Six

Neuroplasticity for Breakfast

NEUROPLASTICITY REFERS TO OUR brain’s ability to change. As we’ve already discussed, scientists once believed that our brains were essentially done growing and changing when we reached adulthood. But throughout the last several years, rapid advancements in neuroscience have demonstrated that our brains actually produce new neurons until our dying day.1

When we are young, our brains contain billions of nerve cells or neurons. As we grow, these neurons branch out and form millions of synapses (connections with other neurons) each day. The connections form networks, and it is these networks of synapses that actually store our knowledge and experiences. The more we use a particular network of neurons, the denser ...

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