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Forbes
a day ago
- Health
- Forbes
6 Steps To Preserve Brain Health Now To Prevent Dementia As You Age
Scientists report that if you want to avoid dementia and Alzheimer's in later years, you must start ... More boosting and preserving your brain health in your twenties and thirties, instead of waiting until you're older. In honor of Brain Health Awareness this month, as the rates of Parkinson's, dementia and Alzheimer's are rising, I wondered what you can do early on to prevent these diseases. I found out that changes leading to neurodegenerative disease begin in your 20s and 30s. Most people don't realize that your brain doesn't suddenly age in your 60s or 70s. Now is the time to start promoting and preserving your brain health. The sooner you understand cognitive decline and what you can do to curb it now, the better your brain health will be in later years. If you can improve your brain health today, you'll reduce the risk of brain disease in the future, according to experts. I spoke by email with Dr. Rudolph Tanzi, a leading expert on Alzheimer's and neurodegenerative diseases. He is the Director of the Genetics and Aging Research Unit and the McCance Center for Brain health At Massachusetts General Hospital. Tanzi recommends that you talk with your primary care provider first and walk through the McCance Brain Care Score™-- the multi-dimensional brain care tracker to see where you stand today. Your score shows where you can improve your brain health. The brain health expert developed a plan to help you remember the everyday steps to take care of your brain now to preserve and promote brain health and prevent other age-related diseases, including heart disease, diabetes and cancer. Here is Tanzi's six-step SHIELD method with additional research that supports his plan. 1. S stands for sleep. Sleep deprivation hampers your ability to deal with stress. Tanzi emphasizes the importance of getting seven to eight hours of sleep each night. He says sleep serves to clear away the plaques that lead to cognitive decline, adding that plaques begin decades before signs of decline. So, getting good sleep at any age (even power naps) can improve your brain health. If you're looking for ways to improve the quality of your sleep, he suggests visiting The American Heart Association's guide to healthy sleep. 2. H is for handling stress. In six easy steps, meditation reduces cortisol levels by 25% and alters brain activity so you're less error prone and make fewer mistakes. Tanzi advises that you establish a meditation practice and manage expectations that can reduce stress. He recommends visiting the Benson-Henry Institute for Mind Body Medicine website for ongoing tips and guided meditations and the Mental Health & Well-being guide from The American Heart Association. 3. I is for interaction with friends. Tanzi points out that loneliness doubles the risk for Alzheimer's disease. In 2023, Dr. Vivek Murthy, the U.S. Surgeon General cited loneliness as a serious mental health hazard. Research shows that social connections improve your brain health. People with greater levels of social engagement have more robust gray matter in regions of the brain relevant in dementia. 4. E is for exercise. Regular exercise boosts heart rate and blood flow, which may help reduce the risk of cognitive decline. According to Tanzi, exercise induces new nerve cell growth to strengthen brain regions affected in Alzheimer's disease and triggers the breakdown of brain amyloid. He insists that finding an exercise that works for you is key. He recommends starting small and working up to the recommended 150 minutes per week, to have an impact on your brain health. 5. L is for learning new things. Your brain learns from novelty, which promotes adaptive learning by resetting key brain circuits and enhances your ability to update new ideas into existing neurological frameworks. 'Learning new things strengthens and increases the number of synapses in your brain, the connections between nerve cells storing your memories,' Tanzi states. 'Synapse loss correlates most with the degree of dementia. The more synapses you make, the more you have to spare. Puzzles aren't necessarily the answer, either.' He cites a recent Harvard Health article that concludes, 'Practicing a new and challenging activity is a good bet for building and maintaining cognitive skills.' He suggests that activities such as learning a new language or taking a class have major benefits for brain health. 6. D is for diet. Vitamin B is essential for brain wellness and can be found in eggs, whole grains, fish, avocados and citrus fruits. In Tanzi's opinion, the best diet for the brain is the Mediterranean diet, which minimizes red meat and is rich in fiber from fruit and vegetables. 'A plant based diet balances the bacteria in your gut, called the 'gut microbiome,' he points out. "A healthy gut microbiome has also been shown to reduce amyloid plaque and brain neuroinflammation, a major killer of nerve cells in the brain.' NAD+ (stands for nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide), a coenzyme critical to key cellular processes such as ATP production (converting food to energy in the cell), mitochondrial function and DNA repair. According to Dr. Andrew Shao, senior vice president of Global Scientific & Regulatory Affairs at Niagen Bioscience, it's essential to brain health because it supports neural health, powers cellular energy, repairs damaged DNA and activates a family of proteins that help regulate inflammation and protect neurons. Shao told me that NAD+ levels decline as we age (starting as early as our 30s) from stressors we face every day such as overeating, alcohol consumption, sun exposure, sedentary lifestyle and environmental pollutants. Shao adds that the decline in NAD+ impacts cellular repair and energy production, rendering the brain more vulnerable to neurodegeneration. He explains that the most effective way to support your NAD+ levels is with a form of vitamin B3 (nicotinamide riboside or NR). He notes that 1000mg of the oral supplement Niagen is a safe and effective supplement of vitamin B3 that restores NAD+ levels by up to 150%, supporting the cellular processes that keep your brain healthy and resilient as the levels decline with age. Shao concludes that researchers are uncovering the potential of elevating NAD+ in people with Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. He reports that early findings show potential to improve brain metabolism and reduce neuroinflammation. In addition to the SHIELD method, Shao suggests that you can support mitochondrial health with supplements of NR, starting in your early 30s to support brain health over time.
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
IMVARIA Reports Multi-Site Clinical Experience With FDA-Authorized AI Diagnostic Service for Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis at ATS 2025
Presenting real-world use of Fibresolve, the first-of-its-kind AI-powered adjunctive diagnostic service supporting assessment of suspected Interstitial Lung Disease (ILD) and Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF) BERKELEY, Calif., May 18, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--IMVARIA Inc., a health tech company pioneering AI-driven digital biomarker solutions, today reported results from multi-site clinical experiences with IMVARIA's diagnostic referral service, where pulmonologists send cases for AI-supported diagnostic evaluation of suspected Interstitial Lung Disease (ILD) and Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF). Built by medical doctors with software engineering expertise, Fibresolve is the first ever FDA-authorized AI adjunctive diagnostic service of any type in lung fibrosis. Clinical data from use around the U.S. will be presented by pulmonary experts from Harvard's Mass General Hospital at ATS 2025 International Conference, focusing on respiratory diseases, held on May 16-21, 2025 in San Francisco. "We're excited that our clinical users are sharing real-world experience with Fibresolve at the ATS Conference," said Joshua Reicher, MD, Co-founder and CEO of IMVARIA. "At IMVARIA, we've taken a different approach to AI – one that makes it far easier for pulmonologists to benefit from this new technology without changing workflows or installing complex systems. As practicing medical doctors, my co-founder Dr. Michael Muelly and I designed Fibresolve to meet the highest medical standards, deliver new insights, and make it easy for clinicians to use AI with confidence and minimal burden. We're proud to see that approach working in real clinical settings." IMVARIA's Fibresolve received FDA authorization in early 2024 and has gone through a rigorous process to make it useful and reliable for pulmonologists. Fibresolve is available through IMVARIA's centralized service that uses AI to help guide safe, non-invasive diagnoses. Fibresolve also has the distinction as the first FDA Breakthrough-Designated AI diagnostic tool with simultaneously adopted CPT billing codes by the American Medical Association (AMA) in any disease. IMVARIA is additionally presenting data on ScreenDx and Bronchosolve, two more AI solutions in its pulmonary portfolio. ScreenDx, FDA-cleared in 2025, is the first AI technology authorized to assess interstitial lung findings compatible with ILD. Bronchosolve is an investigational tool designed to support more accurate assessment of indeterminate lung nodules and is currently under research investigation. Poster Presentations at ATS 2025 Conference Fibresolve Title: Clinical Experience with the First FDA-Authorized Artificial Intelligence Tool in Interstitial Lung Disease and Idiopathic Pulmonary FibrosisSession: A46 - New Research in Biomarkers and Imaging for ILDPoster: P1547Date and Time: Sunday, May 18, 2025: 9:15 AM - 4:15 PM ScreenDx Title: Automated Al Detection of Interstitial Lung Disease by Computed Tomography (CT) in the COPDGene Trial; Subanalysis and Characteristics of Accurately Detected CasesSession: A57 - Late Breaking Abstracts in Clinical ProblemsPoster: P1006Date and Time: Sunday, May 18, 2025: 9:15 AM - 4:15 PM Bronchosolve Title: Closed Loop, Full Automation of Suspicious Lung Nodule Risk Assessment with AI in Screening CasesSession: B110 - The Road to Early Detection: Advancing Lung Cancer Screening Through AI, Risk Models, And Real-World DataPoster: 619Date and Time: Monday, May 19, 2025: 2:15 PM - 4:15 PM Title: Age-Stratified Subanalysis of a Closed Loop, Fully Automated Lung Nodule Risk Assessment Al SoftwareSession: B80-1 - From Bench to Bedside: Innovative Biomarkers, Screening Approaches, And Personalized Treatments In Lung CancerPoster: P804Date and Time: Monday, May 19, 2025: 9:15 AM - 4:15 PM Together, these presentations reflect IMVARIA's mission to empower clinicians to make the best decisions through clinically meaningful AI. For more information about IMVARIA, click here. About IMVARIA Inc. IMVARIA is a health tech company pioneering AI-driven solutions that empower clinicians to make accurate diagnoses and prognoses at earlier stages of disease. Founded in 2019 by physician-engineers from Google and Stanford University, the company operates its AI Lab with automated, machine-learning algorithm technology to transform clinical decision-making into data science. IMVARIA is based in Berkeley, CA. For more information, go to View source version on Contacts Media Contact Anthony PetrucciBioscribeanthony@ Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Red Sox' Triston Casas has knee surgery less than 48 hours after season-ending injury
BOSTON — Less than 48 hours removed from suffering a season-ending injury during an awkward play around first base, Red Sox first baseman Triston Casas had surgery Sunday. Casas underwent a successful "left patellar tendon repair," the Red Sox announced Sunday. The procedure was performed by Dr. Eric Berkson at Massachusetts General Hospital. Advertisement On Saturday, Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow confirmed that Casas, who had no other damage to ligaments or other parts of his knee, would need surgery. The procedure was done in short order, beginning what should be an arduous rehab process for the 25-year-old. 'It's a big loss,' Breslow said Saturday. 'In addition to what we think we were gonna get on the offensive side, he was a stabilizing presence and made some nice plays in the field. Also, a big personality and a big part of the clubhouse and the team. He's going to be missed in all facets.' Casas suffered the injury in the second inning of Friday's loss when he was trying to avoid Minnesota's Ty France while legging out a dribbler down the first base line. He was immediately stretchered off the Fenway Park field and taken by ambulance to a local hospital. Manager Alex Cora said Casas was 'in shock' when he first went down. 'The kid, he enjoys this,' Cora said. 'He likes showing up early. We hate that but he loves it. He enjoys cleaning those shoes and staying here until late. He loves baseball. This is what makes him feel comfortable. Right now, he's not gonna have it for a while but knowing him, knowing his family and knowing the support system that he has, he's going to be back and he's going to be good again. Advertisement 'These guys, they work so hard to post, to have big seasons and all that. He did an outstanding job in the offseason to put himself in that situation. Didn't start the way he wanted to but he was going to play and play a lot. Now, we have to focus on the rehab after the surgery. Hopefully, get him back stronger than ever and ready to go next year.' For now, the Red Sox are leaning on internal options Romy Gonzalez and Abraham Toro at first base but an external addition remains possible. 'We obviously started this, this last offseason, trying to be aggressive in putting a competitive team on the field,' Breslow said. 'This is unfortunately an opportunity to explore what is available. We'll look both internally and potentially externally as well.' More Red Sox coverage Read the original article on MassLive.
Yahoo
23-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
MGH's Center for Space Medicine monitoring Suni Williams return, others adapting life back on earth
Mass General Hospital launched its Center for Space Medicine Research in January of 2024. Their most recent case study is astronaut and Needham native Suni Williams who returned from space after 9 months this week. Williams and Butch Wilmore's eight-day expedition turned into 9 months after concerns over their Boeing capsule. The two splashed down Tuesday night off the coast of Florida. Vladimir Ivkovic is the director of research at opportunities at the Mass General Hospital Center for Space Medicine. He has been monitoring Suni and Butch's journey – alongside other astronauts who have to acclimate from space to life on Earth. He explained, 'We are more and more interested in understanding the actual ramifications of those missions that they will have on the human body, on human performance, on psychological functioning of these individuals.' The Boston-based unit is now performing research funded by NASA. Ivkovic told Boston 25 Saturday that Wilmore and Williams will undergo several changes returning to life on Earth and gravity. This week, Ivkovic said they'll experience weakness in their muscles and bones that haven't experienced pressure from gravity in months. Their hearts will also be forced to pump harder with gravity, which could cause fatigue and take weeks to adapt to. He explained, 'Of course, initially it is most acute in the first 48 hours. Then it becomes more stable. But, it takes a lot of effort.' The two will undergo extensive cardiovascular and resistive exercises to gain back their physical strength, Ivkovic says. Emotional and psychological effects can be seen in the coming weeks as well, with more exposure to crowds, family, and the outside world. Ivkovic and his team are not working directly with Wilmore or Williams, but have been gathering data from other astronauts who've undergone the same physical change. They believe the physical changes they undergo could shed light on certain disorders and conditions on Earth. Ivkovic explained, 'There's a lot of similarities in fact with some extreme situations or environments we have on earth and what we're seeing in space flight.' Boston 25 spoke with Suni Williams' family Wednesday, who said they are giving her space to adapt over the next few weeks. Once she's able, she plans to return at some point to the Boston area. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
