Exploring Brain Health Through Reading and Book Club Engagement with LeAnne Stuver and Heather Elwell

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Welcome to the Let's Talk Brain
Health podcast, a public health

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educational initiative of the
virtual Brain Health Center.

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I'm your host, Doctor Crystal
Color, and I'm so glad you're

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here.
On this podcast, I sit down with

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incredible guests to explore all
things brain health and

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Wellness.
Together, we'll talk about how

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to care for your total brain
health, mind, body, and spirit

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while sharing the latest brain
Health Science practical tips

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and strategies you can use every
day.

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By prioritizing your brain
health, you're taking an

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important step towards living a
happier, healthier life.

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So let's dive in and welcome
today's guest.

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Today we focus on the brain
boosting power of reading.

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Reading is a workout for your
visual system, language

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networks, memory circuits, and
attention skills.

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It activates multiple lobes of
your brain at the same time.

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It supports lifelong learning.
It strengthens social

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connections when you share ideas
with others.

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Today we will talk about how
reading engages the brain and

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how book clubs support deeper
thinking and social connections.

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Let's get started with our
guests, which are two of my

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favorite book lovers and my
colleagues and friends of the

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Virtual Brain Health Center.
My first guest is Leanne Stuber,

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a nurse educator and the
director of lifelong learning at

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the Virtual Brain Health Center.
She's a registered nurse with a

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decade of hospital experience
and home care experience.

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She's also an experienced health
educator dedicated to

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revolutionizing the way we
approach health education.

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With over 25 years of expertise
in the planning and

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implementation of adult
education curricula, she has

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enlightened countless
individuals through her diverse

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range of educational programs.
Passionate about empowering

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individuals and communities, she
strives to teach practical

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methods for supporting brain
health and overall Wellness

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education our virtual brain
Health Center.

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Leanne, welcome back to the
podcast.

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Is there anything else about
your background you'd like to

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share with our guests today?
Thanks Crystal.

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Just that I have always been an
avid reader, so I'm really

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looking forward to our
conversation today.

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I'm so glad you're back and
thank you for always welcoming

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invitations to join me and
talking about brain health

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education.
Our 2nd guest today is my

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colleague and friend and Co host
of the Neuronook Book Club,

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Heather Elwell and she is the
founder and CEO of Brain Health

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Mentors where she supports
people with proven lifestyle

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strategies to reduce the changes
of getting dementia.

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She draws on her experience as a
speech language pathologist for

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over 25 years and as a health
and Wellness coach, she's

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passionate about teaching
strategies to improve brain

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health.
Heather's had the privilege to

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be a speaker on brain health to
organizations such as the RP,

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Raymond James, Tampa General
Hospital, and the largest

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retirement community in the US,
The Villages.

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So, Heather, welcome to the
podcast officially.

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Leanne, we're going to start the
conversation with you today.

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I think one of the best ways to
do this is to talk about how

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reading impacts the brain.
When you think about when kids

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learn to read, if that late 456,
I guess it keeps getting

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earlier.
But our brain is first set up

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for speech, so we actually have
to learn to read.

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Speech comes much more naturally
to our brain.

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It's a full brain workout to
learn to read, and our eyes are

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so important to that because you
have to be able to recognize the

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page, recognize the letters,
form words, form sentences, use

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grammar correctly.
There are so many things that we

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need to do with our eyes
connected to our brain to get

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reading to work for us, if that
makes sense.

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It does and I believe our brains
process words quickly.

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It where it is in our brain is
very confusing for a lot of

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folks because our eyes are in
the front of our head and we

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process words towards the back
of our right.

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The occipital lobe is at the
back base of our brain and

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that's where all of our visual
things are processed.

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So that is the most important
part of the brain for beginning

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to read because that's where the
visual processes occur.

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However, reading is a full brain
workout.

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Different areas of the brain do
different things to put all the

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pieces together.
For example, the temporal lobes

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which are on the sides of your
brain near your ears, those are

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actually it's called the
letterbox of the brain.

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That's where the word
construction comes together.

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Our parietal lobe, which is up
on the top of the brain where

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you would wear a headband, we
call that kind of the

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coordinator of everything.
You can think of it like a

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Symphony.
All the different instruments

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have to play together correctly,
just like all these different

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areas of the brain have to work
together in order for you to be

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able to read, recognize the
words, remember the story,

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visualize what's going on.
So that parietal lobe part of

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the brain is the conductor that
keeps all the other parts of the

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brain connected so that when you
read a story, you understand it.

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You can read the words on the
page, you can remember what you

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read so that you can keep track
of the story the whole way

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through, and then you can talk
about it with others afterwards.

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Reading is a full brain workout.
Sounds like this can be why it's

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a complex task for all of us to
get involved into reading and

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also why from a common
experience at times of we've

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read a page and then we're like
what just happened on the page 4

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at times.
Or we may have had that

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experience where we need to
reread a page or reread a

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chapter if we have somehow lost
our way and a story is that

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we've been in a busy place, or
if we were trying to multitask,

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or if we were reading really
late at night and we're dozing

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off into sleep.
There's a lot of different ways

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we can lose track of a story
when reading, and lots of common

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missteps can happen along the
way because our brains can get

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really challenged throughout a
story as well.

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Yeah, and attention to it is
really the big key to that.

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And if you're distracted by
noises or visual things, I love

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to read in the quiet.
That's my best place to read.

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And when I don't, if I'm reading
somewhere noisy, I often have to

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go back and double check things
that didn't stick with me the

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first time.
I'm probably going to go out on

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a limb here by saying this, but
for most of us as adults tuning

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in, we don't have the worksheets
that we used to have when we

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were younger that guided us
through plot of the story and

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main characters and having to
tell someone else about what we

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were reading.
And so now we're going to pivot

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to talk with Heather.
How is reading for a book club

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different from leisure reading?
A book club is an experience you

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get to share with others and
that's what makes it so special.

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It's a great way to meet new
people, create new friendships

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and when we're learning new
information, creating new

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relationships and being part of
a community, those are all vital

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factors to living a brain
healthy lifestyle.

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A lot of times people might say
I don't know of anyone doing a

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book club in my area.
I just wanted to say if you've

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moved to an area or are
interested in a book club, you

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you can always look at your
local library or an independent

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bookstore because often they
hold different book clubs and

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that's a wonderful way to meet
new people.

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And one of the trends I've been
seeing if you're looking to just

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tap into that idea of a new
community or social connection

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is they're called silent book
clubs.

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Everyone shows up with whatever
book you're reading in a

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community space.
So sometimes it is these

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independent books stores or
sometimes just a larger

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community space and everyone
brings the book they're reading

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and it is silent.
Everyone just spends that one

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hour dedicated to reading and
you're connected within

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community.
And there's that socialization

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piece that may happen before or
after.

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And so you don't have to commit
to reading the same book, but

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you're committing to being in
community with others.

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May want to check your local
area for a silent book club.

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And what's the other benefits of
book clubs that may pique

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people's interest?
I'm one of those people.

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I love my comfort zone.
So I think when we're introduced

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to new topics and new ideas, our
brains thrive.

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And I don't know about you, but
one thing I have loved is when

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someone introduces me to a new
author that I fall in love with.

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Isn't that so fun when you have
all these new books that you can

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read?
I think it's wonderful when we

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get feedback from other people
and discover things we would

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have never discovered on our
own.

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There's a lot to learn from
other people or within community

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by simply asking, and I think
it's always a great conversation

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starter of asking other people
what are they reading about or

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great book that they've read
lately or what's on their radar,

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especially when you're in a
community of readers.

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We do happen to run a monthly
book club.

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This was an idea that we had in
the works and we thought, why

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not?
We read books, a lot of other

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people read books.
That's a great workout for the

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brain.
It's just one way that people

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seem to engage their brain.
It's one way to have a community

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that brings people together.
So we thought, let's put it out

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in the world and see what
happens.

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And this was our brainchild that
we launched in August of 2023.

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So now we can report 29 books
later around brain health.

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We are still going.
So, Heather, what would you like

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to tell people about our
neuronal?

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I love it.
It's one of my favorite things

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and it's so fun when you have an
idea and to watch it grow like

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we have.
It started because we felt like

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there was all this research
taking place, but a lot of

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people might not be reading
these books.

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And also we wanted to have the
opportunity to take this great

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research and share it with other
people.

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It's been so wonderful because
we've been able to connect with

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people all over the world and
have authors on, and I think

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it's just incredible what our
attendees have brought to the

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table, brought to the
discussion.

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I always walk away with so many
insights and ideas.

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It's one of those experiences
once a month that absolutely

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fills me up and encourages me to
lead a more brain healthy

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lifestyle.
The idea was somewhat simple.

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We had five guiding principles
with the idea of The first one

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we wanted was yes, it's a brain
health book club.

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So the first idea is it's a
community dedicated to ideas

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focused on brain health books,
but not just brain health in

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particular, but aspects of brain
health.

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So we've read a wide variety of
books from fun to awe, to having

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rituals to support your brain
health, to sleep, to different

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aspects of that.
And then I think the second

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thing we did was very
intentional was it's not a

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requirement to read the book.
You can show up because the

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topics caught your interest.
You could show up because you'd

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like the book cover or you're
just curious because a lot of

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the topics we do explore is
people have rich lived

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experiences that they can still
draw on and contribute to from

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the conversation.
And so just that idea that

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there's no pressure, just
encouragement was that second

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notion and the idea that we
would have some engaging

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discussions.
We had put out the idea that we

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would get expert insights and we
had hoped that we would attract

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authors.
And Doctor Mike Rucker from The

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Fun Habit was the first author
to join us.

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And we have been very grateful
to have other authors follow his

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lead to join us live.
We've had Maggie Moon, the

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author of The Mind Diet, Doctor
Jen Frazier, author of The Bully

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Brain, come on.
And then we've had other authors

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that couldn't join us live per
SE, that had sent in videos,

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Doctor Mary Francis O'Connor of
the Grieving Brain, Julia Huts

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of Connection Cure.
So we've had different ways that

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authors have interfaced with us
in our community that lets them

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connect with people who are
interested in our book.

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And it also lets attendees hear
directly from the authors what

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they are hoping are some key
takeaways or just additional

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insights of why they wrote the
book and what they hope people

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can take and apply it to their
day-to-day lives.

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And I think that's been an
interesting little space that we

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have created.
And we also have some great

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authors lined up in for 2026
where we get to explore tiny

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experiments in the gaslight
brain coming up as well.

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So I think that's been some
exciting things for us.

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What else are things that have
excited you, Heather?

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We've covered a wide variety of
topics.

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Have you had some favorites as
well?

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I.
Think just to summarize, what I

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love is when we explore these
books, yes, they're showing us

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how we can live a brain healthy
lifestyle, but really it's how

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we can add more happiness in our
life, how we can reduce our

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stress, things that we can add
or experience in our life that

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are going to bring a lot more
joy as well.

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I that's what I love so much
about it is it's, yes, it's

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learning things that are going
to make me healthier, but it's

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also things that are going to
help me lead a fuller and richer

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life as well.
And has there been a key

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learning or two that you want to
pass on for folks that maybe

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haven't had a chance to attend a
Neuro notebook club but are

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always welcome to join us?
We meet on the 1st Thursday of

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every month at 12:00 Eastern
Time for 45 minutes

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synchronously on Zoom.
So always a standing invitation

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for people to join us.
You can find the registration

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link below in our show notes or
on our website.

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But let's give them some
actionable takeaways as they're

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tuning in with us now, today.
There's been so many great

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surprises and takeaways and just
little tips that I feel like we

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can apply in our own lives.
So one of my favorites that we

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read this past year was The
Happier Hour.

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And what I loved about this book
is she.

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Looked at.
Time and happiness.

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And what she found was that
people that had less than two

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hours of free time a day felt
time poor and that led to

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unhappiness.
And then counter to that, people

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that had more than five hours of
free time in a day to do with

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00:15:40,560 --> 00:15:43,840
however they chose also led to
unhappiness.

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So there's this sweet spot
between two and five hours a

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day.
So something to think about, if

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you are in your busy working
years and life is busy, it's

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important that you are
scheduling time for yourself,

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whether it's social connection,
going for a workout, doing some

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self-care appointments, just
reading for leisure.

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It's important that you have
time each day that you can

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experience these things.
And then also, if you are, and I

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think of maybe college students
home for the summer or some

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00:16:15,720 --> 00:16:20,080
retirees, if you have lots of
free time, like more than five

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00:16:20,080 --> 00:16:22,880
hours a day, it's important that
we start thinking what are

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00:16:22,880 --> 00:16:26,400
things that we could schedule in
your day that would provide

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00:16:26,400 --> 00:16:29,880
social engagement, populate your
schedule, create a little bit

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more busyness in your life.
Maybe it's joining a book club,

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00:16:33,120 --> 00:16:37,120
maybe it's volunteering, maybe
there's an A walking group or

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something like that you can
join.

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So it's important that we are
taking time for ourselves.

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And I think when you look at
someone's schedule, you're

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looking at what their priorities
are.

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So it's important that we're
prioritizing ourself.

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So that was just one book that I
really loved.

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I think out of 29, it's really
hard to pick favorites.

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Not only are we biased because
we help select the books, but I

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think one of the greatest things
is as people register they for a

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00:17:04,560 --> 00:17:08,400
book club, which so far to date
we've had over 2000

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00:17:08,400 --> 00:17:11,000
registrations across all of our
meetings.

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00:17:11,359 --> 00:17:14,119
We've had interest from over 70
countries.

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So we have truly an
international group.

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00:17:17,240 --> 00:17:20,720
And one of the things that has
been very interesting for me as

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someone that gets to look at
those who have registered and as

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00:17:23,240 --> 00:17:26,520
people have shared in the chat,
not only where in the world they

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00:17:26,520 --> 00:17:32,600
are coming from, is we have a
very diverse age group involved

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00:17:32,600 --> 00:17:34,720
with us.
So one of the nice things that

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has happened at the Virtual
Brain Health Center is when

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people have reached out is we do
have some teens.

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00:17:39,880 --> 00:17:42,920
We have some youth that are
involved now that there are some

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00:17:42,920 --> 00:17:45,200
more remote high school
schedules.

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So we have some teens that get
involved into our groups.

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We have some college students
that have now recognized the

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importance of understanding
brain care skills or mental

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00:17:56,200 --> 00:18:00,200
health tools and supports and
wanting to understand how to do

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00:18:00,280 --> 00:18:04,640
and implement that time during a
very busy season of life that

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00:18:04,680 --> 00:18:06,840
join us.
And we have working

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00:18:06,840 --> 00:18:10,400
professionals that pop in to the
book club as well as people that

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00:18:10,400 --> 00:18:13,720
are aging well that are excited
to learn this information

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00:18:13,720 --> 00:18:16,440
because information about the
brain and neuroscience.

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We did not know these things 20
years ago.

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00:18:18,800 --> 00:18:23,040
So the science has been changing
is we've had a very diverse age

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group of people into the book
club.

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You know, this really aligns
with the information and brain

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Health Science of how we get to
learn when we discuss topics

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00:18:32,880 --> 00:18:36,880
with people of different ages
and when we can foster some

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00:18:37,000 --> 00:18:41,080
social relationships and social
conversations with people of

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00:18:41,080 --> 00:18:44,840
different age groups.
How that helps diversify our

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00:18:44,840 --> 00:18:48,720
perspectives, broadens our
empathy as well.

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00:18:48,720 --> 00:18:51,960
And so I think that's a nice
part of our little neuronal was

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one I never realized not only
diversity across the world, but

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00:18:56,160 --> 00:18:59,560
also diversity in the ages of
people who come in, in the

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00:18:59,560 --> 00:19:02,240
comments that we get in, the
support from one another of

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00:19:02,240 --> 00:19:05,360
people sharing how they're
applying some of these brain

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00:19:05,360 --> 00:19:09,040
health skills has been very
interesting to see over the

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00:19:09,040 --> 00:19:11,000
time.
And I think that helps check a

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00:19:11,000 --> 00:19:14,680
lot of the boxes for people that
are proactively taking the steps

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00:19:14,680 --> 00:19:17,800
for brain health, which really
does parallel a lot of what we

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00:19:17,800 --> 00:19:21,560
see of listeners with our
podcast diversity across the

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00:19:21,560 --> 00:19:25,040
world and diversity and age
groups, and really people being

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00:19:25,040 --> 00:19:29,480
proactive earlier on.
And one that I pointed out was a

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00:19:29,480 --> 00:19:32,480
lesson that was a take away.
It was a more recent book that

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00:19:32,480 --> 00:19:36,320
we just read in November, was
Your Brain on Rest.

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00:19:36,600 --> 00:19:40,360
And I thought I would highlight
this as a take away because it

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00:19:40,360 --> 00:19:44,720
was very specific to reading was
to read a book before sleep.

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00:19:45,320 --> 00:19:49,280
That one study found that just 6
minutes of reading before sleep

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00:19:49,680 --> 00:19:55,280
can reduce levels of stress by
up to 68%, lowering your heart

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00:19:55,280 --> 00:19:59,320
rate and easing muscle tension.
So if you're looking for a way

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00:19:59,320 --> 00:20:04,160
to ease into that night time
routine and dampening the stress

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00:20:04,160 --> 00:20:07,200
that your body may be physically
holding on to, reading a book

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00:20:07,240 --> 00:20:11,080
before sleep is a great stress
Buster for your physical and

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00:20:11,080 --> 00:20:14,560
your mental health.
As one strategic take away that

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00:20:14,560 --> 00:20:18,160
a lot of people could possibly
implement with some reading and

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00:20:18,160 --> 00:20:22,680
6 minutes is a really reasonable
time interval to show some

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00:20:22,680 --> 00:20:26,360
practical brain health steps.
And one of the nice things I

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00:20:26,360 --> 00:20:29,600
like, Heather, that you came up
with too, from the book club is

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00:20:29,600 --> 00:20:33,080
the idea that we do get a brain
health prescription from each.

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00:20:33,240 --> 00:20:36,200
Luckily, some authors have
really started to do this where

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00:20:36,200 --> 00:20:39,240
the word prescription is
actually in each book.

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00:20:39,320 --> 00:20:42,040
We think about that in terms of
the medical context.

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00:20:42,480 --> 00:20:46,000
So we saw a lot of this with
Julia Hot's book The Social

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00:20:46,000 --> 00:20:49,640
Connection Cure, this idea that
social prescriptions are

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00:20:49,640 --> 00:20:52,640
happening more.
The idea that when you go in the

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00:20:52,640 --> 00:20:56,120
medical setting, you get this
prescription to engage in the

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00:20:56,120 --> 00:21:00,280
arts, you get a prescription to
connect more with others in your

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00:21:00,280 --> 00:21:02,160
community.
So this idea of social

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00:21:02,160 --> 00:21:06,120
prescriptions and social
prescribing is growing, but we

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00:21:06,120 --> 00:21:07,680
had that come from our Neuro
Nook.

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00:21:07,680 --> 00:21:11,040
We have Neuro Nook book
prescriptions from each one.

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00:21:11,320 --> 00:21:14,720
People can find a link below in
the show notes to see an

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00:21:14,720 --> 00:21:18,800
infographic we have created from
about 10 of the Neuro Nook books

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00:21:18,800 --> 00:21:21,440
so far.
But I should probably go back to

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00:21:21,440 --> 00:21:25,160
our Neuro Nook reading list and
add the prescription that we

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00:21:25,160 --> 00:21:28,200
have from each book.
What are the 29 books we have

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00:21:28,200 --> 00:21:31,720
read and what are those take
away prescriptions for that?

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00:21:32,520 --> 00:21:36,520
So I hope others will be
encouraged to at least explore a

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00:21:36,640 --> 00:21:42,520
book club, a silent book club or
perhaps revisit their own

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00:21:42,520 --> 00:21:45,560
reading habit if this is
something that has maybe fallen

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00:21:45,560 --> 00:21:49,080
to the wayside.
But how important reading can be

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00:21:49,320 --> 00:21:53,200
as a cognitive enhancement tool
or strategy for their overall

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00:21:53,200 --> 00:21:55,960
brain health.
So Leanne, now I want to pick

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00:21:55,960 --> 00:22:00,360
your brain on a couple of these
lingering questions that pop up

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00:22:00,360 --> 00:22:04,200
a lot when we're talking about
books for brain health.

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00:22:04,800 --> 00:22:09,680
So let's tackle the first one,
paper books versus audio books.

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00:22:09,920 --> 00:22:13,040
Where does the science stand?
So let's start on the first one.

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00:22:13,440 --> 00:22:18,680
What are some of the benefits of
reading a physical paper book?

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00:22:19,600 --> 00:22:23,320
That's my favorite way to read.
I do read both ways so I can

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00:22:23,320 --> 00:22:26,600
relate to both and they meet
different needs.

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00:22:26,600 --> 00:22:29,720
And I realize for people who
travel or who like to read at

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00:22:29,720 --> 00:22:33,360
night, sometimes reading from a
screen is much easier.

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00:22:33,760 --> 00:22:40,480
However, neuroscience wise, we
are much able to focus on the

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00:22:40,480 --> 00:22:45,400
story and the details.
If we're reading off a paper

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00:22:45,400 --> 00:22:50,600
book, our eyes tend to wander
more when we're on a screen.

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00:22:50,880 --> 00:22:54,200
It's kind of used to being on
the website, so our eyes go all

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00:22:54,200 --> 00:22:56,920
over the place looking for
things when it's screen related.

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00:22:57,200 --> 00:23:02,360
When we have that physical paper
book, our eyes stay focused,

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00:23:02,360 --> 00:23:07,280
which then helps us to stay
focused on those details on the

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00:23:07,280 --> 00:23:11,600
written page.
We tend to absorb less of the

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00:23:11,600 --> 00:23:14,200
information when we're reading
from a screen.

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00:23:14,600 --> 00:23:17,600
You have to think about why
you're reading, and I realize

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00:23:17,600 --> 00:23:21,680
the screens come in handy for
certain things, but reading from

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00:23:21,680 --> 00:23:28,040
a paper book and turning those
pages actually let's that story

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00:23:28,040 --> 00:23:31,480
get into your brain better and
you'll remember more of the

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00:23:31,480 --> 00:23:34,720
details.
Thank you for sharing just what

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00:23:34,720 --> 00:23:38,960
some of those benefits may be.
So I tell everyone, you got to

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00:23:38,960 --> 00:23:42,000
find what works for you, but
there are benefits and a time

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00:23:42,000 --> 00:23:45,520
and a place for everything.
So now let's jump to the next

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00:23:45,520 --> 00:23:47,880
bucket that always comes up as
the question.

394
00:23:48,080 --> 00:23:51,000
What are the brain benefits of
audiobooks?

395
00:23:51,560 --> 00:23:56,880
Yeah, so audiobooks take your
brain training to a different

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00:23:56,880 --> 00:23:59,160
level.
We were talking about the visual

397
00:23:59,160 --> 00:24:02,120
system when you're actually
reading the words on the page.

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00:24:02,440 --> 00:24:07,360
If you're listening to an
audiobook, you're working on

399
00:24:07,360 --> 00:24:12,680
that auditory area of your
brain, so you're learning to pay

400
00:24:12,680 --> 00:24:15,840
attention to what's being said
more.

401
00:24:15,840 --> 00:24:19,920
This can translate really well
to paying attention to other

402
00:24:19,920 --> 00:24:23,240
conversations that you have with
people as well, which is great.

403
00:24:23,720 --> 00:24:30,040
The other thing about listening
to books is that it it increases

404
00:24:30,040 --> 00:24:33,080
our comprehension and our
vocabulary.

405
00:24:33,320 --> 00:24:36,880
So we hear words pronounced that
maybe we didn't know how to

406
00:24:36,880 --> 00:24:40,360
pronounce if we read it on
paper, and it sticks with us

407
00:24:40,360 --> 00:24:44,000
better when we hear it that way.
It also has been found through

408
00:24:44,000 --> 00:24:48,840
research that our brains create
more meaningful imagery than

409
00:24:48,840 --> 00:24:52,400
from silent reading, so when
you're hearing it, you're

410
00:24:52,400 --> 00:24:56,080
picturing it more than when
you're just reading it silently

411
00:24:56,080 --> 00:24:59,560
from the page.
It also helps us with speed.

412
00:24:59,960 --> 00:25:05,120
We may read slower and an audio
book may be read more quickly,

413
00:25:05,120 --> 00:25:09,520
and it teaches our brain to keep
up with that conversation.

414
00:25:09,840 --> 00:25:13,560
There's a lot of benefits of
listening to an auditory book.

415
00:25:13,560 --> 00:25:15,760
Some people listen to them in
the car.

416
00:25:16,120 --> 00:25:18,120
They have a book they listen to
in the car.

417
00:25:18,320 --> 00:25:19,960
They have a book they read at
home.

418
00:25:20,200 --> 00:25:25,000
Maybe they read a book off of a
screen at night in bed before

419
00:25:25,000 --> 00:25:27,280
they fall asleep.
Sometimes there's a different

420
00:25:27,680 --> 00:25:31,680
way to read depending on your
situation.

421
00:25:32,200 --> 00:25:35,560
So it seems a lot of this comes
down to preference and the

422
00:25:35,560 --> 00:25:38,440
situation that you're aiming to
apply this to.

423
00:25:38,760 --> 00:25:43,200
I know my personal preference
goes to a physical book, but

424
00:25:43,200 --> 00:25:46,400
this could also be too, I think
with audiobooks probably has

425
00:25:46,400 --> 00:25:48,920
some similarities to those of
you that are tuning in and

426
00:25:48,920 --> 00:25:51,200
listening to this now as a
podcast.

427
00:25:51,840 --> 00:25:53,880
There's probably a lot of
similarities to what you're

428
00:25:53,880 --> 00:25:56,560
listening to on audiobooks and
podcasts, although the big

429
00:25:56,560 --> 00:26:00,000
difference likely is blank and
then the type.

430
00:26:00,320 --> 00:26:04,200
So the last question I have for
you, LAN, is about genres of

431
00:26:04,200 --> 00:26:06,440
books.
Are there's differences to the

432
00:26:06,440 --> 00:26:09,600
benefits of the genre of a book
that you're reading or any

433
00:26:09,600 --> 00:26:12,000
recommendations from the
science?

434
00:26:12,600 --> 00:26:15,920
Yes, I never really thought
about it till we started talking

435
00:26:15,920 --> 00:26:19,240
about doing this podcast.
But there are so many different

436
00:26:19,240 --> 00:26:23,720
genres out there and they all
can work on different things

437
00:26:23,720 --> 00:26:26,520
that our brain can do for us.
So I'll give you a couple of

438
00:26:26,520 --> 00:26:29,320
examples.
For example, philosophy.

439
00:26:29,480 --> 00:26:33,560
If you try to tackle a
philosophy book, that can build

440
00:26:33,560 --> 00:26:39,200
your skills in logic, in
reasoning, in argumentation, you

441
00:26:39,200 --> 00:26:42,320
can figure those things out
through reading something about

442
00:26:42,320 --> 00:26:46,320
philosophy biographies.
They provide insight into the

443
00:26:46,320 --> 00:26:49,680
lives and motivations of others.
Learn history that way.

444
00:26:50,160 --> 00:26:55,320
Thrillers, mysteries, give you
puzzles to solve, works on your

445
00:26:55,600 --> 00:26:59,560
problem solving skills, and
sometimes acts as a mental

446
00:26:59,560 --> 00:27:01,680
challenge while you try to
figure it out.

447
00:27:01,680 --> 00:27:06,480
As you read fantasy, it can
require that you really remember

448
00:27:06,480 --> 00:27:10,200
what's going on as you're
reading and it grows your

449
00:27:10,200 --> 00:27:13,240
imagination.
So there are tons of different

450
00:27:13,240 --> 00:27:15,280
kinds of books.
You may need to read a certain

451
00:27:15,280 --> 00:27:19,240
book for business because it's a
requirement of your job.

452
00:27:19,480 --> 00:27:21,960
If you're in school or taking a
class, you're going to have to

453
00:27:21,960 --> 00:27:24,680
read a textbook.
You read all those different

454
00:27:24,760 --> 00:27:29,760
genres a little differently, but
I think it's good to experiment

455
00:27:29,800 --> 00:27:34,200
with different genres so that
you expose your to different

456
00:27:34,200 --> 00:27:36,160
things and they can benefit you
in different ways.

457
00:27:36,160 --> 00:27:38,280
I.
Think that's helpful to hear

458
00:27:38,280 --> 00:27:41,880
about it, and it's a different
lens than a lot of us may think

459
00:27:41,880 --> 00:27:44,040
about it.
And I know over the years when I

460
00:27:44,040 --> 00:27:48,440
have read different researcher
papers about the benefits of

461
00:27:48,440 --> 00:27:52,080
books or the reading or some of
the neuroscience behind it, the

462
00:27:52,080 --> 00:27:55,400
general rule of thumb that I
have come to in my summary of it

463
00:27:55,400 --> 00:27:59,440
in layman's terms is life's too
short to read a bad book.

464
00:28:00,160 --> 00:28:03,520
And some of this is the societal
pressure we put on ourselves is

465
00:28:03,520 --> 00:28:07,120
because, oh, I've started this
book and now I have to read it.

466
00:28:07,120 --> 00:28:09,040
I'm committed.
And it's, we really don't.

467
00:28:09,480 --> 00:28:12,720
If you started a book and for
some reason it's the author's

468
00:28:12,720 --> 00:28:16,000
tone or the way the story's
going, and for some reason you

469
00:28:16,000 --> 00:28:18,800
just can't get into it or you
can't get the hook.

470
00:28:19,280 --> 00:28:20,760
There's plenty of books out
there.

471
00:28:20,760 --> 00:28:23,680
And just like you mentioned,
Leanne, on some of the topics,

472
00:28:24,160 --> 00:28:27,960
there's so many different books
around behavior change or sleep

473
00:28:28,360 --> 00:28:31,080
that you could still get that
topic, but from a different

474
00:28:31,080 --> 00:28:34,880
perspective that you could just
let that one book go and go find

475
00:28:34,880 --> 00:28:36,960
a different one that you could
really get into.

476
00:28:36,960 --> 00:28:40,720
Because if you think about how
valuable your time is, that it's

477
00:28:40,720 --> 00:28:43,760
probably not worth the misery of
trying to trudge through a

478
00:28:43,760 --> 00:28:47,960
really bad book or just one you
don't enjoy because there's so

479
00:28:47,960 --> 00:28:51,120
many books out there and that
you should really be able to

480
00:28:51,120 --> 00:28:53,800
have a positive reading
experience.

481
00:28:53,800 --> 00:28:58,160
And I will caveat that that is
likely outside of the learning

482
00:28:58,160 --> 00:29:01,600
experience because when you're
learning something in college

483
00:29:01,600 --> 00:29:04,600
environment or course
environment, you don't get to

484
00:29:04,600 --> 00:29:07,560
pick your textbook.
I should have that one caveat in

485
00:29:07,560 --> 00:29:10,800
terms of your leisure reading
where you really do get to have

486
00:29:10,800 --> 00:29:14,040
that choice that you might want
to just keep that in mind that

487
00:29:14,040 --> 00:29:17,600
sometimes we put these other
layers and that if you don't

488
00:29:17,600 --> 00:29:20,360
like it and maybe you get to
find that book club that if you

489
00:29:20,360 --> 00:29:23,280
really just don't like the book,
you could still show up and have

490
00:29:23,280 --> 00:29:26,440
that social experience or skip
that month because you didn't

491
00:29:26,440 --> 00:29:29,280
enjoy it and spend your time
reading something you did enjoy

492
00:29:29,600 --> 00:29:32,120
and pick up the next time with
one you do.

493
00:29:32,400 --> 00:29:35,520
Or like Heather mentioned
earlier in this conversation,

494
00:29:35,520 --> 00:29:39,040
that you take that as the
challenge of this is something

495
00:29:39,040 --> 00:29:41,240
that takes me out of my comfort
zone.

496
00:29:41,560 --> 00:29:44,840
And I'm reading this as this
whole brain workout.

497
00:29:45,160 --> 00:29:48,720
This is my challenge to expose
me to something new, something

498
00:29:48,720 --> 00:29:50,960
I'm normally wouldn't do.
And you have your book that you

499
00:29:50,960 --> 00:29:53,760
really like on the side as your
reward.

500
00:29:53,880 --> 00:29:55,880
You can reframe it in these
different ways.

501
00:29:55,880 --> 00:29:58,880
So I hope that there's many
different ways that this can

502
00:29:58,880 --> 00:30:02,840
spark reading as a challenge and
a brain workout and that we all

503
00:30:02,840 --> 00:30:05,960
can find a balance to doing that
in our lives.

504
00:30:05,960 --> 00:30:08,880
And so I hope today's
conversation sparks that for a

505
00:30:08,880 --> 00:30:11,440
lot of folks.
I regret that our time goes so

506
00:30:11,440 --> 00:30:14,960
fast among the experts that we
have, but I want to make sure I

507
00:30:14,960 --> 00:30:18,200
have time to get your top expert
tips.

508
00:30:18,200 --> 00:30:21,440
So, Heather, I want to go to you
first as a speech language

509
00:30:21,440 --> 00:30:25,080
pathologist, what's a reading
tip that you want to share with

510
00:30:25,080 --> 00:30:28,200
our listeners today?
One thing that keeps coming up

511
00:30:28,240 --> 00:30:31,880
over and over again in the
research is connection and how

512
00:30:31,880 --> 00:30:36,160
vital connection is to our long
term brain health.

513
00:30:36,360 --> 00:30:39,480
And I love this because as a
speech language pathologist,

514
00:30:39,480 --> 00:30:42,720
when we're connecting with
others and when we're talking

515
00:30:42,720 --> 00:30:47,280
about a book, we are targeting
so many areas of our brain.

516
00:30:47,520 --> 00:30:50,000
So when we share with someone
why we like to book or why we

517
00:30:50,000 --> 00:30:53,720
didn't, these conversations are
improving our comprehension.

518
00:30:53,760 --> 00:30:58,000
They're increasing vocabulary.
They're targeting executive

519
00:30:58,000 --> 00:31:00,840
functioning skills, which are
most at risk.

520
00:31:01,360 --> 00:31:03,360
We're worried about cognitive
decline.

521
00:31:03,360 --> 00:31:05,880
We want to strengthen our
executive functioning skills.

522
00:31:05,880 --> 00:31:08,880
And we're doing that when we're
talking about books because

523
00:31:08,880 --> 00:31:12,280
we're engaging your working
memory or organizing your

524
00:31:12,280 --> 00:31:15,920
thoughts, and you're also
reflecting on key ideas.

525
00:31:16,280 --> 00:31:20,160
You're engaging your expressive
language and your speech skills

526
00:31:20,360 --> 00:31:22,840
as well.
I always say books are my love

527
00:31:22,840 --> 00:31:26,800
language because it's so much
more fun when reading is a

528
00:31:26,800 --> 00:31:30,000
shared experience versus just
reading on your own.

529
00:31:30,800 --> 00:31:34,840
Thank you so much for that
applied tip, Leanne for you as a

530
00:31:34,840 --> 00:31:38,320
nurse educator, what's your top
reading tip for us today?

531
00:31:39,160 --> 00:31:44,080
I want to encourage everyone to
get regular vision exams because

532
00:31:44,080 --> 00:31:46,720
vision is so important for
reading.

533
00:31:47,240 --> 00:31:52,080
It also is one of the newest
risk factors for dementia that

534
00:31:52,080 --> 00:31:56,760
is being talked about in all the
research that vision loss can

535
00:31:56,760 --> 00:32:00,880
lead to dementia.
So we want to keep our eyes as

536
00:32:00,880 --> 00:32:04,520
healthy as possible.
The good news is there's lots of

537
00:32:04,520 --> 00:32:08,120
technology to help if we do have
vision challenges.

538
00:32:08,360 --> 00:32:11,320
There's large print books.
This would be an example of

539
00:32:11,360 --> 00:32:14,840
reading from a screen works
because you can make the font

540
00:32:14,920 --> 00:32:19,360
bigger but keep your eyes as
healthy as possible and get

541
00:32:19,360 --> 00:32:23,200
regular for exams.
Wear your glasses if you need to

542
00:32:23,240 --> 00:32:27,680
wear them to read, to keep your
eyes healthy for as long as

543
00:32:27,680 --> 00:32:31,600
possible so that you can
continue to read and challenge

544
00:32:31,600 --> 00:32:34,760
your brain through reading for
as long as possible.

545
00:32:35,200 --> 00:32:37,040
Thank you both so much for your
tips.

546
00:32:37,040 --> 00:32:40,600
I want to make sure I add one
with my background as a doctor

547
00:32:40,600 --> 00:32:43,400
to behavioral health and
studying cognitive psychology.

548
00:32:43,680 --> 00:32:46,880
I think it's one that's simple,
that we could all do every day.

549
00:32:46,880 --> 00:32:50,960
If you're reading, to add in as
part of your reading routine is

550
00:32:50,960 --> 00:32:54,800
to read out loud a small section
of your book that you're

551
00:32:54,800 --> 00:32:57,040
reading.
And I encourage people to do

552
00:32:57,040 --> 00:33:00,800
this, especially if there's a
passage of what you're reading

553
00:33:00,800 --> 00:33:04,440
that you're finding yourself
having to revisit if you have to

554
00:33:04,440 --> 00:33:08,120
reread a page or there's just
something where it's not

555
00:33:08,120 --> 00:33:12,240
clicking for some reason to take
your time to read that out loud.

556
00:33:12,800 --> 00:33:15,760
It helps your brain get a second
sensory input.

557
00:33:15,760 --> 00:33:18,920
You're hearing it to help you
process it.

558
00:33:19,080 --> 00:33:23,160
It's helping you slow down, and
it brings your extra attentional

559
00:33:23,160 --> 00:33:26,040
awareness to it.
So it really gives your brain

560
00:33:26,040 --> 00:33:28,400
those benefits Leanne talked
about earlier in the

561
00:33:28,400 --> 00:33:31,800
conversation.
But as a nice way to give

562
00:33:31,800 --> 00:33:36,040
yourself a brain workout, it's
something that you could do and

563
00:33:36,040 --> 00:33:39,520
encourage you to help you keep
those skills up as well.

564
00:33:39,520 --> 00:33:43,000
It's very different to read
silently to yourself than it is

565
00:33:43,000 --> 00:33:45,080
to read out loud.
And as adults, it's not

566
00:33:45,080 --> 00:33:47,840
something we typically do.
It's probably been a while,

567
00:33:47,840 --> 00:33:49,920
unless you're a grandparent and
you're frequently reading

568
00:33:49,920 --> 00:33:52,400
stories or you're a parent,
you're reading stories out loud.

569
00:33:52,400 --> 00:33:55,680
But it's nice to keep those
skills intact.

570
00:33:55,680 --> 00:33:58,960
But it can be really helpful if
you're reading a story and you

571
00:33:58,960 --> 00:34:02,200
find yourself having to go back.
It can help you get that clarity

572
00:34:02,480 --> 00:34:06,240
and help you move on to the next
part of the story that you're

573
00:34:06,240 --> 00:34:08,960
wanting to get to.
So I encourage you all to do

574
00:34:08,960 --> 00:34:11,280
that.
And we're winding down to our

575
00:34:11,280 --> 00:34:14,560
rapid fire with our guest today.
And I wanted to do it a little

576
00:34:14,560 --> 00:34:16,960
bit differently because we're
releasing this episode.

577
00:34:16,960 --> 00:34:22,320
It's the week of Christmas.
It's the high holiday season and

578
00:34:22,320 --> 00:34:25,840
it's actually a time of the year
where in my family we celebrate

579
00:34:26,159 --> 00:34:28,920
a little bit of a different
ritual that I have taken from

580
00:34:28,920 --> 00:34:33,120
the Icelandic tradition, the
Yola Boca flood, known as the

581
00:34:33,120 --> 00:34:36,400
Christmas book flood.
And so this tradition is where

582
00:34:36,400 --> 00:34:40,920
books are exchanged on Christmas
Eve and then open and read the

583
00:34:40,920 --> 00:34:44,679
same night.
So I adopted this back in 2021

584
00:34:44,920 --> 00:34:48,239
when my mom was with us when she
was recovering from COVID.

585
00:34:48,480 --> 00:34:52,120
And I heard about this tradition
and I decided, this sounds

586
00:34:52,120 --> 00:34:53,800
great.
I'll gift everyone a book.

587
00:34:54,280 --> 00:34:57,080
We'll cozy up on couches and
we'll read the new books.

588
00:34:57,360 --> 00:35:00,720
And we drink hot cocoa together
because who doesn't love books

589
00:35:00,720 --> 00:35:03,120
and chocolate all in one on a
holiday time?

590
00:35:03,360 --> 00:35:06,840
And it's a tradition I've kept
with my family since then.

591
00:35:06,840 --> 00:35:09,880
And it's one Leanne and I
adopted when we published a kids

592
00:35:09,880 --> 00:35:12,480
book.
We send our kids books out and

593
00:35:12,480 --> 00:35:15,800
we gift it to others.
We share a flyer about this

594
00:35:15,800 --> 00:35:19,800
Icelandic tradition in the hopes
that other families can enjoy

595
00:35:20,280 --> 00:35:23,680
reading and gifts and books
around the High Holidays.

596
00:35:23,960 --> 00:35:28,200
So I want to focus our rapid
fire questions around books.

597
00:35:28,600 --> 00:35:30,760
So Leanne, I want to start with
you first.

598
00:35:31,440 --> 00:35:34,000
What genre of books is your
favorite?

599
00:35:34,640 --> 00:35:38,640
I just learned about a new genre
of books from my daughter-in-law

600
00:35:38,840 --> 00:35:43,880
and it's called cozy mysteries.
And I wasn't always a big

601
00:35:43,880 --> 00:35:49,600
mystery fan, but these cozy
mysteries take place in little

602
00:35:49,600 --> 00:35:53,680
small towns that are quaint and
very nice to read about.

603
00:35:54,160 --> 00:35:58,160
The mysteries themselves are not
gory, there's no blood and guts.

604
00:35:58,360 --> 00:36:02,000
There's usually a love story
involved but it doesn't have all

605
00:36:02,000 --> 00:36:05,600
the details either.
So they're just nice little cozy

606
00:36:05,600 --> 00:36:09,920
mysteries.
So that currently is my favorite

607
00:36:10,160 --> 00:36:12,720
genre to read.
Wasn't this nice?

608
00:36:12,720 --> 00:36:16,280
I learned something new all the
time and want to ask now what

609
00:36:16,400 --> 00:36:20,600
book would you recommend?
For brain health, my favorite

610
00:36:20,600 --> 00:36:27,520
book still is Keep Sharp,
Building a Better Brain at Any

611
00:36:27,520 --> 00:36:32,200
Age by Doctor Sanjay Gupta.
I just think it is the most

612
00:36:32,440 --> 00:36:36,800
practical book to learn about
all the different lifestyle

613
00:36:36,800 --> 00:36:42,040
factors that we can have control
over to better our brain health.

614
00:36:42,320 --> 00:36:44,880
What book are you currently
reading?

615
00:36:45,400 --> 00:36:49,920
A brand new book.
It's considered a supernatural

616
00:36:49,920 --> 00:36:52,720
love story, which sounds a
little strange.

617
00:36:52,720 --> 00:36:59,240
It's called Remain, and it's a
duo of authors that you wouldn't

618
00:36:59,240 --> 00:37:03,640
put together.
It's Nicholas Sparks and M Night

619
00:37:03,640 --> 00:37:06,880
Shyamalan, the movie producer,
TV producer.

620
00:37:07,120 --> 00:37:10,520
They wrote this together.
I just finished that last night

621
00:37:10,520 --> 00:37:14,120
and I highly recommend it.
Now this question is perfect.

622
00:37:14,160 --> 00:37:15,840
What book are you planning to
read next?

623
00:37:16,480 --> 00:37:21,520
The next one I'm going to read
is also two authors, and I was

624
00:37:21,520 --> 00:37:24,360
intrigued when I saw Reese
Witherspoon was one of the

625
00:37:24,360 --> 00:37:28,280
authors because I love the books
that her book club recommends.

626
00:37:28,600 --> 00:37:33,280
But she just wrote a book with
Harlan Coben, who's another well

627
00:37:33,280 --> 00:37:37,320
known author, and it's called
Gone Before Goodbye.

628
00:37:37,320 --> 00:37:40,040
And that's the one that I hope
to start later today.

629
00:37:40,840 --> 00:37:42,600
Sounds like you have a busy
afternoon.

630
00:37:42,600 --> 00:37:45,920
After we're done winding up
today, what book are you gifting

631
00:37:45,920 --> 00:37:48,320
to others this holiday season
and why?

632
00:37:49,040 --> 00:37:51,120
I'm going to put our shameless
plug in.

633
00:37:51,120 --> 00:37:55,640
I am gifting our kids book about
brain health because I have a

634
00:37:55,640 --> 00:38:00,240
lot of new little nieces and
nephews and cousins that have

635
00:38:00,240 --> 00:38:02,080
come into the world this last
year.

636
00:38:02,080 --> 00:38:07,240
So I am gifting our book about
brain health for kids to their

637
00:38:07,240 --> 00:38:11,200
parents so that hopefully they
can learn about about brain

638
00:38:11,200 --> 00:38:15,360
health at a young age and.
Thank you for sharing.

639
00:38:15,360 --> 00:38:18,440
Hopefully that gives some people
some new ideas around books and

640
00:38:18,440 --> 00:38:19,960
reading.
And now Heather, I'm curious

641
00:38:19,960 --> 00:38:22,440
about yours.
What genre of books is your

642
00:38:22,440 --> 00:38:26,040
favorite?
I love historical fiction.

643
00:38:26,040 --> 00:38:29,880
I would probably stay in that
lane all the time if I wasn't

644
00:38:29,880 --> 00:38:32,800
encouraged to try new books.
And what book would you

645
00:38:32,800 --> 00:38:35,760
recommend for brain health?
The Connection Cure.

646
00:38:35,800 --> 00:38:40,120
I think that is a great overall
book on brain health.

647
00:38:40,160 --> 00:38:43,480
And I think it's really
interesting to learn that in

648
00:38:43,480 --> 00:38:46,960
other countries, they're
starting to prescribe daily

649
00:38:46,960 --> 00:38:50,680
walks, getting together with
friends, serving others and

650
00:38:50,680 --> 00:38:55,000
volunteering to be out in nature
to engage with the arts, that

651
00:38:55,000 --> 00:38:58,800
they're doing these things to
help support people overall

652
00:38:58,800 --> 00:39:02,080
health and Wellness.
It's a great book to learn about

653
00:39:02,080 --> 00:39:04,280
great ideas overall in brain
health.

654
00:39:04,360 --> 00:39:08,000
And I think it's just really
exciting what the future looks

655
00:39:08,000 --> 00:39:09,400
like in the world of brain
health.

656
00:39:09,400 --> 00:39:11,400
And I hope to see that more in
our country.

657
00:39:11,400 --> 00:39:15,040
I think it'd be amazing.
And what book are you currently

658
00:39:15,040 --> 00:39:17,800
reading?
My historical fiction book I'm

659
00:39:17,800 --> 00:39:21,480
running right now is The Fall of
Marigolds and I always like to

660
00:39:21,480 --> 00:39:25,920
pair fiction and non fiction so
my other book I'm reading right

661
00:39:25,920 --> 00:39:30,600
now is The Expectation Effect.
And what book are you planning

662
00:39:30,600 --> 00:39:34,440
to read next?
OK, so I'm very excited about

663
00:39:34,440 --> 00:39:36,160
this.
Daisy Fancourt.

664
00:39:36,440 --> 00:39:40,480
We have seen her research in
several of the brain health

665
00:39:40,480 --> 00:39:44,240
books that we've featured, and
she has a book coming out in

666
00:39:44,240 --> 00:39:48,720
February and it's going to be
titled The Art Cure, the Science

667
00:39:48,720 --> 00:39:52,760
of How the Arts Save Lives.
So I just think that is going to

668
00:39:52,760 --> 00:39:55,160
be a wonderful book to read.
I'm very excited about that.

669
00:39:55,920 --> 00:39:58,880
And what book are you gifting to
others this holiday season and

670
00:39:58,880 --> 00:40:01,640
why?
I've come across two really good

671
00:40:01,640 --> 00:40:05,720
books that I'm gifting and one
is the Comfort book by Matt

672
00:40:05,720 --> 00:40:08,400
Hague.
It's just one thought per page,

673
00:40:08,400 --> 00:40:11,840
very easy to pick up and put
back down and the other one I

674
00:40:11,840 --> 00:40:13,640
have not read but I think it
looks really good.

675
00:40:13,640 --> 00:40:17,840
It's called wintering.
The power of rest and retreat in

676
00:40:17,840 --> 00:40:21,280
difficult times.
I hope between your two

677
00:40:21,280 --> 00:40:24,280
brilliant brains that we have
some book recommendations to

678
00:40:24,280 --> 00:40:29,160
provide inspiration others.
Reading builds neural pathways.

679
00:40:29,320 --> 00:40:33,480
It sharpens comprehension.
It strengthens working memory.

680
00:40:33,800 --> 00:40:36,920
It expands vocabulary and
supports language.

681
00:40:37,200 --> 00:40:39,760
It connects you to ideas and
other people.

682
00:40:40,120 --> 00:40:43,240
Your brain grows when you
challenge it with complex

683
00:40:43,240 --> 00:40:45,640
material.
Try a new genre.

684
00:40:46,000 --> 00:40:48,360
Read with a group like Bernardo
Book Club.

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00:40:48,880 --> 00:40:51,200
Read aloud to build deeper
understanding.

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00:40:51,560 --> 00:40:54,240
Protect your vision so you can
keep reading across your

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00:40:54,240 --> 00:40:57,200
lifetime.
Pick a book you enjoy and give

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00:40:57,200 --> 00:40:59,880
your brain a workout.
Keep exploring.

689
00:41:00,120 --> 00:41:02,600
Your brain learns through every
pitch.

690
00:41:03,040 --> 00:41:06,640
Leanne and Heather, thank you so
much for letting me pick your

691
00:41:06,640 --> 00:41:10,080
brilliant brains on the Let's
Talk Brain Health podcast.

692
00:41:11,080 --> 00:41:14,680
Thank you for investing your
time and energy into your

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00:41:14,680 --> 00:41:18,200
personal brain care by listening
to today's episode of the Let's

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00:41:18,200 --> 00:41:21,600
Talk Brain Health Podcast.
I hope our conversation gave you

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00:41:21,600 --> 00:41:25,360
fresh insights, a bit of
inspiration, or practical steps

696
00:41:25,360 --> 00:41:28,600
that you can take on your own
personal brain care journey.

697
00:41:29,040 --> 00:41:31,920
If you enjoyed today's
conversation, I'd like to ask

698
00:41:31,920 --> 00:41:34,760
you to please share this episode
with someone who could benefit

699
00:41:34,760 --> 00:41:37,280
from it or consider leaving us a
review.

700
00:41:37,800 --> 00:41:41,040
If you have questions or a topic
in brain health you'd like me to

701
00:41:41,040 --> 00:41:44,960
explore, please e-mail me
anytime at podcast at

702
00:41:44,960 --> 00:41:48,640
virtualbrainhealthcenter.com.
I'd love to hear from you.

703
00:41:48,960 --> 00:41:52,960
We have so many more exciting
topics ahead, and I can't wait

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00:41:52,960 --> 00:41:55,960
to continue this lifelong
journey of better brain health

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00:41:55,960 --> 00:41:59,240
together with you and our
growing virtual community.

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00:41:59,680 --> 00:42:02,760
Until next time, remember to
give your brain the care it

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00:42:02,760 --> 00:42:05,960
deserves and make your brain
health a priority.