SCWW Special Event: Brain Health:
A Use-It-Or-Lose-It Strategy
Presented by Hope Levy
Friday, April 28th 2017
3:00pm – 4:00pm (Pacific Time)
To join by computer:
Click: https://esc.zoom.us/j/7887887778
To join by phone:
Call:
(888) 974-9888
Enter code: 788-788-7778#
There’s Always Hope
Learning for a Lifetime
www.There’sAlwaysHopeConsulting.com
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Objectives
 Explain in layman’s terms the concepts of brain
plasticity and cognitive reserve, and how to harness
their benefits
 Explain three practical ways to maintain brain fitness
 Identify at least one brain fitness strategy that you
can integrate into your life
 Identify print, on-line and community brain-health
resources
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Agenda
 Background: What the Research Tells Us
 Healthy Brain Recipe: Applying the
Research
 Emerging Trends in Brain Health
 Resources
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Brain Plasticity at Work
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Brain Plasticity
“It doesn’t take money to create a climate for enhanced minds to
grow. It just takes information imagination, motivation and effort.”
- Marian Diamond and Janet Hobson, The Magic Trees of the Mind
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The Nun
Study
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Cognitive Reserve
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Mental
Mental Activity
Stimulation
Physical
Physical
Activity
Activity
HEALTHY
Healthy
Brain
Recipe
BRAIN
RECIPE
Social Engagement
Social
Engagement
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Healthy Eating
Healthy Eating
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Physical Activity
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Physical
Activity
Walking
Toning
Make it social
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Flexibility
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Super Brain Yoga
http://www.holistic-alternative-practioners.com/Super-Brain-Yoga.html
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Mental Stimulation
Cross train your brain
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Left
Brain
Activities
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”
Guestimations”
)
(from SharpBrains.com
Guess the answers to the questions (you don't
need to know, or research, the right answer, simply
try to "guesstimate" an appropriate range).
1. What is the weight of Boeing 747 airplane
(empty and full)?
2. How many trees are there in NYC's Central
Park?
3. How many shoes have you had in your life?
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Rebus
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Right Brain
Activities
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Make it Fun; Make it Social
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What Do You see?
A vase or two faces
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What do the following words
have in common?
HOT
OFF
POWDER
ROYAL
JET
LIME
STEEL
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FLAME
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Mental Challenges
•Where can you find them?
•How challenging should the
task be to gain cognitive
benefit?
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Keep Learning; Stay Curious
 Learn new vocabulary words
 Listen to different genres of music
 Choose a new genre of pleasure
reading
 Gratitude journal
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eLibrary Resources
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Are the two horizontal lines
straight or curved?
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Circle Scramble
H
R
M
Y
T
H
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I
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Neurobics
•
Walk a different route.
•
Brush your teeth with the
opposite hand.
•
Turn photos in your house
upside-down.
•
Switch around your morning
routine.
•
Order a new dish-Can you
guess the ingredients?
•
Move your trash can to the
other side of your desk.
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Healthy Eating
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Good Nutrition
What’s good for the heart is
good for the brain!
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Make it Social
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Social Engagement
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Emerging Trends in Brain Health
 Video/Computer-based brain
games/online communities
 Meditation
 Personalized brain fitness training
 More use of functional MRIs
 Earlier diagnosis
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Brain Training Web Platforms
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Mental
Mental Activity
Stimulation
Physical
Physical
Activity
Activity
YOUR
Healthy
HBrain
EALTHY
Recipe
BRAIN
RECIPE Healthy Eating
Social Engagement
Social
Engagement
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In Summary
 70% of brain health is based on lifestyle choices
 What’s good for the heart is good for the brain
 Choose mental activities that are challenging and
enjoyable; up the ante to continually strengthen our
brains
 Build physical activity into your lifestyle
 Make it social
 Incorporate novelty in your brain health recipe
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Resources
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Books
 Green, Cynthia. Brainpower Game Plan: Sharpen Your
Memory, Improve Your Concentration, and Age-Proof
Your Mind in Just 4 Weeks. Rodale Books. 2009.
 Katz, Lawrence C. and Rubin, Manning. Keep Your
Brain Alive. Workman Publishing Company: New York,
NY. 1999.
 Lehr, Jonah. Imagine: How Creativity Works. Houghton
Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company: New York, NY.
2012.
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More Books
 Small, Gary and Vorgan, Gigi. The Memory
Prescription. Hyperion: New York, NY. 2004.
 Snowden, David. Aging With Grace: What the Nun
Study Teaches Us About Leading Longer, Healthier,
and More Meaningful Lives. Banton Books: New York,
NY. 2001.
 Sweeney, Michael S. Your Best Brain Ever: A Complete
Guide and Workout. National Geographic: Washington,
D.C. (2014).
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Some Web Resources
 www.games.yahoo.com
 www.Mycoted.com
Creativity and brainteasers
 www.puzzazz.com
Puzzle of the day
 www.SharpBrains.com
Lots of information about brain fitness
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Objectives Revisited
 Explain in layman’s terms the concepts of brain
plasticity and cognitive reserve and how to harness
their benefits
 Explain three practical ways to maintain brain fitness
 Identify at least one brain fitness strategy that you
can integrate into your life
 Identify print, on-line and community brain-health
resources
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Your brain is like any muscle in
the body….
There’s Always Hope
Learning for a Lifetime
www.There’sAlwaysHopeConsulting.com
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Contact Hope Levy
[email protected]
415.931.8679
www.TheresAlwaysHopeConsulting.com
There’s Always Hope
Learning for a Lifetime
www.There’sAlwaysHopeConsulting.com
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Questions & Answers
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Count the Faces
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