Doctors point out 4 things to avoid in the evening to keep your brain healthy.

Avoiding late dinners, limiting late nights, and refraining from late-night bathing contribute to allowing the brain to rest, relax, and improve sleep quality.

The brain consumes about 20% of the body’s total energy, even though it only accounts for about 2% of body weight. After a day of processing information, memorizing, coordinating emotions, and movement, the brain needs to enter a resting state in the evening to restore biological balance.

Dr. Hoang Quyet Tien, from the Medical Information Center, Tam Anh General Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City, points out some things to avoid doing in the evening that can help protect the brain.

Avoid eating late at night.

Eat dinner about 2-3 hours before bedtime to allow the body to easily transition to a resting state. Eating late can disrupt the circadian rhythm, affecting sleep quality and energy metabolism. When sleep is shortened or not deep enough, the brain’s ability to recover during the night is reduced.

In the evening, the biological clock begins to signal the body to prepare for sleep. Melatonin levels gradually increase, core body temperature decreases, and metabolic activity slows down. If you eat at this time, the digestive system, liver, and pancreas are activated to process food. Blood sugar rises, insulin is secreted simultaneously with an increase in body temperature, creating physiological signals that are the opposite of the sleep preparation process.

Eating late at night is not good for the brain. Photo: Dinh Dieu

Avoid staying up late

Sleeping at the right time allows the body to rest, creating conditions for the brain to perform maintenance processes that are not as effective when awake.

During deep sleep, the glymphatic system (a specialized waste filtration network of the central nervous system) is more active. This activity supports cerebrospinal fluid circulation through brain tissue to remove metabolic products accumulated after a day of activity, including beta-amyloid and tau – two proteins associated with Alzheimer’s disease.

During sleep, glymphatic system activity increases. Therefore, staying up late and getting less sleep will shorten the time the brain can eliminate neurotransmitters.

Avoid showering late at night

Many people have the habit of showering right before bed because they finish work late, exercise in the evening, or come home late from going out. However, showering too late after 10 PM will unnecessarily wake the body, which needs more time to regulate its temperature before entering a state of rest.

Dr. Tien advises that adults should arrange their work appropriately and avoid showering after 9 PM. If working late, too close to bedtime, they can wipe themselves down or take a quick warm shower, and then shower the next morning to help the body feel more alert and refreshed, contributing to limiting the impact on blood pressure and brain function.

Avoid watching videos late at night

The habit of browsing short videos before bedtime, switching from one video to another, causes viewers to stay up late. The brain continues to receive and process information instead of preparing for sleep. Exposure to blue light can cause insomnia and restlessness throughout the night. Dr. Tien advises that to have a good night’s sleep and wake up feeling refreshed the next morning, everyone should turn off electronic devices 1-2 hours before bedtime, listen to soft music or meditate, and maintain a relaxed state of mind. Enjoying certain teas such as lotus seed tea or chamomile tea can help relax before sleep. Regularly supplementing with natural extracts such as anthocyanins and pterostilbene from blueberries and ginkgo biloba can help fight free radicals. These extracts can also improve blood circulation to the brain, thereby protecting nerve cells and improving sleep quality.