Table of Contents
Introduction
What causes us to age
How the brain is wired
Why old age can be some of the happiest years of your life
Social Brain
1 Your Friendships 15
Vitamins for the brain
More parties, less flu
Where social isolation leads
Video chats
The human touch
2 Your Happiness 39
Happier or grumpier?
Roller-coaster grandpa
Gullibility and the Highway to Hell
Dopamine and depression
The power of gratitude
Thinking Brain
3 Your Stress 65
The thermostat of the stress system
How you feel about aging changes the way your brain ages
Gender differences
Stress and mindfulness
4 Your Memory 87
Many types of memory
What declines, what stays robust, what improves how the brain battles back
Mikey likes it, and you will too
5 Your Mind 109
How processing speed changes
Problem-solving abilities vs. intelligence drawn from experience
Stunning results from playing video games
6 Your Mind: Alzheimer's 129
What your doctor cant tell you
Mild cognitive impairment vs. Alzheimer's 10 warning signs
The amyloid hypothesis and the Nun Study
Predicting Alzheimer's in your 20s?
Body and Brain
7 Your food and exercise 153
A little exercise goes a long way
Less food, longer life?
Two diets that improve working memory and lower the risk of Alzheimer's
8 Your sleep 175
Why do we sleep? two breakthroughs
The battle of the sleep cycle
How sleep fragments as you age
A good night's sleep starts four hours before
Future Brain
9 Your longevity 201
What Super Agers can teach us about long life
A gene found to extend life
How cells know to die, thus avoiding cancer
A pill for aging?
10 Your retirement 219
Retiring from a job raises your risk of disability, disease, depression, and dementia
Nostalgia is good for you
The Blue Zone
An hour-by-hour plan for retirement
Acknowledgments 253
Index 257