Want to keep your brain sharp? Here are 5 things you can do

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The health of our brains can change as we age. 

For some, that might look like worries about memory loss. But experts say cognitive health is about much more than forgetting someone's name or where you put your phone. 

It also includes focus and concentration, judgment and intuition, and learning. 

As we age, we lose neurons. But as we gain experience and knowledge, we also make new ones, said neurologist Dr. Steven Laureys. 

"That's neuroplasticity in action," Laureys told Dr. Brian Goldman, host of CBC's The Dose. "You're challenging what you know today and what you will be able to do tomorrow." 

Neuroplasticity is the way the brain can change its structure over time.

There are lots of things we can do to help our brains stay sharp — including learning new things, staying social, being physically active, sleeping well, and meditating. 

It's normal to pay less attention to certain things as we age because we've done them thousands of times, said Dr. Veena Dwivedi, a psychology and neuroscience professor at Brock University who researches the brain and language. 

She suggests taking a new route home from the store, for example, so your brain will have to work a little harder. 

"Make it novel so that you will pay attention," said Dwivedi. 

To help your brain, try learning something that is unfamiliar and challenging, said Dr. Manuel Montero-Odasso, a professor of medicine at Western University and the director of the Gait and Brain Lab. 

For example, you could learn a new language or a new musical instrument, he said.

"This kind of challenge, in the beginning, generates more communication between the neurons," said Montero-Odasso.