Crosswords and Sudoku’s burn up to 90 calories per hour

Posted on 26. Nov, 2009 by Jenny in Articles, Brain Training, General

Brain training experts confirmed today that mental exercise such as crosswords and Sudokus can burn an average of 90 calories every hour. So you can now enjoy a chocolate biscuit and a puzzle while burning the equivalent calories.

Mental agility expert Tim Forrester from brain training website Cannyminds.com said: “Our brains require 0.1 calories every minute simply to survive. When we do something challenging such as a puzzle or a quiz we burn through 1.5 calories every minute.”

Snacks you can enjoy which have the same calories as an hour’s brain workout include:

A chocolate chip cookie = 56 calories
A jammy dodger = 85 calories
A custard cream = 57 calories
A chocolate hobnob = 79 calories

But if you carried on for two hours with a puzzle you could enjoy:

A pack of Hula Hoops = 175 calories
A bag of maltesers = 186 calories
A crème egg = 173 calories
A bag of jelly babies = 180 calories

If you take time out in the evening with a quiz or crossword, you can enjoy:

A pint of bitter = 182 calories
A 120ml glass of white wine = 89 calories
A Glass of champagne = 89 calories

The brain is made up of millions of neurons which communicate with other neurons and transmit messages to and from body tissues. Neurons produce chemicals called neurotransmitters to relay their signals. To produce neurotransmitters, neurons extract 75% of the sugar glucose, available calories and 20% of the oxygen from the blood. So undertaking activity such as difficult crosswords or challenging sudokus means your brain will need more glucose.

Eight-time World Memory Champion and Canny Minds Memory Expert Dominic O’Brien said: “Just as you need to continually exercise your body to stay fit and healthy you also need to exercise your brain and memory to remain mentally agile.”

www.Cannyminds.com is the UK’s leading online brain training portal with books, DVDs, audio books, games and puzzles for all ages. As well as an online shop it also offers independent articles and advice along with an interactive games room which includes puzzles and quizzes developed by Mensa puzzle editor Philip Carter.

Photo courtesy of PetitPlat by sk

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Tags: 19-29, Exercise your brain, Female, word and number games