When he’s not on CNN, offering updates on coronavirus, Sanjay Gupta is in charge of the day as a neurosurgeon. “I had a long-term love affair with the brain,” he said.
“You’re a brain surgeon – what’s it like to hold it in your hands?” asked CBS News chief medical officer Dr. Jon LaPook.
“The first time I ever had brain surgery, you know, almost 30 years ago, it was a mystical experience,” Dr. Gupta replied. “You can’t believe that those three and a half pounds are everything to us – all our pain, all our joy, all our memories, all our teachings, everything.”
And in his spare time, Dr. Gupta wrote a book about the brain, “Keep Sharp” – specifically, how to keep him fit. [The book is published by Simon & Schuster, a part of ViacomCBS.]
Simon & Schuster
For Dr. Gupta, it is personal: “In many ways, this story began when my grandfather developed Alzheimer’s. I saw this as a child and, you know, I really enjoyed it. This was probably a lifelong journey to try and understand how I could prevent this from happening to me and anyone else. “
More than five million Americans have Alzheimer’s, the most common cause of dementia.
Dr. LaPook said: “One of the biggest fears my patients have is the development of dementia. They will come in and say, “You know what? I couldn’t think of anyone’s name. I know them so well. I was in the middle of a sentence, I lost my train of thought. ‘So how can people know the difference between the changes that occur with normal aging and the onset of dementia? “
“This is a topic of conversation no. 1 in our house “, said Dr. Gupta. “It was because my parents always asked me this question. And now my wife and I are always asking ourselves, “Are I starting to get more forgotten? ”
“When it comes to finding out if something is just a normal type of memory loss versus abnormal: people lose their keys all the time. It becomes more abnormal when you don’t remember exactly what those keys are for.”
It seems that the changes in the brain that lead to Alzheimer’s disease begin decades before the onset of symptoms.
“There are some suggestions, right, even if you’re destined to develop Alzheimer’s in the future, that if the blood vessels in your brain are wide open, if you do everything you can to keep your heart healthy, you could actually push it, s -could it delay him? Dr. LaPook asked.
“I don’t think there’s any question we can say now – and I don’t think we could have said that five or ten years ago – but there are things we can do that involve lifestyle changes that could absolutely delay progress. 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 cables that can lift weakness if needed.
So, let’s get to this. Without any miracle drug on the horizon, what is the prescription for fighting dementia?
Let’s start with exercise. Put it this way: What is good for the heart is good for the brain.
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Dr. Gupta said, “When you move, it’s almost like you’re signaling to your body and brain, ‘I want to be here.’ I’m not ready to leave! “What specifically releases the brain [are] these things called neurotrophins; these good chemicals nourish the brain. “
“In the United States, many of us walk 100 miles an hour, but so many of us do this while sitting down without moving,” said Dr. LaPook.
“You know, people keep saying that ‘sitting is the new smoke.’ Every time you are about to stay, say: need to sit “” And then try to move moderately throughout the day. It is so effective in what it does to the brain and what we can measure by doing to the brain. “
“And you can make simple habits – for example, take the stairs rather than the elevator.”
“It takes months, years to change the heart,” Dr. Gupta said. “The brain can change like that that. ”
How about diet? You’ve also heard about it: eat less red meat, less processed foods, more vegetables and fruits – especially, says Dr. Gupta, a kind of fruit: “They always say, Jon, ‘Apple keeps a day doctor away. ‘I think when it comes to the brain, it’s berries. Berries, in terms of what they can do for the brain and some of these chemicals it releases, will probably be one of your best foods. “
Any berries? “Almost any grain … Immerse yourself in the grain!”
How about working directly on your thinking skills? Crossword puzzle? Video games? What works, if anything?
Dr. Gupta said: “I have nothing against crossword puzzles and even video games and brain training games and things like that. I think they can be great. , and the practice is perfect. It is absolutely true. But is Change which builds resilience. You need change.
“So I wouldn’t just crossword puzzles. The way I think about it is that if you can get out of your comfort zone in a way every day, you probably capitalize on other real estate in your brain that you don’t have. Otherwise you don’t use it very often. Do something that scares you every day! No matter the metaphor, whatever works, do something different. Learn a new skill. I remember talking to these neurologists who said, “Eat dinner with your left hand tonight if you’re right.”
Sleeping a good night is another way to stay sharp. There are so-called “garbage collection cells” that help eliminate toxins from the brain. And while you sleep, the memories of that day are processed.
Dr. LaPook said: “Our knowledge of the importance of sleep has really changed over the years. It’s not just a matter of letting our batteries charge, 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 go to bed at night, take the experiences you had during the day and reinforce them in your memory. Why do we even have experiences if we don’t do the things we need to remember them, right? We learn that the brain is constantly going through this “rinsing cycle” at night. “
For one of the best ways to fight dementia, look no further than friends and family.
“We know that social interaction is so important,” said Dr. Gupta. “We are social creatures. We know that there are certain neurochemicals that are released when we actually touch and look someone in the eye.
“The best thing you could do as a whole, when it comes to assembling everyone for brain health, would be to take a quick walk with a close friend and talk about your problems.”
Why? “With the lively gait, you get the move. You do it with a friend: you get the social connection. It turns into this beautiful thing for the relationship, but also for the brain.”
Of course, coronavirus means seeing close friends and staff is a little difficult now. But as Americans begin to be vaccinated against COVID, the time may come when we can get over the pandemic.
Dr. LaPook asked, “What do people want to know is, when we return, if not to normal, to normal? What do you think?”
“I think we will start to return to normal much sooner than people realize and I think it could be in the middle, late spring, it will start to feel much more normal,” Dr. Gupta said. “It simply came to our notice then. People will be out and about.
“I have three teenage girls. I think they’re going back to school next fall. I could be wrong, but that’s where things seem to be going.”
So as we look forward to coming out of isolation, here’s a New Year’s resolution for you: Think about 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 best type of food for the brain,” said Dr. Gupta. “Every sight you see, every sound you hear, everything you touch, feel, whatever it is, taste – and then the feelings, the experiences you have through empathy, through these connections with people – feed the brain. very good for the brain.
“That’s why we live.”
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Story by Alan Golds. Editor: Ed Givnish.