BRAIN HEALTH

What can we do to prevent Alzheimer’s or age-related cognitive decline? While there is no definitive answer to that question, there is growing evidence that a healthy lifestyle can delay, slow, or even prevent Alzheimer’s and other dementias. The Women’s Alzheimer’s Movement’s goal is to empower people and organizations by educating them about accessible lifestyle choices that help delay or prevent brain disease and promote healthy minds. We do this by engaging and convening leading scientists and experts in all areas of brain and mind health, including nutrition, fitness, sleep, meditation and caregiving. Read below to learn more about the positive effects that a healthy diet, physical activity, stress reduction and a variety of lifestyle choices can have on your brain health and overall well-being.

A Q&A With Dr. Elizabeth Head On Her Latest Research

A Q&A With Dr. Elizabeth Head On Her Latest Research

WAM spoke to University of Irvine's Dr. Elizabeth Head about her latest research into the link between Alzheimer's and Down Syndrome. Learn more about her study funded through the UCI MIND WAM Initiative.   Read the Q&A with Dr. Elizabeth Head below.  ...

read more
A Q&A With Maria Shriver On Launching MOSH

A Q&A With Maria Shriver On Launching MOSH

WAM founder Maria Shriver and her son Patrick Schwarzenegger have launched MOSH, a mission-driven brain health and wellness brand, that will be donating a portion of the proceeds to help WAM fund women-based Alzheimer’s research. Together, they aspire to elevate the...

read more
Lori Payne’s Story: Living with Early-Onset Alzheimer’s

Lori Payne’s Story: Living with Early-Onset Alzheimer’s

Even though Lori Payne was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's when she was 56 years old, she doesn't let that stop her from laughing and enjoying life with her family. The Payne family has come together around Lori’s diagnosis and chronicles their Alzheimer's...

read more
A Q&A With Jessica Branning, CEO of ClinCloud

A Q&A With Jessica Branning, CEO of ClinCloud

Right now there are many clinical trials but not enough people to fill them. CEO Jessica Branning had a passion to help find a cure for Alzheimer’s —and an entrepreneur’s sense for turning that vision into a business. ClinCloud is a company dedicated to not only...

read more
Leen Kawas, A Q&A With The CEO Of Athira Pharma

Leen Kawas, A Q&A With The CEO Of Athira Pharma

Leen Kawas is the President and CEO of Athira Pharma. Read the Q&A below to learn more about why she chose to study Alzheimer's and how she co-founded Athira.    WAM: Let’s start with who you are and what you’re doing - and why you think it is important? Leen...

read more
WAM Research Grant Recipients Answer Your Questions

WAM Research Grant Recipients Answer Your Questions

On February 11th, we hosted a special version of the WAM Summit, this one honoring the work of WAM Research Grant recipients. Below we’ve given you a taste of the range of the research they are doing. Maria Shriver and Dr. Sanjay Gupta were our moderators. If you want...

read more
Dark Chocolate and Cocoa Benefits!

Dark Chocolate and Cocoa Benefits!

Fueled by Cocoa Flavanols By: Alan Frost, Founder, FlavaNaturals Backed by Science Have you dreamed of the day when your doctor would tell you to nourish your brain and heart with dark chocolate and cocoa powder? Alas, in response to growing scientific evidence, many...

read more
Food as Medicine: A Q&A with Dr. Drew Ramsey

Food as Medicine: A Q&A with Dr. Drew Ramsey

The right food is not only good for your body, but can act as medicine for the brain. Nutritional Psychiatrist, Drew Ramsey, MD, tells us more in this Q&A with the WAM Weekly.  WAM: When people think of a psychiatrist, they tend to think of talk therapy and...

read more
What’s Good for Your Heart Is Good For Your Brain

What’s Good for Your Heart Is Good For Your Brain

We've heard it many times...what's good for your heart is good for your brain. Dr. Dean Ornish, developed the #1 ranked heart health diet, according to US News and World Report. Now he wants to determine if lifestyle changes can reverse early stage Alzheimer's the way...

read more
Sleep and Alzheimer’s: What You Need to Know

Sleep and Alzheimer’s: What You Need to Know

Sleep is essential for brain health. Professor at UC Irvine in the Department of Cognitive Science and WAM Grantee, Dr. Sara Mednick, shares all you need to know about how sleep affects the brain. WAM: What is the connection between getting sleep and having a healthy...

read more
How to Boost Your Brain to Live Better Longer

How to Boost Your Brain to Live Better Longer

Gary Small, MD, is the Director of the UCLA Longevity Center and author of The Memory Bible. In an interview he did with The WAM Weekly, Dr. Small explains what we all can do for our brains today to live better for longer. WAM: Your mission at the UCLA Longevity...

read more
Dr. Kristine Yaffe on Keeping Our Brain Strong and Healthy

Dr. Kristine Yaffe on Keeping Our Brain Strong and Healthy

Kristine Yaffe, MD, a Professor of Psychiatry, Neurology and Epidemiology at the UCSF Weill Institute for Neurosciences. She is also a member of the California Governor's Task Force on Alzheimer's Prevention and Preparedness. Dr. Yaffe answered our questions about the...

read more
Moving in Nature: Exercise Squared

Moving in Nature: Exercise Squared

By Dr. William Sears and Dr. Vincent M. Fortanasce Remember Dr. Mom’s prescription for boredom and bad behavior? “Go outside and play!” No neuroscientist has ever topped this advice from Dr. Mom. Modern brain scans, those windows into your brain, reveal she was right....

read more
Dr. Nadine Burke Harris on California’s State of Health

Dr. Nadine Burke Harris on California’s State of Health

Pediatrician Dr. Nadine Burke Harris was appointed California's first Surgeon General in 2019, and today is at the forefront of the state's COVID-19 health response. In a WAM Weekly exclusive, she tells us how she and the nation's largest state are handling the...

read more
Love is a State of Mind

Love is a State of Mind

Though we may feel pangs of love in our hearts, the actual signs of this strong emotion resonate in our brains. And thanks to modern science and technology, we can physically observe love's neurobiological effects. Dr. Robert Weiss is a clinical sexologist and...

read more
Move For Minds Experts on Why We Need to Move

Move For Minds Experts on Why We Need to Move

Members of our Move For Minds panel tell us about the benefits of movement and exercise. Dr. Lisa Mosconi: When it comes to being physically active, there’s no shortage of good reasons to get a move-on. If avoiding heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes aren’t...

read more
The Beachcomber: An Alzheimer’s Poem

The Beachcomber: An Alzheimer’s Poem

BY SR. JANET RECTENWALD, SFCC I wait ...          to receive from you          words that identify          who you are,          your history, where you came from,          what you long for.   Words come ...          broken words, unintelligible words,         ...

read more
How to Keep Your Brain Healthy While Having Fun

How to Keep Your Brain Healthy While Having Fun

BY SUSAN PASCAL Summer is the time we like to get away, to give ourselves and even our brains a rest. But is that a good idea for optimal brain health? Michael M. Merzenich, a professor emeritus neuroscientist at the University of California, San Francisco, member of...

read more
Why Moving Your Body Is Good For Your Brain

Why Moving Your Body Is Good For Your Brain

BY WENDY SUZUKI What if I told you that there was something that you could do right now that would make you say, “Gee, I think my brain is working better today!” And what if I told you that this same process might not only strengthen the parts of your brain that’s...

read more
Looking Forward to a World Without Alzheimer’s

Looking Forward to a World Without Alzheimer’s

Is there hope?” they ask me. For themselves. For their moms, dads, husbands, and wives.My answer: absolutely yes.And I don’t mean that in the you-should-never-give-up-hope sense. I’m saying that there’s now legitimate reason to be optimistic. Not about...

read more
Feed Your Gut to Help Your Brain

Feed Your Gut to Help Your Brain

BY DR. MARC MILSTEIN Head to toe you are about 37 trillion human cells, give or take a trillion. You are also about 37 trillion bacteria cells.   I hate to break it to you, but you are half human, half bacteria.   What is all that bacteria doing living on and inside...

read more
Unlocking Cognitive Potential through Dance and Movement

Unlocking Cognitive Potential through Dance and Movement

By Erica Hornthal, LCPC, BC-DMT As a dance/movement therapist specializing in cognitive and movement disorders, I see movement as a key that unlocks cognitive potential. Movement isn’t just fun, expressive, and joyful. It is necessary in order to reach these...

read more
Is There a Connection Between ADHD and Alzheimer’s?

Is There a Connection Between ADHD and Alzheimer’s?

As part of our new "Ask the Expert" series, we submitted these commonly-asked questions to The Women's Alzheimer's Movement's Scientific Advisory Council. Below are the responses we received from members of WAM's Scientific Advisory Council. Is there a connection...

read more
Alcohol Abuse and Alzheimer’s: Are the Two Related?

Alcohol Abuse and Alzheimer’s: Are the Two Related?

As part of our new "Ask the Expert" series, we submitted these commonly-asked questions to The Women's Alzheimer's Movement's Scientific Advisory Council. Below, Dr. Bruce Miller, MD, Director UCSF Dementia Center, responds. What is the role of alcohol in Alzheimer’s?...

read more
5 Key Takeaways From Move for Minds 2018

5 Key Takeaways From Move for Minds 2018

At our Move for Minds events in June 2018, we featured nearly 50 superstar experts in the fields of brain health and Alzheimer's who shared their latest research and insights into what we should know about this disease today. Here are the biggest lessons learned from...

read more
5 Lifestyle Changes That Keep Your Brain Sharp at Any Age

5 Lifestyle Changes That Keep Your Brain Sharp at Any Age

Trying to keep your mind in tip-top shape? An expert tells us how you can fight brain decline by living an active and engaged life. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, more than five million Americans are currently living with Alzheimer’s. By 2050, that number...

read more
Shining a Light on Vitamin D

Shining a Light on Vitamin D

Many chronic conditions can be associated with low levels of vitamin D. Vitamin D affects the immune system and may act as a neuroprotective agent. In MS (multiple sclerosis), low levels of vitamin D can possibly increase the risk of developing and/or worsening MS....

read more
The DASH Diet: Good for Heart Health and Brain Health

The DASH Diet: Good for Heart Health and Brain Health

U.S. News & World Report rates The National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute’s DASH diet (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) as the “best overall” and “healthy eating” plan to lower blood pressure and cholesterol. New research shows that the DASH diet may...

read more
African Americans and Alzheimer’s: What You Need to Know

African Americans and Alzheimer’s: What You Need to Know

Did you know that African Americans are twice as likely to get diagnosed with Alzheimer's as their non-Hispanic Caucasian counterparts? This startling statistic is what drives the research work of Dr. Goldie Byrd, the Nathan F. Simms Endowed Professor of Biology at...

read more
Assessing Your Alzheimer’s Risk

Assessing Your Alzheimer’s Risk

BY DR. KENNETH KOSIK Your risk for Alzheimer’s disease depends, in part, on the decisions you make every day—about what to eat for lunch, whether to hit the gym on the way home and how you choose to relax. But there is no one-size-fits-all approach, and that’s because...

read more
How to Stay Asleep and Sleep More Deeply

How to Stay Asleep and Sleep More Deeply

BY DR. MARK HYMAN “If one awakes in between 1 and 4 am every night for years, what can they do differently to stay asleep and sleep more deeply?” If doctors and dietitians had a penny for every time they heard this complaint, they could comfortably retire on some...

read more
How Dance and Movement Can Help Foster Identity

How Dance and Movement Can Help Foster Identity

BY ERICA HORNTHAL, LCPC, BC-DMT Movement is a vital component of life. Although it is often associated with exercise, it’s important for us to remember that movement is an overarching umbrella involving body language, non-verbal communication, gesturing, posture, and...

read more
Why You Should Aim to Avoid Inflammatory Foods

Why You Should Aim to Avoid Inflammatory Foods

BY DR. DALE BREDESEN Cognitive decline is largely a matter of three fundamental threats to our brain: inflammation; a shortage of brain-boosting nutrients, hormones, and other cognition-supporting molecules; and toxic exposure. What we call Alzheimer’s disease is a...

read more
Get Creative: Pair Your Physical Movement With Music

Get Creative: Pair Your Physical Movement With Music

BY DEBORAH SHOUSE "I move, therefore I am." — Haruki Murakami  During my mother’s journey through dementia, my dad was determined to keep her moving—walking, swimming, and gardening. He was determined to move her through her confusion. My father intuitively understood...

read more
Brain-Healthy Tips From Our Move For Minds Experts

Brain-Healthy Tips From Our Move For Minds Experts

Below are valuable insights from our community of experts - scientists, researchers, nutritionists, advocates, caregivers, and more — who participated in our 2017 Move For Minds events across the country. To learn more about the event and help us wipe out Alzheimer's,...

read more
Three Tips For a Strong, Rested Mind

Three Tips For a Strong, Rested Mind

BY CHRIS SHELTON As a practitioner of the ancient healing art of Qigong and Traditional Chinese Medicine, I treat people with conditions ranging from chronic pain to dementia. When a person comes to see me with a sadly common and heart-breaking affliction like...

read more
12 Books to Get Smart on Brain Health

12 Books to Get Smart on Brain Health

Through our work, we’ve come across a plethora of resources on how to take care of and optimize your mind. Now, for easy ready, we’ve put together a roundup of the books and authors that we’ve featured all in one place.

read more
Essential Vitamins & Supplements for Good Brain Health

Essential Vitamins & Supplements for Good Brain Health

Alzheimer’s expert Dr. Richard Isaacson sat down with Maria Shriver on Friday, August 5th once again to continue their conversation about Alzheimer’s prevention, memory, and diet on Facebook Live. In this session, they discussed the essential vitamins our brains need.

read more
8 Steps To Reverse Memory Loss

8 Steps To Reverse Memory Loss

Even if you aren’t suffering from cognitive decline, you should take these steps because they can help you prevent the aging of your brain and help you achieve lifelong health.

read more
The Alzheimer’s Diet

The Alzheimer’s Diet

A relatively new body of research has found that changes in dietary patterns can have a positive effect on memory. This is true for healthy people as well as for those with mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease.

read more