Why Do We Care About Brain Health?
Dr. Sanjay Gupta was part of the Center for Brain Health’s guest speaker series recently. This program was one of the most encouraging and enlightening presentations on brain health that I’ve seen in quite some time. It is one hour that is well worth your time and may actually change your life for the better.
Watch the replay here:
Dr. Sanjay Gupta
Center for Brain Health’s Speaker Series
Some takeaways:
Brain cells can grow at any age.
This is fascinating because the research shows that our brains are ever evolving and can still regrow brain cells. Anyone can make their brain better. This is not to say that someone who has advanced Alzheimer’s can be cured but someone who has early cognitive impairment can still learn and regrow brain cells and slow the progression of impairment.
We need to use all parts of our brain.
Dr. Gupta makes an interesting analogy of imagining our brain is like a city. During the pandemic lockdown, we didn’t go anywhere. We maybe took a walk in our neighborhood but basically we were at home. We went to the grocery store only when we needed to. We were isolated and on auto pilot. It was hard and made us feel awful. We weren’t using all of our brains. Imagine if our brain was a city. We were not using roads to get to other places like restaurants, going across town, the mall, wherever. We were not using all of our brains. When we use all parts of our brains, we build resilience and optimize our brains and that’s how we grow more brain cells. People who used the lockdown to learn a new language, start a new business, learned how to Zoom, or got out of their comfort zone, fared better than those who sat on the couch and binged Netflix. Those who used all parts of their brain were happier and more resilient.
We all need a sense of purpose.
Dr. Gupta told a story about his parents during the lockdown. They were very compliant and stayed away from people. They also became isolated and were having a hard time. Dr. Gupta realized they needed to feel relevant and useful. One day his wife’s car was having trouble so he FaceTimed with his parents as they were both automotive engineers. He could actually see them come to life. They looked up car manuals and became engaged in trying to solve the car’s problem. They needed to feel helpful and relevant. Helping others creates social connections and gives us a sense of purpose. We feel our life matters. It helps our brain health in the process.
Activity is just as important for your brain as for your heart.
Dr. Gupta said “activity, moderate activity, is like Miracle Grow for the brain.” I love this quote! He also said that dancing is really helpful for brain health. Not only do you get moderate activity but you also use more parts of your brain to learn the dance steps. He said that we now have evidence based research and data to support that exercise can help lessen depression. The big hurdle we have in our country is that many people would rather just take a pill as a potential quick fix than do the work and add movement in their life.
70% of chronic disease is preventable.
To me, this is a shocking statistic and we should all do our best to encourage folks to get off the couch, get out of their comfort zone and get moving. In the Q & A session, someone asked how we can motivate people to care about their brain health. Dr. Gupta is a fan of the carrot over the stick method. He feels we should motivate people through positive and not negative messages as positivity is more sustainable. For example, rather than scare someone about developing Alzheimer’s Disease, the message should be that a healthy brain is a happier and more joyful brain. You just feel better with a healthier brain. Of course, a byproduct to having a healthy brain is risk mitigation for dementia and cognitive impairment. Optimizing our brains can help insulate and buffer our brains to disease down the road. Finding meaning and having purpose in life creates positive and satisfying feelings as well as a resilient and healthy aging brain and body.
I encourage you to watch the program so you can understand the benefits for having a healthy brain.
Click the image to watch.
The Center for Brain Health’s Speaker Series: Dr. Sanjay Gupta
If you or someone you know are looking for ways to optimize your brain health, check out the Purpose Project. The Purpose Project creates purpose and meaning in life, gets you out of your comfort zone so you can utilize ALL of your brain and helps regrow brain cells. Take a look and I welcome your feedback.