Parents often receive books at pediatric checkups via programs like Reach Out and Read and hear from a variety of health professionals and educators that reading to their kids is critical for supporting development. The pro-reading message is getting through to parents, who recognize…
As if you didn’t have enough to worry about. Now, science finds that negative thinking may actually cause your brain to decline faster and has been linked to an increase in the harmful proteins associated with Alzheimer’s disease. Repetitive Negative…
You can think of your attention as your brain’s steering wheel. Wherever your attention goes, the rest of your brain follows. It is the gate through which all sensory information enters your conscious experience. Because of this, it influences your…
As with many other physicians, recommending physical activity to patients was just a doctor chore for me – until a few years ago. That was because I myself was not very active. Over the years, as I picked up boxing…
Neuroplasticity, the ability of your brain to change both physical form and function in response to its environment, has become a buzzword promising that you can “rewire” your brain to improve almost everything. While there is some truth in these…
Mental health in America was declining long before COVID-19 hit. A year later, it’s at an alarming low. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in August of 2020 that symptoms of anxiety had tripled and depression symptoms…
Your brain is wired to avoid discomfort — emotional or physical — in an effort to ensure your safety. Throughout evolution, this strong instinct helped our species survive. A part of our brain, the amygdala, learns from past painful and…
In the past, it was taught and accepted that the brain was the only organ in the human body that was “immune privileged” meaning it lacked any direct physical connection to the immune system. In 2015, one experiment at the…
Around most of the world, vaccinations are on the rise, COVID-19 cases and deaths are declining, and people are starting to resume life as normal, including cautiously traveling again. Before the global pandemic and accompanying travel restrictions, travel was an…
Observing a pianist at a recital – converting musical notations into precisely timed finger movements on a piano – can be a powerful emotional experience. As a researcher of neuroscience and a pianist myself, I understand that the mastering of…
If there was a free pill you could take daily that had the potential to help make you mentally and physically healthier and change your brain for the better, you’d probably take it, right? At least give it a try?…