Improve Cognitive Function in Minutes
How Meditation Helps You Maintain Brain Health
M editation has often been touted by New Age gurus as a way to find inner peace and stillness. But what if meditating could reduce the effects of aging on your brain? According to research, taking a few minutes out of your day to meditate may improve cognitive function. As meditation’s popularity has spread, so have studies of the practice. The results of 100 studies examining the cognitive effects of meditation all show evidence of improvements in psychological and cognitive functions. Some of the results are intuitive, such as how meditation helps us deal with stress. But other results are incontrovertible, such as scans showing that meditation causes structural changes in the brain. For people facing age-related changes like memory loss, the results of these tests are especially relevant. The studies point to evidence that meditation can strengthen certain areas of the brain — the prefrontal
cortex, the hippocampus, and the amygdala — that weaken as we age. The Prefrontal Cortex Your prefrontal cortex thins with age, which is associated with decreased cognitive function in your later years. However, meditation may reduce this age-related thinning. Dr. Sara Lazar, a neuroscientist specializing in the effects of yoga and meditation on cognitive and behavioral function, reports that long-time meditators don’t show a decline in the thickness of the prefrontal cortex. The Hippocampus Your hippocampus helps you process and form new memories, and it’s very sensitive to stress. In fact, research shows that your
correlation between meditation and a higher concentration of gray matter in the left hippocampus. The Amygdala Often called the fear center of the brain, the amygdala is triggered by stressful situations. But unlike the hippocampus, which shrinks in response to stress, the amygdala has been shown to become denser. In one study, people who attended mindfulness meditation classes showed a smaller stress response in brain scans compared to those who did not attend the classes. Meditation may help to decrease the density of the amygdala and therefore increase your ability to handle stress. Of course, in addition to these benefits, there’s a good chance that five minutes of meditation each day will simply make you feel better. People who meditate report an increase in overall well-being. Why not give it a try? Private Foundations are charitable organizations created and funded by a donor as a trust or a nonprofit organization, which is designed to achieve one or more specific charitable functions. Rabbi Trusts are set up by corporations to support nonqualified, deferred compensation plans for selected executives. Irrevocable Life Insurance Trusts, or ILITs, are used to shelter an insurance death benefit from estate taxes and can provide liquidity to pay estate taxes and settlement costs. Credit Shelter Trusts allow married couples, who may have to pay estate taxes, to reduce those taxes by taking full advantage of state and federal estate tax exemptions.
hippocampus will shrink in response to stressful situations and chronic stress. The remedy? Meditation. Dr. Lazar’s study showed a positive
A TRUST FOR EVERYNEED 10 Common Types of Trusts
As you know, there are two categories of trusts: revocable and irrevocable. That said, there are many types of trusts that can fall under both categories. Each type is designed to help you meet specific objectives. Here are some examples of commonly used trusts: Survivor’s Trusts are created by an individual during their lifetime to provide for a surviving spouse, domestic partner, or other loved one. There are many different types of Survivor’s Trusts including, but not limited to, Family Trusts, Bypass Trusts, and Credit Shelter Trusts.
descendants.
Special Needs Trusts ensure that any supplemental or living expenses not paid by other sources are paid over the course of a disabled person’s lifetime. SNTs may also be set up with the disabled person’s own funds to provide for supplemental medical or living expenses. Charitable Remainder Trusts are irrevocable trusts with both income and remainder interests. Income is paid to designated beneficiaries for a certain term or lifetime. The remainder interest is paid to qualified organizations as specified in the trust document when the trust terminates. Charitable Lead Trusts are irrevocable trusts that generate a potential income stream for one or more charities of the donor’s choice, with the remaining assets eventually going to family members or other beneficiaries.
Guardianship Trusts protect and handle the assets of minors.
Generation-Skipping Trusts, also called GSTs or Dynasty Trusts, provide distributions for the benefit of a child for life, with the remainder continuing on for the grandchildren or more remote
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