Sleep affects memory, brain boosting works, magic mushrooms may have medical uses, and more - five wellness breakthroughs of 2021

Scientists had some big news about our brains: they keep on making new cells into old age, brain boosting works and the brain is busy even when we sleep

They learned too that we can control our brains through our breathing; meanwhile, doctors know more about how psychedelic drugs work and their possible uses

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Exercise was one of the best medical trends of the year. Here are the top five of 2021. Photo: Getty Images

Published: 4:15pm, 3 Jan 2022Updated: 7:38am, 4 Jan 2022

Aside from the two-year Covid-19 pandemic that continued to saturate the news in 2021, we recap some other research and trends in the limelight in the health and wellness sphere, from how the brain ages and what we can do to protect it, to renewed interest in psychedelic drugs, ongoing studies into the value of breathwork – and the proven importance of quality sleep.

The creation of brain cells does not stop when we get older, and the brain can make new cells and forge new neural connections at any age. Photo: Getty Images

1. 90 is the new 15

Research by neuroscientists is starting to show that we can continue to lead productive lives as we age, and that common beliefs about getting old may be false.

At the centre of the research is the discovery that neurogenesis – the creation of brain cells – does not stop when we get older, and the brain can make new brain cells and forge new neural connections at any age.

Practising brain surgeon Dr Sanjay Gupta, best known as CNN’s chief medical correspondent, says this means that we are open to learning new skills and ways of doing things as we age, dispelling the notion that it’s only young people who can learn how to do new stuff.

What’s more, the research has brought new insights into how to deal with dementia. A sugar-free diet and a good night’s sleep are important for brain health, but the main takeaway is simple – exercise more, and if you can’t do that, move around as much as you can.

Another strand of research claims that the human body is built to survive for 150 years, but we don’t know the practical lifestyle steps we need to take to achieve that yet.

Drugs such as LSD and psilocybin – the psychedelic compound in magic mushrooms – are still banned in most countries. Photo: Getty Images

2. The hippies may have been right

Drugs such as LSD and psilocybin – the psychedelic compound in magic mushrooms – are still banned in most countries. In the United States, they were declared illegal Schedule 1 drugs in 1968. Medical research using the drugs stopped after that, but now researchers are testing psilocybin in the treatment depression, and using it to provide palliative care to patients with terminal diseases.