Reviews

If you have known people who have dementia, you know how painful that makes life. There is a sense of despair and helplessness which seems to set in, especially because despite years of research, progress has been minimal and slow. This book provides a good foundation to understand the causes and has solid lifestyle advice on avoiding and possibly reversing early onset of dementia.

The book starts with basic information of how our brain is organized and functions. The introduction is next followed-up with triggers for the onset of dementia – genes account for a very small fraction of the cases. There is information on recent insights on how various factors (blood pressure, sugar, gut bacteria, cholesterol, stress etc) impact the brain. It is now clear that the build-up is over several years, providing us an opportunity to take steps to better brain health. There are some interesting titbits such as the impact of feel-good comedy movies, social interaction on not only stress but also bad cholesterol! The last section includes advice on how you can ward off the disease and has details around – sleep, diet, social interaction, exercise, and mindfulness practices.

Thanks to Netgalley, BenBella Books and the author for a free electronic review copy.

I recently read “The End of Alzheimer's: The First Programme to Prevent and Reverse the Cognitive Decline of Dementia” by Dale E. Bredesen. There is a good amount of overlap between both books and the advice is largely similar. While “The Age-Proof Brain” has a larger context and more details on lifestyle practices and their impact, “The End of Alzheimer’s” has more details on the search for a drug, tests, diet and nutrients. So, if you would like to read both books, start with “The Age-Proof Brain” or you can skip directly to "The End of Alzheimer's".

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