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kendranicole28 's review for:
Keep Sharp: Build a Better Brain at Any Age
by Sanjay Gupta
I am familiar with Sanjay Gupta from his reporting on the Coronavirus podcast. Dr. Gupta was a neurosurgeon before becoming CNN’s chief medical correspondent, and neuroscience and brain health continue to be his areas of expertise. In Keep Sharp, Dr. Gupta explores the concepts of heightening and protecting brain function and maintaining cognitive health into old age.
The book begins with an in-depth discussion of the brain, its functions, and what happens when our brains begin to decline. Dr. Gupta then spends time examining five pillars for building brain health (exercise, learning, sleep, nutrition, and socialization) and concludes with a section on the signs, symptoms, and treatment of people with brain disease, particularly Alzheimer’s.
This book is written in a conversational, engaging style that makes the challenging subject of neuroscience not just accessible, but enjoyable. Dr. Gupta debunks several myths surrounding brain health, resulting in quite a few surprises for me (most notably the connection between Alzheimer’s and Type II Diabetes, and the proven benefits of exercise for brain health over ALL other types of personal care). He also layers the science and research portions of the book with plenty of fascinating factoids about the brain. I was pretty shocked by how little we still know about the brain, and by the fact that many of the ideas surrounding brain protection are still just conjecture. I appreciated Dr. Gupta’s clarity on which practices are backed by science and which claims still need to be studied further.
Many of the strategies offered in the book fall under the umbrella of common sense protocol for general health, which I found somewhat reassuring (taking care of your brain isn’t too much more difficult than simply taking care of your health) if slightly overwhelming (because getting the right amounts of food, sleep, exercise, and social engagement is SO much easier said than done). Still, I like that this book offers some hope for those desiring to maintain cognitive health. Keep Sharp has definitely changed the way I think about my brain and how I will move forward in caring for it.
My Rating: 4 Stars.
This review first appeared on my personal blog, https://kendranicole.net/april-2021-quick-lit-nonfiction-reads/
Please visit my site for more book reviews: https://kendranicole.net/category/book-corner/
The book begins with an in-depth discussion of the brain, its functions, and what happens when our brains begin to decline. Dr. Gupta then spends time examining five pillars for building brain health (exercise, learning, sleep, nutrition, and socialization) and concludes with a section on the signs, symptoms, and treatment of people with brain disease, particularly Alzheimer’s.
This book is written in a conversational, engaging style that makes the challenging subject of neuroscience not just accessible, but enjoyable. Dr. Gupta debunks several myths surrounding brain health, resulting in quite a few surprises for me (most notably the connection between Alzheimer’s and Type II Diabetes, and the proven benefits of exercise for brain health over ALL other types of personal care). He also layers the science and research portions of the book with plenty of fascinating factoids about the brain. I was pretty shocked by how little we still know about the brain, and by the fact that many of the ideas surrounding brain protection are still just conjecture. I appreciated Dr. Gupta’s clarity on which practices are backed by science and which claims still need to be studied further.
Many of the strategies offered in the book fall under the umbrella of common sense protocol for general health, which I found somewhat reassuring (taking care of your brain isn’t too much more difficult than simply taking care of your health) if slightly overwhelming (because getting the right amounts of food, sleep, exercise, and social engagement is SO much easier said than done). Still, I like that this book offers some hope for those desiring to maintain cognitive health. Keep Sharp has definitely changed the way I think about my brain and how I will move forward in caring for it.
My Rating: 4 Stars.
This review first appeared on my personal blog, https://kendranicole.net/april-2021-quick-lit-nonfiction-reads/
Please visit my site for more book reviews: https://kendranicole.net/category/book-corner/