There are many factors that can affect your brain age and often they have nothing to do with your true age. Every day we are given an array of choices to make. There are many choices that can affect the brain positively and negatively.

Diet and exercise definitely can affect your brain age. With regular exercise, you get more oxygen-rich blood to your brain. By managing your diet, you can also help control your cholesterol, blood pressure, and blood sugar. Diabetes is a risk factor for dementia. Improve your diet by not only keeping track of your general calorie intake but also making sure that you are eating the right kinds of food. Proper vitamin intake has also shown to decrease risks of dementia.

Socializing can affect brain age. Studies have shown those with a good social network, whether it be with friends, family, or co-workers, on a daily basis had a much smaller risk of developing dementia. Phone calls, meeting friends for lunch or shopping, having a BBQ, taking a class, are all great ways to stay social. This can prove especially helpful for those that stay home with the children or work from home and would generally have less social interaction than those that work outside the home several days a week. It's also important to keep this in mind for those that inherently aren't as social as they could be. It's important to get out there and socialize.

Challenging your brain on a daily basis with fun and simple games like puzzles, brainteasers, board games, and even video games. Games like these challenge your brain and can affect your brain age. These games help with your memory, concentration, help you to process information quickly and efficiently, problem-solving, and help you learn how to multi-task. These skills are invaluable to our daily lives and you can build these skills by challenging your brain on a daily basis with a variety of different games and enjoy yourself in the process.

If you are not already making these positive choices in your lifestyle, it's not too late to start. Keep in mind that your brain age doesn't necessarily have to be the same as your true age and there are things that you can do every day to keep your mind sharp while having fun in the process.