Keep your mind healthy. Learn something!

Did you know that John Adams, second president of the United States, and Thomas Jefferson, third president of the U.S., died on the same day, within hours of each other? And that day happened to be July 4, 1826, 50 years to the day of the Declaration of Independence?

Cool stuff, huh? And I learned this from a historical drama, but that drama caused me to go to the Internet and do some research on the real guys. (By the way, the drama I refer to is “John Adams,” an HBO series starring Paul Giamatti. I highly recommend it.)

I write a lot about healthy diet and exercise, but a fully healthy life also includes a strong, healthy mind. Just because you’re done with high school and college doesn’t mean learning stops. In fact, your learning has only begun.

You’ll learn new things for your job, and you’ll learn how to manage things in your life like finances. But it’s also good to learn things just for the heck of it. When you’re not in school anymore and don’t have to follow a prescribed curriculum, it’s fun to pick up something and learn it because you just want to.

It is widely believed that keeping mentally active will prevent age-related mental decline. This article quotes a 2003 study that found mentally active seniors reduced their risk of dementia by as much as 75 percent, compared to those who do not stimulate their minds.

Even if you’re nowhere near being a senior yet, keeping your mind active and stimulated will help keep it strong and flexible, the way physical exercise does the same for your body.

So how do I keep my mind active? Besides learning all I can related to my job, I learn other things just because it would be cool to know it.

My husband and I buy college-level lectures from The Teaching Company. I am listening to a lecture set now about England during the Tudor and Stewart periods. You know – Henry VIII and his three children, one of which was Queen Elizabeth I. This week, I will learn about Elizabeth’s reign, and I know almost nothing about the Stewart line that came after her, but over the next few weeks, I’ll learn about it. It’s great stuff, and I bought it simply because I was interested.

I always try to learn new things, partly because I consider myself a lifelong learner, but as a believer in the importance of a healthy life, I want my mind to stay just as healthy as my body. I’m many years yet from being considered a senior citizen, but I hope that when I do get to be one, all of this effort now will pay off then. And I won’t plan to stop learning, either.

There’s a recurring line in one of my favorite book series: “All knowledge is worth having.” I agree. It’s true at any time in your life.

What new stuff have you learned lately? How much fun did you have learning it?