Making a Good Brain Great by Daniel G. Amen

Cover Image from Random House

This book came out in 2006, but I discovered it recently. Listening to the audio version while driving was informative and enjoyable.

Much of the advice offered by Dr. Amen is not new. Amen stresses the importance of diet and exercise health: "What's good for your heart is good for your brain." Ummm...yeah, that's a no-brainer.

One great thing about this book is that it provides such compelling evidence of the benefits of loving your brain (and the heart goes along for the ride). Another is the numerous tips he offers, many of them painless enough to get procrastinators started.

But those who think they know a lot about the brain are in for a surprise. Amen is a well-known specialist doctor, and he goes into biological detail about the surprising relationships between the functions of specific brain areas and the types of behaviour they govern.

Much of his advice, including suggestions he routinely gives to his patients, is free and practical. He tells us what we should know, and clarifies what we think we know. His advice takes account of the practical realities of contemporary life.

Who wouldn't want to know how to get the children on a lifelong path of brain health?  Who couldn't use some advice on how to manage grocery shopping and meal preparation for brain health?

Dr. Amen even offers advice on how to go about intervening when you suspect someone close to you know has a brain problem that needs attention.

The good news is, mental and emotional problems are related to specific areas or functions of the brain that can be treated individually. This makes it very possible to treat not just symptoms, but underlying causes of brain-related distress.

Of course he trots out what we all know but don't always act on: prevention is better than treatment, early treatment is more effective, and the brain is like the heart and muscles. It comes with the implicit instructions, "Use it or lose it!"

Some books we read from the library, or borrow from friends. This one is definitely worth keeping a copy on the shelf.