Just like the human body, the answer to your question is a complex one. I might go on a little of a tangent.
I've had conversations with people who are in their teens all the way up to people in their 60s, just pretty much about anything, and I mean anything. They all give very different perspective in the world we live in but something fascinating that I noticed was that, regardless of your age, everyone goes through the emotions of feeling like the world owes you something. Regardless of how nice of a person you are, it all boils down to feeling special.
Don't be offended by this though, in fact, I believe this is a mechanism your brain does naturally. When you want people to notice you and you don't want to blend in with the crowd, obviously you will do something "special" or "different". Outside of writing, I've caught myself doing this. You can get two different outcomes, either people recognize you or most likely, people alienate you. So, to battle this, your brain trains you to do... nothing.
I mean, people in their 30s and 40s have battle this before so they don't have to, right? They can just do less and get more out of their life's experience. Well, it's complicated. Depending on what you're doing currently, doing nothing probably does you more harm to your mental health.
There had been medical research done on people with concussions, aside from physical barriers, the patients also have to deal with the mental barrier of continually challenging their brain. During the recovery process, it helps keep the mental cogs as normally functional as possible. Meaning, as kids humans do learn more effectively than adults and yes, elderly humans do lose brain cells as they age, however, decreasing the amount of brain cells you lose is also possible.
Which leads me to a very popular genre of TV shows in Asia during the 2010s where rich kids temporary switch lives with poor kids. I was both fascinated and disgusted by this concept because, even though the spotlight was on the rich kids to teach them a lesson, the poor kids get an even more impactful experience than what the shows initially tries to convey. After production, the poor kids were back in their poverty homes, they got depression cause of these shows. The idea of being exposed to information that defies people's current realities. I mean, truly some things should not cross path with one another and yet everything gets crossed.
Conclusion, the people you hang out with matters, the environment you are in matters, the things you do with your brain matters. Of course, physical health also matters but let's not call out the elephant too many times in these rooms. They're also self-destructive social animals too.
Sorry if this might be too long or convoluted.
