2 Books to Make you Rethink your Health/Wellness Priorities

One of the best ways to learn new things is to read. There are so many excellent books to choose from that one lifetime isn’t enough to read them all. I am a readaholic geek who usually reads around 50 books a year by watching very little t.v. Of course, having grown kids makes it easier to read this much. Reading that many books there are always a few that stand out from the rest. Recently, I read 2 books back to back which I want to share with you. These amazing and very informative books have made a positive difference in my health and wellness priorities.

Brain Food

We’ve known for years that diet impacts our health in many ways. However, there is still much that is unknown about the connection between our diet and the brain. This book is an eye-opener from field expert, Dr. Lisa Musconi, (holds a dual PhD in both neuroscience and nuclear medicine), the associate director of the Alzheimer’s Prevention Clinic at Weill Cornell Medical College. She focuses her work on the brain and nutrition in this very readable book.

Dr. Musconi claims that the brain has its own unique system with different needs. Her book talks about the importance of diet on its healthy functioning and cognitive abilities. An unhealthy diet and dehydration both lead to poor brain health and shrinkage. Dr. Musconi argues that poor diet accelerates and perhaps is the root cause of diseases such as dementia and Alzheimer’s. She points out that only 1% of Alzheimer’s cases are caused by rare genetic mutation. Additionally, she goes on to champion the “Blue Zone” diets, specifically the Mediterranean diet and why it is better for brain health. If you are unfamiliar with Blue Zones, they refer to a few pockets of people in the world that have an unusually large number of centenarians (people who live to be 100 or more).

Her case is not rock solid as there is still much to learn in this field and a need for more research. However, I think she more than shows there is a legitimate connection well-worth exploring. Additionally, she provides a detailed diet plan that addressed the nutritional needs of the brain. Her book may help people to consider their diets more closely as I know it did for me.

The Circadian Code

This one impacted me the most because I have struggled with sleep my whole life. This wealth of information on the circadian rhythm, or sleep/wake cycle comes from a top expert in the field, Dr. Satchin Panda. Through much of his own research he presents his case of a sleep-deprived world and the importance of our circadian rhythm. Our bodies are wired to sleep at certain times and when those times are off it affects the rest of our biological and mental health.

Dr. Panda details just how interconnected our sleep cycle is with the rest of our body. He explains how our rhythm impacts cognitive function, digestive function, gut health, mental health weight loss, and so much more. He also explains our biological need for light which impacts our sleep cycle. In all this Dr. Panda is not insensitive to the challenges of keeping a healthy sleep cycle in modern society and even struggles himself, but he addresses how to work with those challenges.

After reading this so many things made sense in my own personal struggles with sleep, depression, and anxiety. I go to bed earlier, get up earlier, turn off the blue light function on my devices, wear a sleeping mask, etc. A healthy circadian rhythm is my new priority.

Importance of Continual Learning

A continually growing science field with collaborative research from around the world continues to give us more and more knowledge about our health and wellness. Old myths are either being debunked or proven, so staying current is important. Our world is in a health crisis right now and many want to claim back their health. This is a subject that is only going to continue to grow. Having resources such as these two books available to us to learn from and modify our habits is the best tool possible. Happy reading and have an amazing week!

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