Keep Sharp: Build a Better Brain at Any Age

by Sanjay Gupta MD

Overview

Notes From Your Bookseller

Can we maintain or even improve our brain function as we age? This vexing question is what Dr. Sanjay Gupta seeks to uncover while searching the globe for experts to answer. Through diet and exercise — and maybe a supplement or two — we may be able to reverse cognitive decline. Filled with loads of cutting-edge information plus an action plan to take steps towards a better brain. Dr. Gupta also addresses concerns from caregivers who help and support those in their lives with dementia or Alzheimer's. An indispensable resource for all who care about the health of our brains.

Keep your brain young, healthy, and sharp with this science-driven guide to protecting your mind from decline by neurosurgeon and CNN chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

Throughout our life, we look for ways to keep our minds sharp and effortlessly productive. Now, globetrotting neurosurgeon Dr. Sanjay Gupta offers “the book all of us need, young and old” (Walter Isaacson, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Code Breaker) with insights from top scientists all over the world, whose cutting-edge research can help you heighten and protect brain function and maintain cognitive health at any age.

Keep Sharp debunks common myths about aging and mental decline, explores whether there’s a “best” diet or exercise regimen for the brain, and explains whether it’s healthier to play video games that test memory and processing speed, or to engage in more social interaction. Discover what we can learn from “super-brained” people who are in their eighties and nineties with no signs of slowing down—and whether there are truly any benefits to drugs, supplements, and vitamins. Dr. Gupta also addresses brain disease, particularly Alzheimer’s, answers all your questions about the signs and symptoms, and shows how to ward against it and stay healthy while caring for a partner in cognitive decline. He likewise provides you with a personalized twelve-week program featuring practical strategies to strengthen your brain every day.

Keep Sharp is the “must-read owner’s manual” (Arianna Huffington) you’ll need to keep your brain young and healthy regardless of your age!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781501166730
Publisher:	Simon & Schuster
Publication date:	01/05/2021
Pages:	336
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.30(d)

About the Author

Dr. Sanjay Gupta is CNN’s Emmy Award–winning chief medical correspondent and the host of the acclaimed podcast Chasing Life (formerly Coronavirus: Fact vs. Fiction), America’s go-to resource for expert advice on how to stay healthy and safe. The #1 New York Times bestselling author of Chasing Life, Cheating Death, Monday Mornings, and Keep Sharp, Dr. Gupta lives in Atlanta, where he works as an associate professor of neurosurgery at the Emory University School of Medicine.

Table of Contents

Introduction: Nothing Brainy about It 1

Self-Assessment: Are You At Risk for Brain Decline? 19

Part 1 The Brain: Meet Your Inner Black Box

1 What Makes You You 29

2 Cognitive Decline-Redefined 49

3 12 Destructive Myths and the 5 Pillars That Will Build You 77

Part 2 The Brain Trust: How Not to Lose Your Mind

4 The Miracle of Movement 97

5 The Power of Purpose, Learning, and Discovery 115

6 The Need for Sleep and Relaxation 131

7 Food for Thought 157

8 Connection for Protection 189

9 Putting It All Together: 12 Weeks to Sharper 201

Part 3 The Diagnosis: What to Do, How to Thrive

10 Diagnosing and Treating an Ailing Brain 221

11 Navigating the Path Forward Financially and Emotionally, with a Special Note to Caregivers 257

Conclusion: The Bright Future 281

Acknowledgments 285

Notes 287

Index 305

Editorial Reviews

03/09/2020

Gupta (Chasing Life), a neurosurgeon and chief medical correspondent for CNN, offers hopeful advice on how to maintain a healthy brain in this bracing study. With many references to medical studies, he thoroughly debunks common myths about the brain, such as that languages become harder to learn as one ages, and explains the processes of various neurological functions, such as creating memories. Those looking for simplistic strategies for improving brain function and memory should look elsewhere, as Gupta subscribes to the notion that what is “good for the heart is good for the brain.” His holistic approach includes exercise, getting enough sleep, and a healthy diet, alongside maintaining a social life and trying new things. Gupta is particularly effective in chapters that address those coping with an Alzheimer’s diagnosis and their caregivers; especially useful is his list of logistics for those diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and resources for patients and their caregivers. While Gupta’s approach to better brain health doesn’t break new ground, his optimism and the wealth of scientific information he corrals will embolden and comfort readers. (June)

Publishers Weekly

2020-02-16
CNN chief medical correspondent Gupta counsels that in order to best take care of your body, you have to first take care of your mind.

The author’s primary concern is to nurture a resilient brain that propagates new cells, makes the ones you have work more efficiently, and is continuously enriched throughout life. In particular, he wishes to stave off age-related brain illnesses classified under dementia, with Alzheimer’s at the fore. Unfortunately, writes Gupta, “we often don’t and can’t know what triggers cognitive decline in the first place or what propels it over time.” Regarding the brain as a whole, “we are still not exactly sure what makes it tick.” As such, the author suggests that we get out in front of it and act preventatively by engaging in behaviors that are widely considered brain-friendly. In a steady, measured voice, he presents a comprehensive view of the best that brain science has to offer to preserve and improve memory at the cognitive level. The villains are a rogue’s gallery of familiar faces: “physical inactivity, unhealthy diet, smoking, social isolation, poor sleep, lack of mentally stimulating activities, and misuse of alcohol.” Gupta explores the evidence, both scientifically documented and anecdotal (but common-sensical), behind the value of exercise; strategies to heighten attention, focus, and concentration; relaxation (including meditation and restorative sleep); diet’s microbial effect on the brain; and the value of a diverse social network. None of this is going to make your jaw drop, but they are all good reminders of their import and how we can let them slide by without much thought. Gupta is a shameless name-dropper—“my friend, actor and fitness buff Matthew McConaughey” gives him exercise advice; the Dalai Lama privately tutors him in meditation—but he is also a genuine source of practical knowledge and sympathy to those struggling with dementia and the family members who are primary caregivers—to whom he tenders a wealth of resources.

Inclusive and recognizably sturdy advice on building a healthy brain.

Kirkus Reviews

A must-read owner’s manual for anyone with a brain.”
—Arianna Huffington, Founder & CEO, Thrive Global

“Dr. Sanjay Gupta has the unique ability to translate the latest scientific research into accessible language we can all understand. Whether you’re concerned about memory loss or simply want to boost your mental acuity, Keep Sharp is an essential guide.”
—Gary Small, MD, Director, UCLA Longevity Center

“Gupta is brilliant at busting myths, allaying fears, and giving us the solutions we need to keep sharp throughout our lives.”
—Dean Ornish, MD, Founder & President, Preventive Medicine Research Institute

“This is a frontier where we can dramatically improve human life, and Keep Sharp is a helpful primer for anyone who wants to better understand brain function and how to preserve it.”
— Bill Gates, Co-Chair, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

“Keep Sharp will change how you think about your brain, how you care for it, and how you support its full potential.”
—David B. Agus, MD, New York Times bestselling author of The End of Illness

“This is the book all of us need, young and old!”
—Walter Isaacson, New York Times bestselling author of Steve Jobs

“Sanjay Gupta brilliantly crafts an actionable plan we can all follow. I feel sharper already.”
—Mehmet Oz, MD, Host, The Dr. Oz Show

“Keep Sharp shows it’s absolutely possible to take control of one’s brain health for life.”
—Richard Isaacson, MD, Director, Alzheimer’s Prevention Clinic at the Weill Cornell Memory Disorders Program

“In a steady, measured voice, [Gupta] presents a comprehensive view of the best that brain science has to offer to preserve and improve memory... A genuine source of practical knowledge and sympathy to those struggling with dementia and the family members who are primary caregivers.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“[Gupta’s] optimism and the wealth of scientific information he corrals will embolden and comfort readers.”
—Publishers Weekly

From the Publisher