The Concerns about AI Dependence & Cognitive Decline
Recently, the World Economic Forum published an article outlining significant concerns about the effects of AI in relation to reduced problem-solving ability, and diminished critical thinking skills as well as a host of other worries, such as threatened job markets and social unrest, etc., that may affect our collective future. 
Certainly, these are valid societal concerns.5
On a more personal note, a phenomenon called “cognitive offloading” has been recently written about by researchers like Gerlich, Gong, and Yang. These authors refer to the way dependence on AI bypasses one’s need to think very deeply or go through the process of traditional problem solving. Using a calculator to divide large numbers would be a mild example, which can be a useful function in terms of saving time and ensuring accuracy.6
However, overuse, letting AI do all the decision-making and problem-solving, begins to replace the deep thinking that can lead to personal growth, creative imaginings, and new and better directions for the future. Do we really want “something else” to do all our creative thinking, feeling, and disable our ability to meaningfully respond as we move through life?
A balance is obviously needed. Whether you are “all in” on AI or not, our modern life is filled with many things that can negatively impact cognitive function on a daily basis.
Below, we’ll discuss ways to hone your cognitive skills and keep them sharp, despite these challenges.
How Can You Sharpen Your Cognitive Skills Naturally?
Some would say that our ability to think clearly is the most valuable asset one can have. And we must take into consideration the threats to mental and emotional health that include toxic exposure, the effects of drugs and alcohol, processed foods, nutrient depletion, the effects of dehydration, stress, poor sleep, and even the overuse of AI.
Thankfully, there are various ways one can fight back against these threats, and not only protect, but also improve one’s cognitive skill set. Rather than taking stimulants or vast quantities of caffeine to stay awake, there are many ways to address the problem without risks. The list below will be followed by an expanded description of resources and activities to consider adding to your regular routines.
Ways to brighten up cognitive skills can include:
- Improve the diet
- Adequate hydration
- Physical exercise
- Cleanse neurotoxins from the body
- Detox the home and work environments
- Lab testing for nutritional deficits
- Safely discontinue psychotropic or recreational drugs
- Improve sleep hygiene
- Meditation, relaxation exercises and therapies such as CBT
- Social interactions
- Active learning, acquiring new skills, creative activities and hobbies
The Importance of Diet, Exercise, and Hydration in Brain Health
Some people take better care of their cars than their own bodies. They are careful not to let their automobile sit idly for months at a time. Why? Because it will become sluggish, suffer from sludge collecting in the engine, and the battery will eventually discharge completely. They would not even think of running a car on Coca-Cola or beer. Why? These types of fuels will not provide the energy to run the car at all. And car owners know to keep the radiator hydrated or the cooling system operational. Why? So the engine doesn’t burn out completely.
Today we have many choices for exercise, whether it is Qigong, outdoor running or walking, swimming, yoga, or other types of sports activities. Taking steps to ensure you are exercising your body at least a few times a week can make significant and positive changes in energy, brighter mood, and even better sleep. Why? Among other reasons like improving circulation, oxygen intake, and improved mobility, exercise stimulates the mitochondria.12 
Mitochondria are multi-taskers, including the production of energy, enabling signaling between cells, and they are key for vital enzyme transmission and perform many other vital functions. You want these babies in top shape for vitality, brain health, and overall optimal quality of life, and exercise will contribute greatly to that end.7,8
Your diet choices provide the fuel for life.9
Nutritionists stress consuming a wide variety of fruits and vegetables, organic where possible to avoid pesticide contamination, good quality fats like the Omega-3s in adequate amounts, and proteins that are needed for cellular rejuvenation and repair of things like neurotransmitters, blood vessels, enzymes, and a host of other key components of a healthy central nervous system and other structures that surround and protect it. ATMC applies orthomolecular medicine in rigorously designing a person’s proper diet and supplementation plan for brain health.
Where does hydration fit in? A very minute drop in hydration — just 1 or 2% according to research — can create symptoms like fatigue, brain fog, decreased mental alertness, and low mood. This makes a lot of sense, since we know that the brain is 50 – 80% water-based. So adequate hydration, especially after exercise, is essential for brain health and overall optimal function.10,11
Why Holistic Detox is Key for Brain Health
Whether you want to remove toxic relationships from your life, pollutants from your food, your home, or your work environment, or cleanse accumulated neurotoxins from the cells in your body, the concept of holistic detox comes into clear view as a strategy that can be life-changing on many levels.
Taking psychotropic drugs (including alcohol) can deteriorate the delicate workings of the CNS and disable and disrupt a once-healthy brain because of neuroplasticity — this is called dependence or addiction, and can be handled. There are strategies to obtain natural mental health without psychiatric medications.
While we do recognize that medications can be helpful, in fact necessary at times, in the main, ATMC practices “green psychiatry”. In this practice, alternatives to psychiatric medication are provided with the seasoned and expert help from our medical team to do so safely and effectively. Safely tapering off medications is another key component to regaining brain health, especially when supported by nutritional replenishment and neurotransmitter rehabilitation.
Did you know that reactions to toxic exposures can actually mimic symptoms of mental illness? 13 These are often overlooked when a person goes to their doctor for help with depression, anxiety, insomnia, or other psychiatric symptoms. Lab testing can isolate these invaders, and properly managed holistic detox methods can ensure they get purged safely for relief.
Other Aids to Mood, Improve Mental Clarity, and Emotional Brightness
So you are the owner/operator of your healthy brain. But what about “you”?
Are there other ways to help improve your mood and emotional and cognitive health without medications?
Absolutely yes!
Consider personal counseling to address past trauma, relationship dysfunction, spiritual growth, relaxation exercises, get social and interact with your peers, find new friends to add to your circle of interests, practice hobbies you love to do, or learn new ones. Get inspired! Your life is yours to create, and there are so many resources you can call on to make improvements to the quality and richness of your life experience.
At ATMC, we have a wealth of adjunctive therapies for psychological and emotional healing and support. You can find out more about personalized CBT, Equine therapy, cold plunge therapy, sound healing, art therapy, and more. You may be interested in the benefits of therapeutic massage during antidepressant withdrawal, or what are some alternatives to benzodiazepines, and much more on our services overview pages.
Contact Us at ATMC for Additional Support and Consultation
Please contact us to find out more details about our inpatient programs and how this might be the missing link you or your loved one has been searching for, for recovering your innate capability to experience brain health and mental wellness, and personal happiness on your life journey without relying on psychiatric medications for the rest of your life.
But there is more at play, it seems. An innate, intelligently designed blueprint takes these basic elements and accomplishes the most amazing feats every millisecond of every day of our lives. Together with the rest of the nervous system, which extends out to the whole of the body, we don’t have to “remember” to breathe, or continually cue the heart to beat, or tell the liver when to transfer the right enzyme to the right destination. These are automatic functions that are coordinated via the brain, passing electrical and chemical messages throughout the nervous system.
