Next Tuesday, November 3rd: I’ll be presenting the SharpBrains Guide to a business/ entrepreneurial audience at the San Francisco Chapter of the Association for Corporate Growth (you can register online).

Description: While most of us have heard the phrase “use it or lose it,” very few understand what “it” means, or how to properly “use it” in order to improve brain function and fitness. This talk will provide an overview of the most recent research, guidelines and resources to “Use It and Improve It”, summarizing the main findings and topics from the new book The SharpBrains Guide to Brain Fitness. We will debunk 10 common brain fitness myths; discuss how the brain works and the 4 pillars of brain maintenance; explain the difference between mental exercise and mental activity and identify practical ways to integrate this research into our work and lives for maximum brain health and performance.

To order book: Here. (has been among Amazon.com’s Top 10 Preventive Medicine books basically since publication!)

Over the last few weeks I have given a couple of AARP-sponsored talks, both in English and in Spanish (this was my first Spanish presentation on a topic I mostly discuss in English, so I did get some extra brain points by trying to translate “neuroplasticity” and “hippocampus” on the fly), and had a great couple of meetings with AARP staff to explore collaborations. AARP can obviously play a major role in how rationally this whole category of “brain fitness” evolves.

Here you have a couple of my favorite recent media interviews:

4-minute Video interview on the Gilbert Guide:
Book Reveals Secrets Once Only Known to Scientists

30-minute radio interview on WMBR (MIT campus radio station):
Paradigm Shifts: Brain Fitness (mine is the second interview, starts around the middle)

Finally, a growing number of bloggers are reviewing the book. This is what they say:

• Is Your Brain a Couch Potato (Doc Gurley at SF Gate)
• Essential reference for brain fitness, cognitive health, neuroplasticity (Highlight Health)
• Fitbrains learn how to learn (Dr. Larry McCleary)
• Learn about cognitive functioning (Teen Health 411)
• A great dedication: to your Unique Brain, and Unique Mind (Play with your mind)
• Very valuable interviews (Nucleus Learning)
• Authoritative research and perspective (Greenstein Institute)

You can order The SharpBrains Guide to Brain Fitness here.

A few eternal questions:
- Is caffeine good for the brain?
- Does it boost cognitive functions?
- Does it protect against dementia?

There is little doubt that drinking that morning cup of coffee will likely increase alertness, but the main questions that research is trying to answer go beyond that. Basically: is there a sustained, lifetime, benefit or harm from drinking coffee regularly?

The answer, so far, contains good news and bad news. The good news for coffee drinkers is that most of the long-term results are directionally more positive than negative, so no clear harm seems to occur. The bad news is that it is not clear so far whether caffeine has beneficial effects on general brain functions, either short-term or long-term (aged-related decline or risks of dementia).

It is important to note that many of the studies showing an effect of coffee consumption on brain functions or risks of dementia report a correlation or association (they are not randomized clinical trials). As you know, correlation doesn’t prove causation: coffee drinkers may seem to do well in a number in these long-term studies, but there may be other reasons why coffee drinkers do better.

Q: How does caffeine affect my brain?
A: Caffeine is a stimulant.

It belongs to a chemical group called xanthine. Adenosine is a naturally occurring xanthine in the brain that slows down the activity of brain cells (neurons). To a neuron, caffeine looks like adenosine. It is therefore used by some neurons in place of adenosine. The result is that these neurons speed up instead of slowing down.

This increased neuronal activity triggers the release of the adrenaline hormone, which will affect your body Read the rest of this entry »

Encephalon (brain & mind blog carnival, edition ) finally meets Grand Rounds (health & medicine blog carnival).

What a nice surprise. Hello. Nice to meet you!

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Note: Chronic Babe wins a complimentary copy of The SharpBrains Guide to Brain Fitness for basically inventing cognitive sleep therapy. Congrats!

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Life and Death

MindHacks discusses an unexpected surge in brain activity when blood pressure drops to zero.

In Sickness & In Health suffers a death in the family. Adam shem tov. A man of good name.

BrainBlogger wonders, is religion a “natural” phenomenon?

Mind and Empathy

Behaviorism & Mental Health finds that everyone can have a mental illness – take a look at “Adjustment Disorder“.

ACP Internist reinforces the importance of empathy. Novel Patient encourages patients to dream big, Florecendotcom highlights how patients themselves contribute to patient safety. The Hippocratic Oaf discusses the feelings of a medical student. Clinical Cases wonders what doctors  in training carry in their white coats.

Advances in the History of Psychology examines an important early step in the journey to conceptualize cognition and emotion from a neural point of view.

The Fitness Fixer empathizes with her feet.

Brain

How to Cope With Pain discusses a controversial treatment for severe pain.

Neurophilosopher shows how vision (viewing one’s body) can modulate the senses of touch and pain. Fun experiments  included. Neurocritic takes things one step further, and takes us to the potential future of tattoo removal.

Providentia announces a new NFL Concussion Committee. 300,000 sports-related traumatic brain injuries occur in the United States alone each year.

SharpBrains answers 15 common questions related to neuroplasticity.

Medical Smartphones Read the rest of this entry »

Quick heads up: the latest edition of Encephalon brain & mind blog carnival is Here, nicely hosted by Neuroskeptic.

New edition of Encephalon, the selection of recent blog posts on brain & mind topics, this time hosted by Mike at Ionian Enchantment. Enjoy Encephalon’s #75 edition!

Quick note: we just started a new Facebook group to discuss brain fitness, cognitive health and mental performance topics in general and The SharpBrains Guide to Brain Fitness in particular.

Care to exercise your brain by sharing your thoughts? Please join us Here!

Here you have the September edition of our monthly newsletter covering cognitive health and brain fitness topics. Please remember that you can subscribe to receive this Newsletter by email, using the box at the top of this page.

In the current edition of The Journal on Active Aging, I discuss why we need to Retool “Use it or lose it”, and why routine, doing things inside our comfort zones, is the most common enemy of the novelty, variety and challenge our brains need. You can read the full article for free Here.

Book Tour

We are glad to report that The SharpBrains Guide to Brain Fitness continues to obtain excellent endorsements:

“This is the only book that I know of that seamlessly integrates latest information about cognitive health across the lifespan. Very useful to anyone interested in brain care.”

–Arthur Kramer, Ph. D., Professor of Psychology at University of Illinois

“…we now have a rock solid primer on brain health that we can recommend with confidence…I found it particularly effective to start the book with a list of ten brain myths that need debunking.”
–Michael C. Patterson, former Manager NRTA/ Staying Sharp at AARP

The official book tour starts this week, and includes New York Public Library!
09/08: Club One Fitness Center, Petaluma, CA
09/09: San Francisco State University OLLI
09/11: ASA Brain Health Day, Oakland, CA
09/23: New York Public Library, Bronx Library Center
09/25: New York Public Library, Stephen Schwarzman Building
10/06, SmartSilvers MIT Northern California, Palo Alto, CA
10/14: UC-Berkeley OLLI, CA

You can find all the details here. If you haven’t read the book yet, you can order it via Amazon Here (print book) or Here (Kindle edition). Or ask your local bookstore or library.

Brain Reserve

The July/ August 2009 issue of The Journal on Active Aging includes my article Why We Need to Retool “Use It Or Lose It”

An excerpt:

“By now you have probably heard about brain plasticity, the lifelong capacity of the brain to change and rewire itself in response to the stimulation of learning and experience. The latest scientific research shows that specific lifestyles and actions can improve the health and level of functioning of our brains, no matter our age.

Of particular importance to maintaining cognitive functioning through life are the hippocampus (deep inside the brain, part of what is called the limbic system), which plays a role in learning and memory; and the frontal lobes (behind your forehead), which are key to maintaining decision-making and autonomy. Is there a way to physically protect these parts of the aging brain? Yes. But the right answer is far from “do one more crossword puzzle” or “do more X” (whatever X is). The key is to add significantly different activities to ensure a flow of novelty, variety and challenge, combining physical and mental exercise while not ignoring factors such as stress management and balanced nutrition.

We need, in other words, to retool our understanding and practice of “Use it or lose it.” We must focus on the importance of getting out of our physical and mental routines and activities to get the benefits of real exercise—physical and mental.”

Continue reading Why We Need to Retool “Use It Or Lose It”

Here you have the July edition of our monthly newsletter covering cognitive health and brain fitness topics. Please remember that you can subscribe to receive this Newsletter by email, using the box at the top of this page.

Public libraries have long offered the public more than books. And now, recent demographic and scientific trends are converging to fundamentally transform the role of libraries in our culture. You may enjoy reading this recent article I wrote for the May-June 2009 Issue of Aging Today, the bimonthly publication of the American Society on Aging: Public Libraries: Community-Based Health Clubs for the Brain.

The Big Picture

Can You Outsmart Your Genes? An Interview with Author Richard Nisbett: David DiSalvo interviews Richard Nisbett, the author of Intelligence and How to Get It: Why Schools and Cultures Count, who has emerged as a persuasive voice marshalling evidence to disprove the heredity-is-destiny argument.

Yes, You Can Build Willpower: Daniel Goleman discusses how the brain makes about 10,000 new cells every day, how they migrate to where they are needed, and how each cell can make around 10,000 connections to other brain cells. Implication? Meditate, mindfully, and build positive habits.

Bird’s Eye View of Cognitive Health Innovation: Alvaro Fernandez opened the Cognitive Health Track during the Games for Health Conference (June 11-12th, Boston) with an overview of the serious games, software and online applications that can help assess and train cognitive abilities. The presentation is available Here.

Brain Tests and Myths

The Best Memory Tests, from the Alzheimer’s Action Plan: Dr. Murali Doraiswamy discusses the Pros and Cons of the most common assessments to identify cognitive problems, including what the Mini-Mental State Exam (MMSE) does and doesn´t, and innovative computerized neuropsychological tests.

Debunking 10 Brain Health Myths: Does your brain have a “Brain Age”? Is a Magic Pill to prevent memory problems right around the corner? Does “aging” equal “decline”? Check out the facts to debunk 10 common myths on brain health.

Resources

Free Webinar: On July 21st, 10am Pacific Time/ 1pm Eastern Time, Dr. Elkhonon Goldberg and Alvaro Fernandez, co-authors of The SharpBrains Guide to Brain Fitness, will cover the main highlights from this new book and address the questions submitted by readers. You can learn more and register HERE.
 

Research References: This is a partial list of the scientific studies reviewed during the research phase of SharpBrains´s new book, organized by relevant chapter, for those of you who like to explore topics in depth by reading original research (perhaps PubMed should promote itself as a never ending source of mental stimulation?).

Brain Teasers

Brain Teasers on Brain Fitness: Are you ready to test your knowledge of several key brain fitness metrics? For example: How many soldiers in the US Army have gone through computerized cognitive testing before being deployed, and why?
Finally, a request: if you have already read The SharpBrains Guide to Brain Fitness, and could write a brief customer review at Amazon.com, we would surely appreciate! The Amazon.com book page is Here.

Best regards, and enjoy the month

(Editor’s note: Daniel Goleman is now conducting a series of audio interviews including a great one with Richard Davidson on Training the Brain. We are honored to bring you this guest post by Daniel Goleman, thanks to our collaboration with Greater Good Magazine.) 

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Yes, You Can:

New research suggests we can build our willpower

– By Daniel Goleman

Those of us who struggle to resist junk foods or otherwise suffer a lack of willpower will be heartened by some good news from neuroscience. But there’s some bad news, too.

First, the bad news. A slew of studies suggest that we each have a fixed neural reservoir of willpower, and that if we use it on one thing, we have less for others. Tasks that demand some self-control make it harder for us to do the next thing that takes willpower.

In a typical experiment on this effect, one group of people was made to watch a video of a boring scene; another was not. Then both groups had to circle every “e” in a long passage of writing. The result? The people who had to first sit through the boring video gave up faster. The same loss of persistence has been found when people try to resist tempting foods, suppress emotional reactions, or even make the effort to try to impress someone.

This all suggests we have a fixed willpower budget, one we should be careful in spending. Some neuroscientists suspect that self-control consumes blood sugar, which takes a while to build up again; thus, the depletion effect.

But the good news is that we can grow our willpower; like a muscle, the more we use it, the more it gradually increases over time. But doing this takes, of all things, willpower.

As the muscle of will grows, the larger our reservoir of self-discipline becomes. So people who are able to Read the rest of this entry »