Traditional Chinese medicine holds that the key point of health preserving is nourishing spirit. As early as more than 2000 years ago, there was such an account: " A man with complete physique and mentality will die his natural death", this being the basic aim of health preserving. A man who wants to nourish spirit must conserve both his external physique and his internal nutrition, just as what is said in《Talks about Ancient Innocency. In: Plain Questions》: "Pathogenic factors taking advantage of lowered resistance and evil wind should often be avoided for their attacks; with indifference to fame or gain and nihility, vitality qi follows." It is evident that the key point of health preserving is nourishing spirit. The brain being the house of mental activity, the key to nourishing spirit is nourishing brain. The brain is the dominator of adaptive capacity of life. The motion of human life goes on in accordance with the law of birth, growth, sthenia, aging and death, vitality resides in the motion of yin-yang change in which the brain plays a decisive role.
The following basic rules should be followed for obtaining better results of nourishing brain:
Follow the Rule of Yin and Yang "Yin-yang is the principle of the universe." The development and growth of all things on earth, including man, follows the rules of changes of the universe. Only by this way can the heaven, earth and man be an entity. Because of the correspondence between man and universe,

Author's unit: Guangdong Gaoming Medical and Medicinal Institute of Encephalopathy, Gaoming, Guangdong 528500
the man is to conform to the changes of yin and yang of the universe, and to regulate regime to avoid pathogenic factors taking advantage of lowered resistance, and only like this can the brain normally send out instructions to adapt the change.
Show Indifference to Fame and Gain and Nihility
Indifference to fame and gain refers to quietness and nihility refers to purifying one's heart and reducing the number of one's desires. Excess mental stimulation not only leads to impairment of qi and essence of life but also to impairment of mentality and the brain; it is, therefore, a basic principle to cultivate a habit of purifying one's heart and reducing the number of one's desires.
Preserve Essence and Nourish Blood We often emphasize to have proper diet, to lead a regular life and to strike a proper balance between work and rest, all of these are for the purpose of preserving essence and nourishing blood, and accumulating essence and strengthening mentality. Because essence of life is the essential substances constituting human body and maintaining life's activities and the blood relies on qi as its motivating force to nourish the entire body, they are essential material basis of mentality. Conserving vital essence and energy can expect a sound physique and a sound physique can expect a sound mind without any disease. Modern nutritionists hold that oxygen, water, glucose, protein and fat are five essential substances for the brain to work effectively in addition to various kinds of vitamins and inorganic salts.
Be in Harmonious Yin-yang Prophecy It refers to regulation of mental activities in cultivation of moral character, including physical and breathing exercises, massage, expiration and inspiration, qigong dirigation and shadow boxing. Active sports activities enable the brain to be in continuous alternating movement of motion and quietness.
There are many methods for conserving the brain. For instances:
Keeping yourself in high quietness and silent thinking
Make the body suitable and convenient to guarantee a smooth flow of the internal qi, regulate breathing, close eyes to relieve uneasiness of body and mind, make inward vision, control sensation, concentrate the mind on certain portion within the body with eyelids drooping, enter into a realm in which all thoughts are absent. Taking self-consciousness as the center, regulate mentality and emotion to promote flow of qi and blood, thus attaining the object of nourishing the brain and spirit, and removing diseases and promising longevity. Three key elements should be noticed in keeping yourself in high quietness and silent thinking: sitting still with the whole body relaxed, regulating breathing and reading silently key words (genuine words).
Optimizing diet It has been demonstrated experimentally that malnutrition has an important influence on the brain and intelligence development. Some report that malnutrition causes brain cells to become smaller, the number of tactile process of brain cells to decrease, and the form of tactile process branch to change, and the resultant atelencephalia and brain injury lead to the occurrence of intellectual disturbance and lethargic state in severe cases. The brain requires mainly sugar, protein, fats, trace elements, vitamins B, PP and C, etc. Therefore, rational ingestion of eggs, lean meat, soybean, pig or sheep brain, vegetables, fruits, etc. is beneficial to nourishing the brain.
The best regimen The sleep and awakening of man have marked circadian rhythms, also known as "phenomenon of biological clock", and "the command of biological clock" sending out instructions to the whole body is in the site of optic chiasm of hypothalamus. More interestingly, anterior pituitary-like hormone (APLH) secreted by anterior pituitary secretes only in sleep state in the night, whereas cortical hormone of accessory suprarenal glands which promotes glycometabolism, the energy sources of human body, secretes in large quantities only in the period from dawn to early morning; therefore, rational regimen is beneficial to nourishing the brain.
Being diligent in using the brain is beneficial to nourishing the brain Among the positive activities of putting off senility, the delay of brain senility is the most important, this being a matter familiar to people. Relevant studies show that those who are diligent in thinking deeply and analysing have their blood vessels of brain constantly in diastolic state and their nerve cells in good nutrition, so their cerebral functions will not have senilism. On the contrary, those who have nothing to do make the functions of their central nervous system fail, followed by early appearance of exhaustion of all organs.
Preventing intoxication of brain tissue The brain tissue is highly sensitive to the action of poisons. Those substances which are poison materials, environmental pollutions, tobacco, etc. can injury the brain functions. Care must be taken to avoid and control the sources of toxic substances and to inhale as much as fresh air to increase the oxygen supply of the brain.