Take care of your brain
The brain is your most valuable resource - nourish it, protect it, and let it thrive.
Contents:
The brain and brain health | Your brain and work | Five pillars to care for your brain | Emotions and the brain | My brain and me campaign
The brain and brain health
The brain is an incredibly complex organ — your body's command center. It controls thoughts, emotions, memory, movement, breathing, and even digestion. Despite its small size (just 2% of body weight), it uses 20% of your body’s energy. This makes it especially vulnerable to overload and fatigue, particularly in high-performance work environments like CERN.
The World Health Organization (WHO) defines brain health as “the state of brain functioning across cognitive, sensory, emotional, and motor domains, enabling individuals to achieve their full potential throughout life, regardless of the presence or absence of disorders.”
According to the WHO, “optimising brain health involves addressing physical, environmental, and social factors, which not only enhance mental and physical well-being but also foster societal and economic growth.”
Keeping your brain healthy isn’t just a medical issue — it’s a foundation for performance, creativity, and resilience.
Your brain and work: A delicate balance
At work, your brain is constantly solving problems, processing information, and interacting with others. But this resource is not infinite.
Common pitfalls:
- Mental fatigue from nonstop focus and multitasking.
- Blurred boundaries with remote work and 24/7 connectivity.
- Persistent stress, impacting sleep, mood, and motivation.
As fatigue builds, it spills into your personal life: less energy for loved ones, poorer sleep, and decreased mental clarity. Over time, this leads to burnout and diminished overall health.
Key message: Adapt your work rhythms to your brain’s needs — not the other way around.
5 pillars for how to care for your Brain:
By nurturing these five core areas, you support better mental focus, creativity, mood, and long-term health.
1. Sleep: Your Brain’s Reset ButtonSleep allows the brain to clear toxins, organize memories, and regulate emotions. Without it, our attention, creativity, and emotional stability suffer. Chronic sleep deprivation:
Aim for 7–9 hours of quality sleep per night. Protect your evenings from work-related stress and screens. |
2. Diet: feed Your mindGut health is brain health: the gut-brain axis means a balanced microbiome helps regulate mood and cognition. Disruptions in the gut are increasingly linked to conditions like depression, Parkinson’s, and anxiety. The brain needs specific nutrients to function at its best — especially healthy fats, vitamins, and fiber. Key brain-friendly foods:
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3. Movement: fuel for focusPhysical activity boosts blood flow to the brain, improving memory, attention, and mood. Even moderate exercise enhances the structure of grey matter. Benefits of regular movement:
Try to integrate at least 30 minutes of movement into your day — a brisk walk, a quick workout, or even stretching during breaks. And if you are sitting at a desk most of the day, get up and move for 3 minutes every hour: it will make all the difference. For more information, see our move more eat better campaign! |
4. Social Connection: brainpower through belongingHumans are social by nature. Relationships are not just emotional — they’re biological necessities. Strong social ties:
Regular connection with others — at work and beyond — is as vital as exercise and nutrition. |
5. Mental Stimulation: keep it freshYour brain thrives on novelty and challenge. Like a muscle, it strengthens when used and weakens when idle. Ways to stay mentally active:
Mental stimulation builds cognitive reserve, helping the brain adapt and protect itself as we age. |
Emotions & the Brain: feel to think
Emotions aren’t distractions — they are part of how we learn, remember, and make decisions. Emotional experiences activate and shape brain circuits that influence attention, motivation, and memory. They are processed and reinforced during sleep.
Emotions matter:
- They help us prioritise what’s important.
- They influence how we interpret events.
Learning to recognise and manage your emotions can make you a better thinker, leader, and colleague.
Me and my brain campaign: join us on 3 July 2025
In recognition of World Brain Day, let’s take this opportunity to explore how neuroscience can support our daily lives — at work and beyond.
📆 Events:
- Interactive stands (10:00–15:00)
- Lunchtime conference with speakers from UNIGE, HUG, Fondation Recherche Cerveau, KT group and the CERN psychologists
