Dr Sanjay Gupta’s prescription for dementia

When he’s not on CNN giving coronavirus updates, Sanjay Gupta is at his day job, as a neurosurgeon. “I have a long-standing love affair with the brain,” he says.

“You are a brain surgeon – how does it feel to hold it in your hands?” asked CBS News chief medical correspondent Dr Jon LaPook.

“The first time I did brain surgery, you know, almost 30 years ago now, it was a mystical experience,” Dr. Gupta replied. “You can’t believe that those three and a half pounds are everything for us – all of our pain, all of our joy, all of our memories, all of our learning, everything.”

And in his spare time, Dr. Gupta wrote a book on the brain, “Keep Sharp” – specifically, how to keep it in shape. [The book is published by Simon & Schuster, a part of ViacomCBS.]

For Dr. Gupta, it’s personal: “In many ways, this story began when my grandfather developed Alzheimer’s disease. I saw this as a teenager and, you know, it really struck me. It’s probably been a long journey to try and figure out how I could prevent this from happening to me and anyone else. “

Over five million Americans have Alzheimer’s disease, the most common cause of dementia.

Dr LaPook said, “One of the biggest fears my patients have is developing dementia. They will come and say, “You know what? I couldn’t think of anyone’s name. I know them so well. in the middle of a sentence, I lost my train of thought. So how can people know the difference between the changes that accompany normal aging and the onset of dementia? “

“It’s a # 1 topic of conversation in our home,” said Dr. Gupta. “Before, my parents always asked me this question. And now my wife and I always ask ourselves this question, “Am I starting to get more forgetful?”

“When it comes to finding out if something is just some kind of normal or abnormal memory loss: people lose keys all the time. It gets more abnormal when you don’t remember exactly what those keys are for.”

It turns out that the changes in the brain that lead to Alzheimer’s disease start decades before symptoms appear.

“There is a suggestion, isn’t there, that even though you are destined to develop Alzheimer’s disease in the future, if your blood vessels in your brain are wide open, if you are doing all that you Can to keep the heart healthy, could it really push it, could it delay it? ”Dr. LaPook asked.

“I think there’s no doubt now that we can say – and I don’t think we could have said it five, ten years ago – but there are things we can do that involve changes in lifestyle that could absolutely delay the progression of dementia, and even reverse it. “

Dr Gupta said the key is to do activities that create “cognitive reserves” in the brain – areas of new nerve growth and wiring that can take over when needed.

So let’s go. With no miracle drug on the horizon, what’s the prescription for dementia?

Let’s start with the exercise. Put it this way: what is good for the heart is good for the brain.

Dr Gupta said, “When you move, it’s almost like you mean to the body and the brain, ‘I want to be here. I’m not ready to go! ‘ What the brain specifically releases [are] these things called neurotrophins; these good chemicals kind of feed the brain. “

“A lot of us in the United States go 160 km / h, but a lot of us do it sitting still, not moving,” said Dr. LaPook.

“You know people keep saying ‘sitting down is the new smoking’. Every time you’re about to sit down, say, ‘Do I need sitting down ”“ And then try to move moderately throughout the day. It’s so effective in terms of what it does to the brain and what we can measure in the brain.

“And there are some simple habits you can do – for example, take the stairs instead of the elevator.”

“It takes months, years to change the heart,” said Dr Gupta. “The brain can change like this. ”

What about the diet? You’ve heard of it too: eat less red meat, less processed foods, more vegetables and fruits – especially, says Dr. Gupta, a type of fruit: “We always say, Jon, ‘Apple a day. keep the doctor away ”. I think as far as the brain is concerned, it’s the berries. Berries, in terms of what they can do for the brain and some of those chemicals they release, are probably going to be one of your best foods. “

Berries? “Almost all berries.… Dive into the berries!”

How about working directly on your thinking skills? Crossword? Video games? What is working, if any?

Dr Gupta said: “I have nothing against crosswords and even video games and brain training games and things like that. I think they can be great. We do crossword puzzles, you play the piano, you do it over and over again, and practice makes perfect. It’s absolutely true. But it’s change that builds resilience. You need the change.

“So I wouldn’t just do crossword puzzles. The way I think about it is, if you can get out of your comfort zone in some way every day, you are probably exploiting other real estate in the brain that you don’t. Otherwise, use very often. Do something that scares you every day! Whatever the metaphor, what works, do something different. Learn a new skill. I remember talking to these neuroscientists who said to me, “Eat with your left hand tonight if you’re right handed.” “

Getting a good night’s sleep is another way to stay alert. There are “garbage collection cells” that help remove toxins from the brain. And while you sleep, the memories of the day are processed.

Dr LaPook said, “Our knowledge of the importance of sleep has really changed over the years. It’s not just about letting our batteries recharge, is it?”

“Sleep is such a sophisticated activity that we spend a third of our lives doing it,” Dr Gupta replied. “The brain is a remarkably complicated organ. When you fall asleep at night, it takes the experiences you have had throughout the day and consolidates them into memory. Why do we even have experiences if we don’t do them. things needed to remember them, don’t you? We learn that the brain is constantly going through this “flushing cycle” at night. “

For one of the best ways to fight dementia, look no further than your friends and family.

“We know that this social interaction is critically important,” said Dr Gupta. “We are social creatures. We know that certain neurochemicals are released when we touch and look someone directly in the eye.

“The best thing you can do overall, in terms of putting everything in place for brain health, would be take a brisk walk with a close friend and talk about your issues.”

Why? “With brisk walking, you bring in movement. You do it with a friend: you create the social bond. It turns into this beautiful thing for the relationship, but also for the brain.”

Of course, the coronavirus means seeing friends up close is a bit difficult right now. But with Americans starting to get vaccinated against COVID, the time when we can get past the pandemic may approach.

Dr LaPook asked, “What people want to know is when do we get back, if not to normal, to normal? What do you think?”

“I think we’re going to start getting back to normal a lot sooner than people think, and I think maybe it could be the middle, late spring, it’s going to start to feel a lot more normal.” , said Dr Gupta. “Things will start to open up. There will be more and more people.

“I have three teenage girls. I think they will go back to school next fall. I could be wrong, but this is where things seem to be heading.

So, as we look forward to breaking out of isolation, here’s a New Year’s resolution for you: Consider doing something for your brain.

“Empathy and kindness, compassion – they do a lot for everyone’s brain, don’t they?” Dr. LaPook asked.

“They are the ultimate type of food for the brain,” Dr. Gupta replied. “Every sight you see, every sound you hear, everything you touch, feel, anything, taste – and then the feelings, the experiences that you have through empathy, through those connections with them. people – also nourish the brain It’s really good for the brain.

“This is what we live for.”

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Story produced by Alan Golds. Publisher: Ed Givnish.