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How to Improve Your IQ

IQ! This is basically the quota that indicates just how intelligent an individual is. Getting a great job, being admired by your peers or winning the respect of strangers in 3 minutes largely depends on your IQ.

Having a low quota does not automatically mean the end of the world but working towards increasing your IQ is a step forward in the right direction as research states that our level of intelligence accounts for 50 percent of our success in life.
Some, however, believe that a man’s IQ is stagnant;

what we are born with is what we die with. I disagree with this school of thought and so does Dr. Biden; the first man to develop the IQ test. He made it known that the intelligence quotient (IQ) was not fixed and numerous factors contribute to the growth of an individual’s intelligence. If the guy that propounded the test thinks intelligence isn’t fixed, who are you to say otherwise? But knowing it isn’t fixed and knowing how to develop it is another thing.

Research carried out by (Roche, Cassidy, et al. 2013), shows that the human brain can actually be trained to do better, work better and think better! If your EQ and body shape can be worked on, so can your IQ. But how? Studies suggest the best way is by challenging your brain through certain activities and eating healthy foods. What activities you may ask? Here are a few activities which can stimulate IQ development.

1. Learning a new language

According to research done titled ‘Growth of language-related brain areas after foreign language learning’, the learning of a new language by an adult or even a child helps expand the language learning aspect of the brain. This is quite logical, because you are applying your brain to a new set of skills quite different from what you are used to.

Here, cortical thickening occurs and your hippocampus volume goes up. In simple English, the segments of the brain involved in learning a language expands. When the brain is challenged with something different from the usual, a stretch and development happens. Whether as a child or an adult, learning a new language helps increase brain activity and in turn, IQ levels.

2. Playing some tactical games

Notice the word ‘tactical?’ because not all games have the same effect on the brain. Some simply entertain while some others, push the mind to think of different and tactical ways of doing things or in the culture of games, winning. Some of these games are puzzles, Sudoku, chess, Tetris etc.

Yes, these games have not been tested for how they may psychologically affect us but they make you think, keeping your mental faculty engaged. Also, involving in math games; whether simple or advanced calculations, help work the brain at a fast pace, increase your logical thinking and in turn, your IQ goes up.

3. Reading

Not ‘Hottest 20 in America’. Fiction and research materials work better for the brain. These materials not only help stimulate brain activity but also help in building the vocabulary of the individual. In vocabulary building, many parts of the brain are involved in the task.

Research done on the relationship between the vocabulary building and the brain show that a great portion of the brain gets involved in vocabulary as well as language learning exercises.

It is important to remember that even in promoting the improvement of the IQ through reading and vocabulary development, emphasis should be placed on the study of quality materials and by encouraging yourself to relate words with feelings as well as pictures as it helps develop the mind, especially in children.

4. Learning to play instruments

Want to increase your IQ by an average of 7 percent? Learning to play a musical instrument is one of the best ways to do so. E. Schellenberg; a professor of Psychology at University of Toronto, Canada carried out a research. He wanted to show that experiences related to music training would cause a positive effect on the IQ of a person.

He trained 144 children in music and at the end of this 34 day testing period, he found out that learning music actually has an effect on the cognitive skills of an individual. The fact that he used children for this process does not change that fact. With their average increase in IQ at 7%, I believe this theory is valid too and so should you. So, learn to play an instrument today!

5. Sleep

It should not come as a surprise. Your body needs you to sleep and so does your brain but, not for what you might be thinking. The brain does not need you to sleep so it can sleep too, no. the brain has these cells called grey matter.

According to research, these are the cells in charge of receiving and processing information from every single nerve fibers in the brain, coming in the form of nerve signals. You need to sleep so your brain can work on the information received prior. Eight hours of sleep is recommended for a good reason; so you can sleep and your brain can get to work.

6. Eat good food

Now science does not say ‘Eat the following and increase your IQ by 7.0 points in 30 days’ but, it does suggest having a healthy diet helps keep the brain active and productive. Meals that follow a health dietary pattern always produce the best results in the human body; all round.

It is advised to take a lot of fruits, have vegetables in your meal, nuts as well and protein from fish. Basically foods that consist of healthy elements like vitamin B, omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidants are known to strengthen brain function and improve brain activity.

Improving your IQ is not going to happen overnight; we are not on the set of Kyle XY. So, unless you decide to stay consistent in doing these actions, your goal is not going to be achieved.

Make sure your meals are always on the healthy side, once you pick up learning a new skill or language, make sure you follow through with it. This journey is just that ‘a journey’ and it takes time, demands consistently and does not work like magic.

Don’t forget that.