Taking good care of cognitive health is something unthinkable about by many. The majority of us would find it strange and unfamiliar with what is cognition or cognitive health, and even some would be contemplating on what has actually cognition got to do with health and well-being. What is actually cognition, why is it necessary to take good care of one’s cognition or cognitive status, and what are the steps to maintain good cognitive health status?
Cognition is a hypothetical construct, accepted as one of the most fundamental elements of human beings, besides emotional and physical components. Generally, cognition is understood as a platform where all mental processes take place. The platform resides within the most delicate and sensitive tissue of the human organ, i.e., the brain. Upon cognition rest those kind of mental processes such as attention and concentration, perception, remembering, thinking and reasoning, decision-making, problem-solving, planning, and so on. They are also understood as higher order cognitive processes, because they help humans to function as what they are supposed to, and they help define what humans are and thus, differentiate between humans and non-human entities, especially from those of animal beings.
The mental processes are mostly and highly important to ensure the survival of humans in this life. Therefore, everyone has to believe that in order for the cognitive processes to be in a state of effective and efficient functioning, they have to be well managed and properly flourished, and their level of health status has always to be in check. This is similar to physical health and emotional well being that have always to be in good condition so that the human can function as best as they possibly can. For this reason, everyone should bear in mind that cognitive health is defined as the ability of the brain to function and perform all mental processes required with full capacity, healthily, and efficiently. Cognitive health is not mental health or mental illness, but it determines the health status of everyone’s mental, emotional and physical health. It functions cooperatively to each other. In other words, one’s physical and emotional states affect cognition and vice versa. Similarly, when cognition is not healthy or dysfunctional, one cannot function as he used to, because his mind has loss its ability to guide him to behave as a human. Even the so-called normal human beings may have their cognitive abilities dysfunctional and affect their life at worst. In addition to that, weak cognitive functions and abilities may also affect the pattern of human relations and interaction so negatively.
Why does human cognition become so dysfunctional? There are many reasons that are responsible for the dysfunctioning of human cognition and mental capacities that later lead to affect general human health and well being. One of them is cognitive inactivity. This refers to the inability of a person to fully utilise his mental capacity in order to promote productive and bring or create energetic environment to his life. Mental inactivity occurs when someone does not stimulate his mental ability as required and that will result in mental lethargy and later on hinders the development of the full functioning of a person mentally, emotionally, physically, as well socially. Even the milliseconds mental inactivity when they are supposed to be alert, may lead to bring some damages to the person and his environment. For example, while driving in a car in a massively congested road may begin the occurrence of an accident when someone is not fully attending to his environment or being distracted away. In fact, long periods of mental inactivity is proven to bring damages to brain plasticity and deteriorates the brain functions.
Furthermore, in a situation when a person is, to a certain extent perplexed with personal or social issues that limit their mental capacity from functioning fully, is dangerous, since it may lead to sad consequences and even fatalistic phenomena. An example of such a situation includes personal emotional distress, or when one is being inflicted with a certain kind of emotional and mental health issues. Among them are depression and anxiety attacks. In fact, outbursts, impulsive and uncontrollable anger also incur bad consequences to humans, due to the limited mental capacity they bring on. One with depression runs out of one’s productive time by thinking a lot on the dark side of his experiences, and throwing away the bright side of his life. Similarly, the person with anxiety attack limits his mental capacity by contemplating himself to avoid problems that may trigger the attacks and thus shrink in the situation of unknown and ambiguity, that finally damage one’s cognitive health.
As Muslims, we have been taught to fully utilize our mind and faculty of reasoning as signs of obedience and worship that will finally develop into righteousness and kindness. Indeed, for this reason, as humans we should be able to stimulate our mental abilities in order to maintain healthy cognitive functions all the time and that by using this ability as endowed by God, we will be enriched and rewarded. For, Allah has said in the Quran, in Chapter 8 (Al-Anfal), verse 22, that ‘Surely the worst of beasts in God’s sight are those that are deaf and dumb and do not reason’.