Whether it's classical, jazz, pop or blues, more research shows that listening to, singing to or playing music builds a stronger and smarter brain. Learn more on the recent podcast with Dr. Jay Kumar on the Doug Stephan Good Day Show. You also can learn more about the benefits of music in my new e-book Brain, Body & Being. 

Dr. Jay Kumar

ENJOY YOUR FREE GIFT

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Feeling overwhelmed, stressed and anxious? The cure might be right outside your window. Studies suggest a short walk in nature improves memory and minimizes brain fatigue. Learn more in my recent podcast on the Doug Stephan Good Day Show. 

Dr. Jay Kumar

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With kids now back in school and off for college, the joy of another academic year begins. As a university professor, I am genuinely passionate for my students to achieve optimal performance in their studies and for our children to aspire to their personal best in all areas of life. 

Here are some well-proven strategies that neuroscience says can making learning fun and easy. Enjoy the full podcast with Dr. Jay Kumar on the Doug Stephan Good Day Show.

Read more in my blog post - "Five Secrets Students Need to Succeed" 

Here's to a Happy & Fun School Year!

Dr. Jay Kumar

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With kids now back in school and off for college, the joy of another academic year begins. As a university professor, I am genuinely passionate for my students to achieve optimal performance in their studies and for our children to aspire to their personal best in all areas of life. 

Let's face it, learning doesn't come easy to everyone, so how can we encourage our children to excel in school? As a professor who teaches courses in neuroscience, health and happiness, I am delighted to share these five scientifically proven tips from educational neuroscience that I offer to my own students to help improve focus, enhance memory and, more importantly, make learning fun! 

Tip # 1 - Take A Breather 

My mantra for the past decade that I’ve been telling to my students and clients is that “how you choose to breathe determines how you choose to live, heal and be.” I’m now going to add to that how you choose to breathe determines how you choose to learn! We’ve all heard the phrase “Take a Breather” when we need to calm down when feeling stressed, frustrated or overwhelmed, but it turns out that the phrase can now be backed up by neuroscience. 

The latest research into mind-body medicine consistently shows that slow, deep, focused breathing into the lower belly activates the body’s natural relaxation-response, a mechanism that is wired into the human nervous system and triggered by consciously shifting the quality of the breath. It now appears that the body's relaxation-response is not only an evolutionary tool for survival, but a vital mechanism to improve focus, maintain calm and boost memory. 

Centering and focusing on your breath is such an effective technique in the learning process that I’ve recently decided to begin every university class that I teach by leading my students in a 5-minute breathing exercise. We now know that when your brain and body come into alignment through the breath, it creates the important 4 C’s for learning: Calmness, Centeredness, Concentration, and Creativity! Watch this simple 5-minute guided video and breathing-exercise to teach help you get on track. 

Tip # 2 - Before You Achieve It, You First Have To Visualize & Believe It! 

Memory is one of the key components in learning. The traditional model of education focused on rote memorization of facts and figures with the expectation to recall such details for an exam. While this type of learning might be good for short-term memorization, true and effective learning is a multi-sensory skill that that requires long-term memory and multiple intelligences. Recent advances in brain-imaging now show that, in fact, different parts of the brain activate in short versus long-term memory. 

The pre-frontal lobe, the outer and more recently developed region of the brain close to the skull, appears to be the predominant area responsible in short-term memory, also known as working-memory. Long-term memory involves more complex and integrated brain regions that employ the older evolutionary and more interior regions of the human brain, specifically the hippocampus and the limbic system. So why is this so important? It turns out these regions of the brain, connected to long-term memory, are where your brain makes cognitive associations and synthesizes incoming data from all your five senses. More importantly, these regions are intimately linked to other areas of the brain that govern emotions and visualization, which utilize other vital forms of intelligence, such as emotional, kinesthetic, visual, and spatial learning.

All the studies in neuroscience now indicate that the brain, like the body, is a muscle that you can strengthen and harness for your advantage to accomplish your goals in life. A technique I use myself and with my own students, which has been recognized to enhance memory, performance and confidence in leaning is cognitive visualization. 

A quote I often use to explain cognitive visualization is: “Before you can achieve it, you first have to visualize and believe it!” Whether you want to call it “creative imagery,” “emotional learning,” or “muscle memory,” neuroscience now validates the long-held believe that in order to accomplish a task, your chance of success increases when you use multiple forms of intelligence, such as emotional, visual and kinesthetic. The technique of cognitive visualization starts by having you first visualize in your mind what you want to accomplish and then feel the emotional quality of successfully achieving that goal.

Let’s take an example where you have to give a report in front of the class. While you will have to prepare for the actual presentation by doing your research, writing your notes, and memorizing your speech, you can also do a cognitive visualization technique on a daily basis before the actual task. Perhaps, you can visualize yourself delivering the presentation to your audience, picture the actual room and even repeat the speech in your mind, while at the same time feeling the emotions of confidence and enthusiasm. 

What you’re doing is actually training a part of your brain known as the premotor cortex to help your body, brain and being prepare for the activity well before the actual event occurs. In a recent article published in the journal Science, years of research into the premotor cortex reveal that this region is what accounts for us effectively planning and strategizing in order to accomplish a goal, whether that is an athletic performance, playing a musical instrument or taking an exam. It is as if your brain is already doing the action even before the body moves a muscle! Learn how cognitive visualization allows Olympic athletes, CEOs and even students gain a considerable advantage when it comes to achieving their goals in my article here. 

Tip # 3 - Shake It Out: Move, Play, & Have Fun

We all know that movement and exercise are important for the body and for optimal health. Recently, more evidence from educational neuroscience supports the conclusion that movement of any kind, whether it’s recess, sports, dance, yoga, or just plain fun and play, stimulates the brain and improves learning! With advances in brain-mapping, we observe that there is a direct correlation between movement and cognitive function, specifically in an area of the brain called the cerebellum, a region located at the base of the brain in the back of the head. While the cerebellum is only about the size of a fist and constitutes about ten percent of the brain’s volume, it contains almost half of all the neurons of the human brain. One reason why the cerebellum is so densely packed with neurons and recognized as the most complex part of your brain is due to the fact that its primary function is to govern motor control. Even more remarkable is that recent studies suggest that the cerebellum’s motor control functions send important signals to other parts of the brain responsible for attention, spatial perception and most importantly, for memory.

Why is this so important for educators, parents and students to know? What the latest medical research indicates is that the same region of your brain that involves movement, exercise, fun and play is the exact same area that governs cognition and learning! While there is a common bias that play and movement are acceptable for only younger children, the scientific evidence overwhelmingly suggests that the brain’s ability to increase cognitive function through movement, exercise and play is one that continues throughout life! 

Not only do exercise, movement and play keep the body healthy, they also appear to stimulate brain activity, improve learning, enhance memory, promote motivation and instill confidence in the learning process. Now that’s one game I’ll gladly play! Read article explaining how movement and exercise improve cognition and learning.

Tip # 4 - Get Outside

Closely connected to the idea of how movement and exercise enhance learning is a corollary concept coming out of neuroscience that nature appears to promote a healthy brain conducive for learning. We all know how peaceful and relaxing it is to sit on the beach, hike in the mountains or enjoy a beautiful sunset, but there appears to be something more profound happening in your brain whenever you’re immersed in nature. In a ground-breaking study published in Psychological Study, a direct correlation was made between being in nature with increased cognitive attention. In 2002, a study was conducted in which 169 young girls living in public housing projects in urban Chicago were divided into two control groups: those living in units overlooking nature and greenery and those living in units void of natural views. The results were astounding. Factoring in all other criteria, the girls who had views of nature consistently performed better than those in the other control group in tests to measure focus, concentration and mental discipline. Similar tests have been conducted in the past few years with the same startling conclusion–nature makes us happy & healthy.

So how exactly does nature improve focus, enhance concentration, and perhaps even reduce anxiety and depression? The answer resides in your brain and relates again to the relaxation response, an evolutionary mechanism that appears to be “wired” into our neurobiology. The growing field of ecopsychology studies the affects of nature on the brain and reveals that your brain has two forms of attention: voluntary (direct) and involuntary (indirect). The voluntary/direct attention enables you to focus your thoughts and harness neural energy for tasks that require direct concentration, e.g. writing this article, taking an exam or listening to a lecture. The other type is an involuntary/indirect attention that your brain does with little or no effort, e.g. watching a sunset, meditating, having a casual conversation, dancing or being in nature.

In our current non-stop technologically driven world, a student's brain is not only bombarded with academic information, but a barrage of texts, emails and other virtual data on a daily basis. The brain is overwhelmed with all this sensory data, as it requires an unimaginable amount of forced and focused attention to be in this voluntary/direct mode. As a result, your brain functions in a constant stressful beta-wave state for the majority of your waking day. Rarely, do we take the time in our awake state for the brain to go into the involuntary/indirect attention state that correlates to the calming, soothing alpha-waves. 

It appears that when we are immersed in nature, our brains automatically drop into the involuntary, indirect attention-mode that is connected with the healing alpha-wave brain state. Research suggests that even a short walk in the park during your lunch break, touching a tree on your way to school, or literally “stopping to smell the roses” once in a while is beneficial, as it is an evolutionary trait that your brain evolved to do. So while it turns out that certainly being in nature has tremendous benefits on the mind, brain and learning, it appears that just having a view of nature from your home or in school can increase cognitive focus and attention in the classroom.

Tip # 5 - Relax & Sleep: More ZZZZ's Make for More A's

Of all the neuroscience tips for better learning, the one by far that is the easiest and simplest to do is get more sleep. In order to get those A’s you might need to get more Zzzz’s! The reason that sleep is so important is that it has a significant impact on memory and learning. A fascinating experiment conducted at the Harvard Medical School on sleep, memory and learning reveals that learning actually continues to occur while you are asleep and that getting a good night’s sleep after you learn something is just as important as getting rest before an exam.

Furthermore, it appears that the brain consolidates learning in sleep during the specific phase of Rapid Eye Movement (REM), better known as dream-state sleep. During this period important neural information is released from the hippocampus, the area responsible for memory, into specific areas of the cortex required for learning. Thus, the more sleep one gets the greater the duration of these important sleep phases to increase distribution of cognitive material into the appropriate neural networks. 

So the day you study the American Civil War in school, during REM dream sleep that same night your brain appears to review and reenact all that information, eventually solidifying them into your brain’s memory banks. What all the research into sleep, memory and learning observes is very simple–the more sleep you get in the bedroom, the better chance of success in the classroom!

While I can't wave a magic wand and give everyone A's this year, I hope these five tips allow you to make learning fun, engaging and exciting. 

Here's to a successful school year!

Dr. Jay Kumar

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We all aspire to live a long, healthy and abundant life. Despite our best intentions to feel young and stay healthy, aging is a fact that we all have to accept. While the latest anti-aging products, Botox injections, or cosmetic surgery maintain the outward appearance of youth and beauty, ground-breaking medical research affirms how you can actually slow down the aging process on the cellular level! Want to learn how?

Let's begin by exploring the aging process from a biological perspective. While many might regard aging as an external condition of looking older, in actuality physical aging is the biological result of the inability for your cells to replicate and produce new ones as the body advances over time. One of the most startling and revolutionary ideas to come out of the medical sciences is the discovery of telomeres, an enzyme in your genes that regulates cellular division and, in turn, determines your length of life. 

In essence, the length of your telomeres now appear to act as your body's natural biological clock. When under constant stress, your biological clock speeds up, resulting in the shortening of telomeres. On the contrary, when you're more calm and relaxed telomeres appear to extend their length, thus slowing down the body's biological clock. Let’s take a closer look at how telomeres function, how stress accelerates their decay, what you can do to slow down their eventual breakdown, and ways to live a more healthy and long life.

As you grow older, your hair turns gray, your organs begin to work less, your bones become weaker, and your body generally ages, all of which now appear to be the result of the shortening of the telomeres in your cells. So what exactly are telomeres? In every one of your genes, there exist 26 pairs of chromosomes that are capped off by telomeres. 

A nice analogy is to visualize your chromosome as a shoelace with a cap at the end of the lace as the telomere. Over the course of time due to natural wear and tear these caps at the end of your shoelaces begin to fray. In a similar manner, the telomeres that act as caps at the end of your chromosomes also begin to wear down and shorten. In the emerging medical field of psychoneuroimmunology, the intimate connection of the mind, brain and stress with our immune system and aging is being greatly understood. In essence, a growing medical body of evidence concludes that stress advances the shortening of your telomeres, which in turn prevents cellular reproduction and eventually accelerates the aging process.

This remarkable finding regarding the effects of stress on telomere shortening and age acceleration actually earned Dr. Elizabeth Blackburn and her colleagues the Nobel prize for medicine in 2009. Her study examined people exposed to chronic stress, depression, and anxiety and concluded that for every one chronological year of aging, the shortening of these people’s telomeres accelerated by as much as 600%! Basically, in just one year the aging process of these people amounted to six years of actual biological aging! Watch full video here

So before you resign yourself to hopelessness and despair, I now have some good news! Another study by Blackburn and her colleagues indicates that you actually not only can halt the shortening and deterioration of telomeres, but possibly increase their length, i.e. slowing down the body's aging process! Techniques such as meditation, regular exercise, and other forms of centering that trigger the body's natural relaxation response all appear to slow the aging process by increasing the length of your telomeres! 

So it might just be that the secret for eternal youth doesn't reside in a bottle of anti-aging cream, with an injection of Botox, or in cosmetic surgery. The key to eternal health and longevity might just be learning how to relax! Now that's some good news worth living!

In the apt and true words of the famous centenarian and eternally happy comedian, George Burns, “If you ask what is the single most important key to longevity, I would have to say it is avoiding worry, stress and tension. And if you didn't ask me, I'd still have to say it."

START YOUR JOURNEY TOWARDS HEALTH & HAPPINESS TODAY!

Dr. Jay Kumar  

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Turns out a good laugh can boost your immune system, reduce stress and even regulate your blood pressure. I guess it's true that laughter really is the best medicine. Learn more and enjoy your daily dose of health and happiness in the Dr. Jay Kumar podcast from the Doug Stephan Good Day Show. 

Be Happy, Stay Healthy!

Dr. Jay Kumar

New medical evidence suggests our hearts and stomachs are literally "mini-brains" that play a crucial role in our decision-making! Discover more fun facts with the recent Dr. Jay Kumar  podcast from the Doug Stephan Good Day Show. Read more at http://bit.ly/14Hwy3y

Dr. Jay Kumar

Life got you feeling stressed out and overwhelmed? If so, you might be suffering from nature-deficit disorder! Never heard of it? You can learn more in my latest podcast on the Doug Stephan Good Day Show. 

Enjoy reading more great articles in the "NATURE & TRAVEL" issue of my monthly newsletter. 

Dr. Jay Kumar

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Bad news city-dwellers...turns out life in the big city can harm your brain, body & being. Studies show that just a few minutes exposed to a frenetic urban environment can impair memory and increase stress. Learn how you can cope with "Stress In The City" in my recent podcast on the Doug Stephan Good Day Show Learn more great tips on  managing stress in my article  "HOW NATURE MAKES US HAPPY & HEALTHY" and in my "NATURE & TRAVEL" issue of the e-newsletter.

Dr. Jay Kumar

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I just enjoyed the most wonderful trip with my dad and step-mom to Machu Picchu and to the Amazon. Over the years, my dad and I have created adventures traveling all over the world. My dad continues to be my greatest teacher in life. This recent trip we took was no exception. Of all the valuable lessons I've learned from my dad, the one that I will always value is that Life Is About Following Your Bliss! Learn why in my recent podcast on the Doug Stephan Good Day Show. Enjoy also reading the full article here! 

Dr. Jay Kumar

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I just returned from the most memorable and amazing trip with my dad and step-mom to Machu Picchu and to the Amazon. It was certainly a journey that we will never forget, especially since it has always been a dream of my father to visit both of these places in his lifetime. Now 76 years later, his dream became a reality. Seeing the pure joy on his face taking in the famous vista of Machu Picchu for the very first time in the rays of the rising sun is a memory that I will never forget. 

Ask anyone, my dad and I have never been ones to shy away from a challenge. We both have now traveled together on safaris to the remote corners of Africa, to the ruggedness of the Australian Outback, to sea-kayaking in New Zealand and most recently to the depths of the Amazon jungle. I really have to say that I greatly admire and love my dad for his adventurous soul, indomitable spirit and zest for life. It's pretty obvious knowing now where I get it!

As my dad's health and age makes it more difficult for him to do exotic and adventure travel, this most recent trip exemplified some of the best qualities in my dad. Over the years of our travels around the globe, I've gained some very valuable life's lessons from him. Here are the ones that I will always cherish:

• MAKE NO EXCUSES - Even at his age and with health issues becoming more of a concern, my dad never let those factors intimidate him from hiking at 9,000 ft. in the cold, thin air of the Andes mountains or trekking in knee-deep mud in the stifling heat of the Amazon jungle. I feel those same determined qualities allowed him never to make excuses in his life. Growing up in near poverty in India, having both parents die by the time he was eleven and being raised by his older siblings were never perceived set-backs for his ultimate success, joy and happiness in life.

• HAVE NO REGRETS - Studies have shown that the biggest regret people have as they approach the end of their life was living a life to meet other people's expectations. One thing that traveling with my dad has taught me is never make regrets for taking the necessary chances for following your dreams. After having become a widower in his 50s my dad took the chance not to let our mom's death be a reason to vanquish his dreams of life-long joy and happiness. He eventually met another wonderful woman, who is now his life-partner, and has recently become the proud grandfather to twins this year. Even after a devastating personal tragedy, my dad continues to focus on a life free of regrets and limitations. 

• NEVER GIVE UP ON YOUR DREAMS - While it has always been my father's dream to visit Machu Picchu and the Amazon, the larger lesson my dad has taught me is never to give up on your dreams! Growing up in dire poverty in Mumbai and being a teenage orphan never diminished my father's aspiration for becoming a doctor. Being the first person in his family ever to go to college and eventually on to medical school was one of his proudest achievements. It was a dream that many people in his childhood said were unrealistic. Knowing my dad's tenacity and deeply held desire to follow through with his dreams of being a doctor, though, he certainly proved them all wrong. 

• FOLLOW YOUR BLISS - I think the most valuable lesson traveling with my dad over the many years has taught me is that life is about following your bliss. No matter how many challenges or obstacles life seems to throw your way, always remember that pursuing your dreams with joy and bliss is what really matters in life. I think the following quote by Joseph Campbell wonderfully sums up my dad's, and now my, philosophy on life: “Follow your bliss and don’t be afraid, and doors will open where you didn’t know they were going to be.”

Here's to the next big adventure!

Love you, Dad

Enjoy reading more great pieces in this month's e-newsletter on "NATURE & TRAVEL"

Dr. Jay Kumar

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Ahhh, the relaxing and care-free days of summer are finally here! As we celebrate the joys of longer daylight, warmer weather and more time outdoors, did you know that sunshine and nature can actually make you happier and healthier? While we all feel more relaxed and rejuvenated from time being outside, some amazing research in neuroscience and mind-body medicine suggests that nature and sunlight are now shown to alleviate stress, improve concentration and build a stronger immune system. So how exactly do nature and sunshine heal us in both body and being? The answer resides in our brains and relates to a concept known as the relaxation response, a mechanism that appears to be “wired” into our biology, helping us cope with anxiety and making us feel more calm and centered. 

Brain Waves and the Power of Attention

Studies in neuropsychology now believe that the human brain allows us to process two distinct types of attention. The first is a “voluntary or direct” attention that enables us to focus our thoughts and neural energy to tasks that require our direct concentration, e.g. writing this article, watching a movie, or reading a book. The other type is an “involuntary or indirect” attention that our brain does with little or no effort, e.g. watching a sunset, meditating, having a casual conversation, or dancing.

Additionally, there are corresponding brain waves associated with these two types of attention. When we are in the waking state and our brains are engaged in voluntary, direct attention that require focused concentration, beta waves tend to be predominant. On the contrary, our brains produce alpha waves when we experience involuntary, indirect attention. Having our brains in beta-wave state is important, as it helps us to focus on daily tasks that necessitate sharpness and clarity. Unfortunately, many of us now live a typical day with our brains disproportionately in the highly-attuned beta-wave state and barely enough time in the healing and regenerative alpha-wave state. 

In our current 24/7 technologically driven world, the human brain on average is bombarded with the equivalent of 174 newspapers of data every day!  That's about five times the amount the human brain received just 30 years ago. No wonder we are overwhelmed with stress, have children with ADD and are constantly overwhelmed with anxiety–our poor brains are running in overdrive. All this sensory overload requires our brain to function in a constantly vigilant beta-wave state for the majority of our waking day. If that wasn't bad enough, studies indicate the human brain continues to experience these super-charged beta-waves when we try to go to sleep, leading to insomnia and chronic sleep-deprivation. Rarely, in our technologically-driven society do we take the necessary time for our brain to go into the calming, soothing alpha-wave state. 

Mind-Body Connection

In the growing medical field of psycho-neuro-immunology (PNI), there appears to be a correlation between the various brain waves with our health and happiness. When our brains are highly amped up from information overload and are in constant beta-wave state, the stress-hormone cortisol is pumped in large amounts into the bloodstream. We now know that high levels of cortisol in the body lead to chronic anxiety, insomnia and disease. The good news is that when the brain is in the relaxed alpha-wave state, the brain releases endorphins, dopamine, and serotonin into the body. These neurotransmitters almost instantly enable us to become more relaxed and calm throughout our day. In addition to the brain's stress-response system, we also have a built-in relaxation response mechanism that our nervous systems evolved in order to help us return to a state of calm and relaxation in moments of stress and anxiety.

Nature Relatedness

So by now, I bet can you can guess what’s one of the easiest ways for us to trigger our brain's relaxation response and to enhance the alpha-wave state for greater harmony and happiness? The answer, of course, is NATURE! In another emerging field of study, known as ecopsychology, research indicates that even though the human brain has currently adapted for our modern and technologically-driven environment, its original function was to interact with and respond to the natural world. In essence, the human brain is literally “hard-wired” to BE IN NATURE, as being in nature is natural for the brain.

According to this field of study, human beings have an instinctual biological need to connect with nature, something known as the biophilic instinct or nature relatedness, a concept advanced by the Harvard biologist Edward Wilson. The idea is that the human brain evolved over millennia as a structure deeply enmeshed with and inexorably linked to the intricacies of nature. Even though our human brain has recently adapted to an environment of technology and sensory stimulation, we each still have this affinity for nature ingrained in both our brains and DNA. This evolutionary connection to nature activates the part of the brain known as the insula, the area that governs our internal feelings and sensations. So when we dance, do yoga meditate, focus on our breath, swim, run, or are in nature we begin to connect to the internal terrain of our body. The insula gauges how we’re feeling and what we’re experiencing within our body and mind in the present moment.

How Nature Heals

This ability to tap into the relaxation response through nature appears also to have a tremendous impact on our health and wellbeing. Scientific studies have already begun and continue to demonstrate the powerful healing aspects of nature. Dr. Ulrich published one of the earliest studies in 1984 Science, in which he noticed that patients who were recovering from surgery healed more quickly and required less pain medication when placed in hospital rooms that had views of nature, versus patients placed in rooms facing brick walls. Ulrich conjectured that this acceleration in healing was perhaps a result of the brain connecting to nature. It appears that when we are immersed in nature, our brains go automatically into the involuntary, indirect attention-mode that is connected with the healing alpha-wave brain state. 

Let The Sun Shine In

Another remarkable piece of research suggests that 20-30 minutes of healthy and safe doses of sunshine can enhance our body's immunity to disease, improve our sleep and even elevate our happiness. It again has to do with the way natural sunlight stimulates our brain and body. It's important to mention that exposure to the sun should be limited to the early morning or late afternoon, when the UV rays are less harmful. It appears that sunlight stimulates the brain's production of serotonin, a neuro-chemical responsible for elevating our levels of happiness and is shown to positively enhance our immune system. When sunlight also hits the skin, the body's largest organ, it produces greater levels of vitamin D in the bloodstream. Studies at the University of Copenhagen have shown Vitamin D can trigger white blood cells in the body, assisting in the prevention of certain forms of cancer and auto-immune diseases. While certain foods like egg yolks and oily types of fish naturally contain vitamin D, it appears that the highest levels of vitamin D are found in sunlight. You can learn more about the healing power of sunlight in my podcast "How Sunshine Makes You Smarter, Happier and Healthier!" 

So even if you live in the middle of urban sprawl or in places where sunlight is more limited, there are still plenty of ways to benefit from the healing power of nature and the outdoors. Even just a short walk outside on your lunch break, gazing out at a tree on your commute to the office, or literally just “stopping to smell the roses” once in a while are all beneficial to your health and wellbeing. What all these activities do is trigger a primal evolutionary trait that the human brain evolved to do–be one with nature!

So what better time than the summer season to get out in nature, feel the sun on your skin and experience greater health and happiness! As the poet Thoreau beautifully states, “I believe that there is a subtle magnetism in Nature, which, if we unconsciously yield to it, will direct us aright.” 

Read more on the healing power of nature in my "NATURE & TRAVEL" issue of my monthly e-newsletter.

Wishing everyone a joyous and beautiful summer!

Dr. Jay Kumar

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Curious to learn the secrets for how to live a more healthy and happy life? The answer might actually start with your brain! Enjoy the podcast of a recent interview I did with Vanessa Simpkins, the founder of Take Your Power Back Now. We explore how the latest research in neuroscience might just be the key for your greater health and happiness! 

Dr. Jay Kumar

As someone who has made academia a life-long career and is now an educator myself, one of my biggest joys is seeing my graduating seniors, many of whom I’ve gotten to know over the years, leave university life and move out into the world as young adults. In my many hours in the classroom as a professor, I’ve come to observe that students fall into three types: 1) survival 2) strategic and 3) stimulated. “Survival students” do the bare minimum to get that passing grade in the course, while “strategic students” study what they will only be tested on or calculate how well they need to do on an exam in order to get the desired grade. It’s the last group, the “stimulated students,” who embody the pure enjoyment and passion of knowledge, regardless of the grade.

I believe what positions the stimulated students over the other two are the important life skills they acquire in the classroom that give them the advantage for success later in life. So what exactly makes the best students succeed in life after school? Below are four personal insights that I’ve observed in the classroom what I deem to be the most important lessons you can ever learn from school that directly impact your performance later in life.

1) Pursue Your Passion, Not Points

“Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors where there were only walls.” Joseph Campbell

Let’s face it, a major concern for students and their parents are grades. As an educator, I’m the first to agree that grades are important, however, what I unfortunately see are students who sacrifice their pursuit of passion for grades. While getting a high GPA will certainly improve your chances to enter into a top college or graduate school, most educators can tell you that there’s more to learning than just getting the best grades. Students, who are deeply passionate and inspired to learn, often are the same ones who find stimulation and satisfaction in their career. As I often tell my own students, “The more you find your passion for learning, the greater your passion will be for living!”

2) Failure is a Valuable Lesson

"You will at some point fall and when you do, remember this: There is no such thing as failure. Failure is really life trying to move us in another direction...Learn from every mistake. They're there to force you into being more of who you are." Oprah Winfrey

It’s inevitable that at some point in your academic life you’ll fail a quiz, an exam or, regretfully, even the course itself. While failure is never easy, it does make us avoid complacency and instill humility. Yes, your ego might get bruised from getting that failing grade–and trust me, I’ve given them out to students–but the deeper lesson is how not to let one poor grade affect your attitude or performance in the course or dampen your dreams of the future.

Whether you strike out at bat when you’re 9, fail an exam when you’re 19, get rejected from a dream job at 29, or divorced at 39, don’t let these obstacles in life crush your spirit to achieve your deeper dreams and aspirations. Here’s a great tip. If you can learn to cope with failure in school, I guarantee that you’ll be able to handle and persevere through any crisis later on in life. As some of the most successful people in life will agree–failure is inevitable, but never an option to quit pursuing your dreams!

3) Stay Curious & Think Big

“So that when I look up at the night sky and I know that yes, we are part of this universe, we are in this universe, but perhaps more important than both of those facts is that the Universe is in us. When I reflect on that fact, I look up – many people feel small because they’re small and the Universe is big – but I feel big, because my atoms came from those stars.” Neil deGrasse Tyson

If there’s one thing I tell my seniors, it’s that learning doesn’t end at graduation. I strongly believe that a valuable tool students can use for success in the world is to stay curious and always try to see the bigger picture of life. One of the most wonderful attributes I see in my brightest students is their ability to take material acquired in the class and connect it into the larger world. This is why the tests I give to my students are never multiple choice or true/false. I personally find that students retain the information on a topic more readily when they’re capable of explaining how it might apply into their own life. This is when genuine learning occurs.

The exact same principle can be said for life beyond the classroom. When you continue to embody a deep curiosity about the world and view how your actions connect with the larger picture, you will inevitably find a greater inspiration and satisfaction in anything you do in life. When you know that you and the universe, in actuality, are one and the same, you will never think small and nothing will ever seem petty in your life!

4) Honesty and Integrity Count

"Success is not to be pursued; it is to be attracted by the person you become." Jim Rohn

Sadly, this is a lesson that I’ve had the misfortune to teach on a few occasions to my students, caught cheating on an exam or copying another paper. While the desire to get a high grade on an exam or in the course is certainly a goal of many students, whenever you compromise your integrity and values to reach that end you ultimately wind up failing to learn the greater lesson. No matter how intelligent, charismatic, or popular you become, if you sacrifice your core integrity and values along the way, can you truly be successful? I’ll admit that no actual course can ever teach you to be true to your beliefs and help you maintain an internal moral compass. The lesson to practice honesty and integrity, however, is always available to you, which I believe can begin in the classroom.

While maintaining a good GPA and deciding on the right major in college are important, what matters in the end is what inspires, motivates, and challenges you to grow as a human being. Lastly, the closing remark that makes the greatest impact on my students is, “It’s not what you remember on the final exam that matters, but how you apply what you learn to achieve the happiness you deserve in life. If you do so, you will always get an ‘A’ in the most important course of all–your life!”

If you enjoyed this article, discover more related pieces, videos, and links in my "GRADUATION & INSPIRATION" issue of the Dr. Jay Kumar newsletter

Happy Graduation!

Dr. Jay Kumar
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CONGRATS TO ALL MY GRADUATING SENIORS...way to go!! With graduations now in full swing, enjoy the latest podcast "Secrets of the Most Successful Graduates" by Dr. Jay Kumar on the Doug Stephan Good Day Show."

If you enjoyed this podcast, discover more related articles, videos, and links in my "GRADUATION & INSPIRATION" issue of the Dr. Jay Kumar newsletter

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Next time you go to the airport, you might just find a professional canine companion to help you release the stress and anxiety of traveling. A new program at LAX airport, called PUP (Pets Un-stressing Passengers) is now in full swing. It turns out that therapy dogs are being used in tragedies like the Sandy Hook shooting and the Boston Marathon attacks more frequently in order to help us stressed-out humans cope with anxiety, trauma, and grief. Learn more in the recent podcast with Dr. Jay Kumar on the Doug Stephan Good Day Show. 

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Happy Mother’s Day! Ask any mother, and she will say: “Motherhood changes you!” What’s even more remarkable is that science suggests that motherhood changes not only her body, but literally alters her brain. Recent studies into the maternal brain indicate that from the moment a woman becomes a mother to the first few months after delivery, her brain undergoes tremendous changes making moms smarter, more adaptive, and fearless!

Some rather recent and intriguing findings in neuroscience suggest that mothers appear to have bigger and smarter brains than the rest of us! It turns out that once a woman becomes pregnant, her brain is forever transformed becoming more developed and enhanced to cope with the many challenges of raising children. In a recent study published in Behavioral Neuroscience, scientists observed that specific areas of the brain grew in thickness and structure in first-time mothers. The study further indicates that new moms who held a “positive” disposition to their babies showed greater development in regions of the brain associated with increased judgment, emotional processing, non-verbal communication, empathy, and reasoning!

So what causes our moms to have the brain of a Super Woman? We have another mother to thank for that - Mother Nature! Nature has programmed a mother to adapt and to respond to all possible demands to protect her offspring, thus ensuring the survival of the species. It is this evolutionary ability for mothers to guard their young that accounts for even more fascinating facts behind the maternal brain. So what exactly makes a mother’s brain more adaptive, stronger, and smarter? Here are just a few remarkable findings about the majestic maternal brain:

• Greater Memory! Areas in the brain connected to spatial memory and movement enhance a mom’s ability to keep her baby in constant sight and sound. Who knew your mom has a natural GPS built into her brain to keep track of your every movement! This increased ability to monitor her baby’s every movement allows a mom to multitask, while still having a “sense” of where her children are at any given moment. Apparently these areas of the brain are more developed in mothers versus in the brains of women without children. What’s even more amazing is that these changes in the brain aren’t limited to just biological mothers, but they appear also to occur in the brains of mothers who have adopted children.

• Fearless Super Mom! The area in the brain that governs the human fear response also appears to function differently in mothers than in other humans. The moment a woman becomes a mother, less activity seems to occur in the fear centers of the brain. This ability is what makes moms even more courageous and combative whenever a threat is perceived to her young. As we know from observing nature, the most ferocious form of an animal is a mother whose young are in danger.

• Dad, Don’t Leave! Perhaps the most incredible finding to come out of research into the maternal brain is how a pregnant woman’s brain and body influence the brain of her male partner. Did you know that about 65% of male partners experience the phenomenon of morning sickness and other traits generally associated with pregnancy? How is that possible, you might ask? It turns out that in the last few weeks before a woman delivers, the brain of an expecting mom will release pheromones into the air triggering levels of the hormone prolactin, responsible for lactation, in men. Even more astounding, the same pheromones released by a pregnant mom will decrease levels of testosterone in her male partner by as much as a third. This decrease of the important male sex hormone might be nature’s way of preventing a man from having a wandering eye, thus, guaranteeing that both the man and woman have the increased advantage of raising a child together. Testosterone reduction in men is likely why also a dad’s hearing will even improve once his baby is born, enabling him to become alert to the needs of his child.

• Falling In Love by a Smile! When a mother sees her baby smile it triggers the parts of her brain that also happen to be the same areas responsible for us humans falling in love! Something known as mirror neurons will fire in a mother’s brain releasing a rush of the neurochemical oxytocin, the love hormone that deepens the mother-child bond. Speaking of the bond between a mother and child, by far, the most astonishing revelation about the maternal brain is its ability to sync with the heartbeat of her child. An experiment at the Heart Math Institute had a mother place a baby next to her own heart. The scientists monitored the brain wave activity of the mother and the heartbeat of the child. What they found was simply incredible! Apparently, the brain wave activity of the mother synchronized with the heartbeat of her child, indicating a link in the electro-magnetic fields between them. It just goes to show just how truly powerful the bond is between a mother and her baby, and that it can now actually be measured!

So for all the times you heard your mom say, “See, I told you so” when growing up, it was merely because your mom had a smarter and stronger brain than you did! So as we celebrate Mother’s Day, we now have another wonderful reason to love our moms more for than just their hearts…we can also now love them for their magnificent brains!

Wishing all you moms out there a joyous and wonderful Mother’s Day! Please feel free to share with your own mom and to all those special mothers in your life!

Dr. Jay Kumar

Dr. Jay Kumar

Humans are not driven by violent, aggressive, and selfish behavior. If that were true, it wouldn’t account for why hordes of bystanders, risking their own life, at the scene of the Boston tragedy immediately rushed out to help their fellow humans in need of medical attention. How else can you account for racers after having finished running a grueling 26 mile marathon, overcame fatigue and ran an extra two miles to donate blood at local hospitals! Contrary to what we are led to believe from our news and media outlets, humans are a powerfully compassionate and empathetic species. This often-ignored notion actually has a biological basis. All the studies coming out of neuroscience in the past few years suggest that the human brain is basically wired for compassion, empathy, and altruism and not for aggression, hatred, and self-interest. It is this very fact of the human condition that causes us to remain hopeful and for our greater humanity to endure in times of despair, as was the case in Boston.

There have been two startling discoveries about the human brain made in the past decade with regard to human behavior and compassion that directly apply in our capacity to cope with tragedy. The first is a term known as the empathic response, an evolutionary survival mechanism built into the human brain, which likely enabled humans to cooperate and survive in a harsh and hostile world. The other groundbreaking discovery is that the human brain possesses mirror neurons, which accounts for the reason why many of us will always rush to the aid of someone in danger or rejoice in hearing the wonderful news of others.

In essence, our brains are biologically wired to empathize and respond to both the suffering and joy of our fellow humans. For example, when you see a complete stranger fall down and cry out in pain, the same part of your brain fires as if you’re the one who fell and is in pain! Similarly, if you see a person laughing, the same part of your brain responsible for laughter lights up. Our brains mirror the experiences and feelings of others. In fact, it’s not just humans that possess this amazing ability. According to recent studies in neuroscience, the only other animals that have mirror neurons are our primate cousins, elephants, dolphins, and dogs! Additionally, it’s our empathic response, deeply seated in our biology, which accounts for the human capacity to feel compassion and makes us intrinsically averse to see others suffer or to inflict intentional harm to others.

You may be wondering, if all human brains have an empathic response and mirror neurons, why do some people harm, terrorize, and inflict pain onto others? Scans into the brains of criminals, violent people, and psychopaths indicate their brains might have underdeveloped mirror neurons and a low empathic response than in the brains of healthy humans. The bottom line is that mirror neurons can be developed in the brain, meaning that compassion and empathy are human qualities that can be acquired and cultivated in all of us!

In the university courses I teach on neuroscience and religion, I always remind my students that no child is ever born to be a racist, no person is ever born to hate. Anger, hatred, homophobia, racism, greed, and self-interest are qualities the human brain acquires that are taught to us by our society, media, family, and environment. All the research in neuroscience begins to point to one inevitable conclusion. In the same way that children can be taught to be violent, hateful, vindictive, selfish, and cruel, we can also teach our children compassion, empathy, love, and kindness. In light of the tragedy in Boston or similar events that happen around the world, one thing is for sure, every conscious choice of compassion can far outweigh any random act of cruelty and violence.

In the face of despair and hopelessness, human compassion always appears to be the solution. In fact, further research into the brain suggests that compassion and empathy are the two most powerful of emotions that help us cope in times of tragedy. When you act out of kindness and compassion, a part of your brain known as the pre-frontal cortex becomes more active. According to current theories of the brain, this region is responsible for our compassion, empathy, and moral behavior. Furthermore, the brain produces the chemical, oxytocin, whose levels directly correlate to one’s capacity to extend compassion and empathy. When scientists administered greater levels of oxytocin to human test subjects, there was an increased level of feeling joy, love, trust, and generosity toward strangers. Perhaps the best news about oxytocin is that it has been shown to lower stress, anxiety, and panic; boost the immune system; and foster the feelings of human connection and tolerance to others. One of the most effective ways to increase levels of oxytocin in the human body is through touch and social bonding. Hugging your children, cuddling with your loved one, and playing with your pet are just some of the simple and easy ways to boost oxytocin levels and, in turn, heal the stress and anxiety that ensue from tragedy.

What all the research in neuroscience is suggesting is that the simplest and most effective way to cope with feelings of despair, panic, fear, and hopelessness in the face of tragedy is to practice compassion and kindness to others!  It can be as easy as smiling at a stranger, saying an affirming word to a homeless person, or letting the car on the highway merge in front of you. These are all everyday simple and selfless acts you can do that eventually build compassion circuits in your brain. More importantly, they do the same for the other person who was the object of your actions. Ultimately, it all begins with you! Despite what you might believe, your every thought and action truly make a tremendous difference in the world. In the words of Mahatma Gandhi, “Be the change you want to see in the world!” 

To enjoy more videos, articles, and links on how we humans and our brains use compassion to cope with tragedy, check out the "COMPASSION & COPING WITH TRAGEDY" issue of the Dr. Jay Kumar newsletter. http://conta.cc/Zc6mx3

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Dr. Jay Kumar
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Only in the past decade have we truly been able to start mapping the human brain of people during deep meditation, prayer, intense spiritual experiences, and religious epiphanies. Neural scans of the brains of Carmelite nuns, Zen Buddhist masters, adept Indian Yogis, and indigenous shamans when in deep and profound states of transcendence all report similar findings. There exist specific areas in the brain that fire when we connect to the sacred and pray to the divine. The primary areas are the temporal and frontal lobes in the brain where this phenomenon occurs. Watch video While I don’t advocate that these areas of the brain are the cause of religious experiences, there does appear to be a correlation between these areas of the brain and heightened spiritual states of consciousness. Even more astounding is that the results indicate that when these exact same areas of the brain are intentionally triggered using a magnetic device for those who claim to be atheists, similar experiences of awe and reverence for something transcendent are felt. The findings imply the possibility that regardless if you’re a true religious believer, a secularist, or an atheist, the same neural mechanisms of the human brain are responsible for processing the sacred and the divine.

So what exactly accounts for the reason our brains are wired to fire during contemplation, prayer, and meditation? One possible explanation into the neurobiology of belief in the divine might be an evolutionary strategy for survival of the species. If you’re wondering how religious belief in a transcendent being might have been key for survival of our species, it likely has to do with a biological need we humans have to make sense of the world. Imagine our early human ancestors having to cope with the hardships of a brutal life of surviving constant threats to survival. In the same way that human emotions such hope, faith, and trust might have evolved within the human psyche to cope in times of calamity and constant uncertainty, our human brain might also have developed a neurobiological mechanism for humans to survive in times of strife and suffering. That evolutionary trait would have created a neural structure in the human brain, ultimately passing down to us modern humans.

Another way to examine the issue is that religion might have evolved in the same way that humans developed the need for language. Regardless of the human neurobiological necessity to believe in a higher power, it appears that every human brain is wired to experience the divine, even in atheists! In the same way that every human brain is wired to acquire and speak a human language, it’s possible that every human brain is equally capable and neurologically wired to experience the divine. You might even think of religion as a form of language, a sacred language that enables us to communicate with the aspects of life that cause us wonder, awe, and reverence for the sacred. Just as every healthy brain of a baby is capable of acquiring any language in the world, similarly every human brain has the ability to acquire a religion. In the same way that English really isn’t inherently better than French, Arabic, Mandarin, or Swahili to express human thoughts and to share conceptual knowledge, likewise no religion is inherently better equipped to experience the numinous and divine. When viewed in this light, it really begins to seem pointless for humans to squabble over which religion is inherently superior to another. In the same vein, it would appear illogical to argue that English is ultimately better equipped to express human thoughts and ideas than Hebrew, Swedish, or Japanese.

Even if you choose not to believe in a divine power or subscribe to a particular religion, there are equally many positive health benefits to cultivating a spiritual practice. Whether you choose to practice prayer, meditation, mindfulness, or silent contemplation in nature, your brain experiences the same neural effects, all of which have tremendously beneficial health benefits for the body. Numerous studies indicate that regular prayer or meditation reduces stress while promoting immune system function and greater levels of wellbeing. Even more remarkable is that belief in a benign rather than a punitive deity reduces anxiety and increases feelings of love and compassion for self and others. By far the most amazing news to come out of contemplative neuroscience is that regular prayer and meditation can literally rewire your brain to change your attitude towards life for the better. 

Ultimately, the human need to experience faith and to commune with divine might have been a biological tool for survival among our early ancestors. It is likely this evolutionary reason why we observe that every human culture throughout history and every indigenous society observed around the world all have a form of religious worship. Just as the human species evolved areas in the brain for linguistic communication, neuroscience is equally suggesting that religious communication with the divine accounts for the universal human need to experience the sacred. While the ability to acquire a language is still a crucial and fundamental trait for human expression, it might just be that religion and faith are an equally necessary means for humans to engage with the sacred, the holy, and the divine elements of existence.

Dr. Jay Kumar
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"Does God Exist In the Brain?" In light of the recent selection of the new Pope, neuroscience research suggests that the human need to experience spirituality and to connect with a higher power is likely wired into the human brain...even in atheists! Learn more in this insightful and engaging podcast with Dr. Jay Kumar on the recent Doug Stephan Good Day Show Read more at http://ind.pn/g7BWU.

In light of the current partisan politics plaguing our nation, here's a fantastic and timely podcast exploring the neurobiological bases why Republicans and Democrats are literally wired to think differently. Learny why in this engaging, hot topic w Dr. Jay Kumar on the recent Doug Stephan Good Day Show. It turns out it's not "Red State vs Blue State" but "Red Brain vs. Blue Brain" that accounts for political partisanship in our political climate. Read more in article

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"YOUR BRAIN, LOVE & ROMANCE" is our lively topic all this month, as we gear up for Valentine's Day! Learn why your brain is the largest sexual organ in your body and why and how we fall in love. Download the latest issue of my monthly Dr. Jay Kumar newsletter http://conta.cc/UTYH3W

Happy Valentine's Day!

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Before you can truly love someone else, the first and most important thing is learning how to "Celebrate Love of Self!" With Valentine's Day just around the corner, enjoy the latest podcast with Dr. Jay Kumar  on the Doug Stephan Good Day Show exploring the nature of love, relationships, and happiness! In the words of the famous poet Rumi, "Your task is not to seek for love, but merely to seek and find all the barriers within yourself that you have built against it."

Read the full blog article "Celebrating LOVE of SELF" and enjoy the "Your Brain, Love, & Romance" issue of my newsletter exploring why and how we fall in love!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Dr. Jay Kumar
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Dr. Jay Kumar
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