513868\/"},"modified":"2026-04-05T08:08:15","modified_gmt":"2026-04-05T08:08:15","slug":"stop-the-brain-rot-12-ways-to-stay-sharp-in-a-mind-frazzling-world-health-wellbeing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/513868\/","title":{"rendered":"Stop the brain rot! 12 ways to stay sharp in a mind-frazzling world | Health & wellbeing"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ever had one of those days when you get nothing done but still somehow feel exhausted? Of course you have: brain rot, the Oxford word of the year for 2024<\/a>, isn\u2019t yet in any medical dictionaries, but it\u2019s probably best understood as the decline in cognitive abilities that comes from endless exposure to easily digestible information. And, thanks to the ubiquity of short\u2011form video and social media, it\u2019s almost certainly on the rise.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we\u2019re engaging with this sort of media, our brains are both underworked \u2013 because the information is easy to understand \u2013 and overworked because there is so much information to absorb,\u201d says Dr Wendy Ross, a senior lecturer in psychology at London Metropolitan University. \u201cThat\u2019s why you end up tired even if you\u2019re just scrolling on your couch.\u201d Want to throw the process into reverse and recover your attention? Here\u2019s how.<\/p>\n

Learn to do cryptic crosswords<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t be afraid that you find some things hard,\u201d says Ross. \u201cThings that require considerable mental effort, such as cryptic crosswords, can reset the balance between effort and reward, and evidence shows that being stuck and working through it leads to feelings of mastery and success that last and increase over time. Putting moments of cognitive friction in your life rather than finding the information instantly is a good protection.\u201d<\/p>\n

Good places to start are Minute Cryptic<\/a> \u2013 it will take you through the fundamentals of crossword solving, with just a single clue (plus hints!) every day \u2013 and the Guardian\u2019s quick cryptic crossword page<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Stop using AI for easy answers<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the age of AI, the biggest cognitive trap is outsourcing your thinking before your brain even gets a chance to start on the work. Many people have heard the phrase \u2018use it or lose it\u2019 when it comes to the brain, but if you don\u2019t practise a skill, or challenge your brain to begin with, you won\u2019t build those pathways at all,\u201d says Dr Lila Landowski, a neuroscientist and senior lecturer in biomedical sciences at the University of Tasmania. \u201cRelying on AI excessively is like having a personal trainer lift weights for you \u2013 it might get the work done, but you get none of the benefits. Resist the temptation to use it, especially as a first step. Generate drafts and ideas yourself. Allow yourself to make mistakes. Coming up with your own answers (even if they\u2019re wrong), and then checking to see if they\u2019re correct, enhances learning. Through education, complex work, socialising and variety \u2013 essentially anything that challenges you in a productive way \u2013 you build cognitive reserve. And the more cognitive reserve you build, the longer you can delay cognitive decline.\u201d<\/p>\n

Exercise at different intensities<\/p>\n

Almost any sort of physical exercise can improve mood, learning and memory, and even increase brain volume \u2013 but you\u2019ll get most benefit if you mix it up, says Landowski. \u201cAerobic exercise supports the formation of new brain cells in the hippocampus, the memory centre of the brain, by increasing the production of proteins like brain-derived neurotrophic factor, or BDNF. At the same time, resistance exercise promotes the production of hormones like osteocalcin, a crucial endocrine regulator of brain development and function. Together, these factors act a bit like a brain fertiliser, helping brain cells grow and connect.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ideally, you should do a bit of low-intensity cardiovascular exercise every week \u2013 think walking, slow running or cycling \u2013 paired with some weight training or press-ups and squats. But if you\u2019re up to it, the most anti-brain-rot workout might also be the most intense. \u201cPractising high-intensity interval training (Hiit) three times a week is one of the only forms of exercise shown not just to delay cognitive decline, but to actually improve cognition,\u201d says Landowski. \u201cAnd there\u2019s a bonus: people who did Hiit for six months and then stopped still showed cognitive benefits<\/a> five years later.\u201d Don\u2019t jump into it too quickly: a \u201creverse Tabata<\/a>\u201d \u2013 10 seconds of maximum effort and 20 seconds of rest, repeated eight times \u2013 is a decent starting point.<\/p>\n

\u2018Wash\u2019 your brain with sleep<\/p>\n

Nobody feels great after a disrupted night\u2019s sleep, but proper rest is also essential over the long term: it\u2019s during deep-sleep stages that the brain\u2019s glymphatic system kicks into gear, acting like a soft reset. \u201cOver the course of the day, metabolic waste accumulates in the brain, and it is only removed when the glymphatic system is active,\u201d says Landowski. \u201cSleep, and especially non-rapid eye movement sleep, doubles the clearance of waste through the glymphatic system.\u201d Your body position might make a difference \u2013 studies in mice<\/a> suggest that sleeping on your side improves clearance the most. But the best intervention is to set a consistent sleep schedule and stick to it.<\/p>\n

Schedule screen breaks<\/p>\n

It\u2019s fine to tell yourself you\u2019ll spend less time on your devices, but without a plan it\u2019s unlikely to happen. \u201cTreat screen-free breaks as non-negotiable commitments, as you would a work meeting or a family obligation,\u201d says Alison Campbell, a wellness coach and founder of the corporate wellbeing company unBurnt. \u201cLeave your phone in a different room so you\u2019re not distracted by notifications, and try to commit to 30 minutes of digital detoxing per day to give yourself space to cognitively reset from all the noise.\u201d The real trick is to make off-screen time a treat, rather than an obligation. \u201cPick a few things to have in your go-to toolkit that you enjoy,\u201d suggests Campbell. \u201cThat could be reading a physical book, gardening \u2013 indoor potted plants count! \u2013 or creative expression like journalling, painting or sketching. Even short windows help break the cycle of mental fatigue that leads to brain rot.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"IllustrationIllustration by Serge SeidlitzRead (slightly) faster<\/p>\n

Struggling to concentrate on your book? One explanation might be that you\u2019re not finding it challenging enough. \u201cEstimates vary slightly, but it\u2019s believed our brains process information at a rate of about 1,400 words per minute,\u201d says Oscar de Bos, the author of Focus On-Off<\/a>. \u201cThe average reading rate, for example, is about 250 words per minute, which is significantly slower \u2013 so it\u2019s perhaps no wonder that our brains start thinking about other things when texts are a bit dry. My fix for this is when I find my mind starting to wander, I move my eyes across the lines a bit faster. By increasing my reading rate, the task becomes more challenging. This draws me deeper into stories while boosting my focus, which makes it much easier to absorb and remember information. This method works equally well for people with dyslexia as it does for anyone else struggling with common tasks we encounter at work. It\u2019s a principle I call \u2018filling the void\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stop task-switching<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery time we switch, part of our brains clings to what we were doing before, making it more difficult to continue working,\u201d says De Bos. \u201cProfessor of management Sophie Leroy calls this attention residue<\/a>: part of our attention lingers with the previous activity, which slows us down and causes us to make more mistakes. This phenomenon occurs after even the most subtle attention switches \u2013 after a quick peek at your inbox or phone, your brain takes a while to return to the previous task.\u201d One practical way to avoid this, suggests De Bos, is to switch off all your \u201cnon-human\u201d notifications \u2013 whether it\u2019s from a social media app or pizza delivery company. Another is to schedule your most important jobs earlier in the day, so there\u2019s no lingering attention residue from other tasks distracting you while you tackle them.<\/p>\n

Train your awareness<\/p>\n

If things feel chaotic, listen to what\u2019s going on around you, then pick out a particular sound \u2013 birdsong, a ticking clock, distant traffic \u2013 and focus on it briefly. \u201cThis awareness enhancement training is derived from a technique for the treatment of anxiety and depression,\u201d says clinical hypnotherapist Paul Levrant. \u201cIt naturally develops the \u2018attention muscle\u2019. It can be best to start with an artificial soundtrack \u2013 there are plenty on YouTube \u2013 but the more you practise, the better you get. Taking things further, employ the same approach to utilising your other senses \u2013 for instance, concentrating on how your clothes feel on your skin or the places your body is in contact with your chair \u2013 can accelerate progress greatly.\u201d<\/p>\n

Do a \u2018stress scan\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cTake 10 minutes to pause and think about the things that are making you nervous or feel the heaviest,\u201d suggests Campbell. \u201cWhen we name our stressors, it helps to restore cognitive executive functioning and lessens the intensity of the emotional response. We can more easily get back to rational thinking and create a plan for how we\u2019ll deal with the circumstances, rather than seeking an escape like binge-watching or doomscrolling.\u201d<\/p>\n

Walk mindfully<\/p>\n

Out for a lunchtime stroll? If you don\u2019t need to go any further than Pret, you might as well slow it down. \u201cBecome aware of every movement the body makes as it walks: feeling your feet on the ground, the shifting of weight, the employment of individual muscles and tendons, and so on,\u201d says Levrant. \u201cOnce the habit of focusing in this way becomes more natural, it\u2019s no great shift to enjoy enhanced attention in all other areas.\u201d<\/p>\n

Revisit an old hobby<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s strong evidence that rekindling old hobbies, such as continuing to learn that language you always wanted to master, learning a musical instrument, or singing, dancing or photography, are all stimulating multiple areas of the brain at once while also building new circuits,\u201d says Roxi Carare, a professor of clinical neuroanatomy at the University of Southampton. \u201cThis helps very much in slowing down or preventing cognitive decline.\u201d<\/p>\n

Make sure your health checks are up to date<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re in midlife or older, staying on top of your health is a key concern. \u201cHigh blood pressure or abnormal cholesterol are very strong risk factors for dementia,\u201d says Carare. \u201cA combination of a healthy diet, some physical exercise and some socialising will all help, but if you\u2019re in a high-risk group, you should find that out first.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Ever had one of those days when you get nothing done but still somehow feel exhausted? Of course…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":513869,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[59,102,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-513868","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-health","8":"tag-gb","9":"tag-health","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom","12":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/513868","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=513868"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/513868\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/513869"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=513868"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=513868"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=513868"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}