long-term brain disorders causing impaired memory, reasoning, and normal function together with personality changes
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On today's Bible Answer Man broadcast (08/03/26), Hank answers the following questions:What do you believe is the purpose of the Body of Christ? Steve - WI (0:58)Several places in the New Testament say the whoremonger will not see heaven. What about pornography? Kendal - SD (2:55)Does the soul leave the body of people with dementia or Alzheimer's? Are they accountable for their actions in that state? Rob - Oklahoma City, OK (6:59)Is there such a thing as a spirit of fear or anger? Jason - NC (15:43)Did we get the leap year from Joshua 10 when the sun stood still? Guy - PA (19:08)What is the fate of those who never heard the Gospel? How could a loving God create people that He knows will go to hell? Chris - Allentown, PA (23:02)
Leading brain health and neurological organisations are warning the country is training specialists only to lose them, due to a lack of funded hospital positions. The Neurological Alliance, is calling on the Government to fund two additional public hospital neurology positions every year and commit to developing a national neurological workforce strategy to plan for the future. The Alliance represents 20 New Zealand organisations including Stroke, Dementia, Parkinson's, and Epilepsy New Zealand, who advocate collectively for the interests of the estimated 1.5 million New Zealanders living with neurological conditions. Chair of Neurological Alliance, Rich Easton, says the shortage of neurologists is already significant consequences across the health system including long wait times and declined referrals. Chair of Neurological Association - which represents neurologists - Dr. James Cleland says the ageing workforce is not being replaced fast enough, and more training places are desperately needed.
Send us Fan MailSenior Living Guide.com podcastGuest: Darleen Mahoney"Don't you let anyone should on you. And don't you should on anyone else." is the actual quote that came from the Terrible, Thanks for Asking podcast. Apparently my brain changed it to "don't should all over yourself". :)Support the Alzheimer's & Dementia Resource Center
In this episode of Caregiver S.O.S. On Air, host Ron Aaron is joined by comedian, author, speaker, and educator Danny Klein-Modisett, founder of Laughter On Call. Danny shares her journey of navigating her mother’s Alzheimer’s diagnosis and how an unexpected moment of humor transformed her approach to caregiving, leading to the creation of an organization that brings comic relief and connection to seniors, family members, and professional caregivers nationwide. Main Topics Covered The Origin of Laughter On Call: How hiring a comedian to engage her mother led Danny to discover the profound impact of laughter on cognition, mood, and trust. The Science and Benefits of Laughter: How shared humor releases endorphins and dopamine, boosts oxygen intake, improves memory retention, and helps break down the sense of isolation often felt by those with dementia. Affiliative Humor vs. Misuse of Humor: Why inclusive, warm, and bonding humor builds psychological safety, whereas mockery or sarcasm shuts people down. Improv & Stand-Up Tools for Caregivers: How adopting a comedian’s mindset—learning to "reset" after a bad moment, letting go of rigid expectations, and avoiding argument through "Yes, and..." principles—prevents caregiver burnout. Connecting Through Virtual & Corporate Programs: How Laughter On Call expanded during the pandemic to offer interactive virtual workshops, corporate team-building, and workplace morale-boosting. Key Takeaways for Caregivers Laughter Builds Instant Trust: A single moment of shared, authentic laughter can lower defenses, build psychological safety, and foster trust between care recipients and caregivers. Practice the Art of the "Reset": Just like a stand-up comic who recovers after a joke flops, caregivers can benefit from letting go of rigid schedules and quickly resetting when things don't go according to plan. Meet Them Where They Are: "Knowing your audience" in caregiving means accepting the individual’s current reality rather than trying to correct them or pull them into yours. Showing Up Matters: Showing up with reasonable expectations and self-care directly impacts the care recipient’s well-being and helps mitigate caregiver depression. About Dani Dani Klein Modisett is the Founder/CEO of Laughter On Call. She is also a comedian/actor and author of the book, “ Take My Spouse, Please. ” a part-memoir, part how-to for creating shared laughter to keep your marriage happy and healthy. Dani taught Stand-Up at UCLA for 10 years and has coached keynote speakers, business leaders, and Congressional candidates to use more humor in their communication. She has been a speaker at CALA, ICAA, Stanford, MIT, Columbia, UCLA, Dartmouth, Fuqua and Harvard Business School where Laughter On Call is currently being used as a case study. Her TEDx talk was chosen as an Editor’s Pick, “What My Mother’s Alzheimer’s Taught Me About Alzheimer’s" Resources Mentioned Laughter On Call: laughteroncall.com Danny Klein-Modisett: kleincomedy.com Hosts Ron Aaron and Carol Zernial, and their guests talk about Caregiving and how to best cope with the stresses associated with it. Learn about "Caregiver SOS" and the "Teleconnection Hotline" programs. Caregiver SOS On Air is a presentation of the WellMed Charitable Foundation. For more resources, tips, and past episodes, visit caregiversos.org or email your questions to radio@wellmed.net.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Viagra's Cancer Signal, TV's Toll on Your Brain, Heat and Accelerated Aging, and a New Way to Flush Your Brain Explained Viagra's Active Ingredient May Block Cancer From Spreading A study published in Cancer Research from the Weizmann Institute of Science, in collaboration with Clalit and the U.S. National Cancer Institute, found that sildenafil, the active ingredient in Viagra, may interfere with cancer cells' ability to metastasize by disrupting how they regulate cholesterol, a resource tumors need to detach and invade new tissue. The team combined mouse models and human cell cultures with more than twenty years of medical records covering roughly five million people, and found better survival outcomes among about forty thousand cancer patients who had taken sildenafil before diagnosis. Researchers also flagged a possible combination effect with statins. Host Dave Asprey breaks down why this cheap, off-patent drug class deserves more attention than it's getting, and where it fits alongside his own longevity protocol. Source: https://www.healthline.com/health-news/viagra-may-stop-cancer-from-spreading-study ~~ Heavy TV Watching In Midlife Tied To Alzheimer's-Related Brain Changes A nearly twenty-four-year study published in Alzheimer's & Dementia followed more than 1,700 adults, tracking TV habits in their early fifties and scanning their brains in their mid-seventies. Men who watched more TV showed greater white matter damage and smaller frontal and occipital lobes, while women showed no such association. Critically, people with desk jobs that kept them sedentary all day did not show the same brain changes, and the TV association held even after adjusting for exercise levels. Host Dave Asprey unpacks why passive screen time, not sitting itself, may be the real driver here. Sources: https://www.the-independent.com/life-style/tv-time-linked-alzheimers-study-b3023054.html https://alz-journals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/alz.71582 ~~ Ambient Heat Exposure Linked To Faster Biological Aging A Science Advances study of 3,686 older adults linked neighborhood-level heat index exposure to accelerated biological aging using DNA methylation clocks. Short-term heat exposure moved one clock significantly, while exposure sustained over a full year or six years moved all major clocks, with extreme-caution heat days tied to nearly a three-year jump in one aging measure and a five percent faster overall aging pace on another. Researchers point to inflammation and stress signaling as likely drivers. Host Dave Asprey explains why this is a fundamentally different kind of heat story than the sauna and cold-plunge conversation biohackers are used to. Source: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.adr0616 ~~ Industrial Chicken Farming May Be Accelerating The Spread Of Drug-Resistant Bacteria A genomic analysis of nearly 2,800 bacterial samples from chickens and wild birds across thirty countries, published in PNAS and covered by The Guardian, found a roughly hundredfold increase in Campylobacter strain transitions between wild birds and farmed chickens since 1900. Global chicken populations have grown sevenfold since the 1960s to about 27 billion birds, and researchers identified genetic adaptations tied to antimicrobial resistance developing inside that population. Sixty to eighty percent of human Campylobacter infections trace back to raw chicken, with links to post-infectious IBS in some cases. Host Dave Asprey connects the dots between industrial farming density and the gut-health stakes for anyone who eats chicken. Sources: https://www.theguardian.com/food/2026/jul/27/industrial-chicken-farming-accelerating-spread-of-diarrhoea-bacteria-study-finds https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2609969123 ~~ VA Researchers Develop Breathing-Based "Brain Flush" For Parkinson's And Alzheimer's VA researchers led by Dr. Henry Lin found a way to trigger the brain's glymphatic clearance system, normally active during deep sleep, in people who are awake, using alternating puffs of five percent carbon dioxide and room air every thirty-five seconds. In a study of thirty Parkinson's patients and thirty-three healthy controls, a single thirty-minute session produced measurable increases in blood levels of beta-amyloid, alpha-synuclein, and other waste proteins associated with neurodegeneration. The VA's Technology Transfer Program is now developing a patent and prototype device. Host Dave Asprey explains why this gives breathwork protocols a real physiological mechanism instead of just a hunch. Source: https://www.research.va.gov/currents/0426-Exciting-new-treatment-being-developed-for-Parkinsons-Alzheimers.cfm ~~~ This episode is designed for biohackers, longevity enthusiasts, and high-performance listeners who want mechanism-level insights into an overlooked cancer drug repurposing story, the real difference between passive and active screen time, a new angle on heat as a biological stressor, the hidden gut-health cost of industrial poultry farming, and a breathing technique that may unlock your brain's own detox system. Host Dave Asprey connects clinical research, large-scale genomic data, and translational neuroscience into practical frameworks for improving longevity, gut health, and brain performance. New episodes every Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Sunday. Keywords: sildenafil cancer metastasis, Viagra cancer research, cholesterol cancer cells, PDE5 inhibitor longevity, TV Alzheimer's risk, screen time dementia, white matter brain aging, passive sedentary behavior brain, ambient heat epigenetic aging, DNA methylation clock, heat index biological aging, industrial chicken farming bacteria, Campylobacter antibiotic resistance, foodborne illness IBS, glymphatic system brain flush, CO2 breathing brain detox, Parkinson's Alzheimer's treatment, VA brain research, biohacking news 2026, Dave Asprey, The Human Upgrade Thank you to our sponsors! - Suppgrade Labs | Get real restorative sleep with Quiet Mode. Use code DAVE15 at shopsuppgradelabs.com. - Timeline | Visit timeline.com/dave to learn more about Mitopure and get 20% off your first order for a limited time. - iRestore | Reverse hair loss at www.irestore.com/DAVE and get exclusive savings on the iRestore Elite, use code DAVE Resources: • Get My 2026 Clean Nicotine Roadmap | Enroll for free at https://daveasprey.com/2026-clean-nicotine-roadmap/ • Get My 2026 Biohacking Trends Report: https://daveasprey.com/2026-biohacking-trends-report/ • Dave Asprey's Latest News | Go to https://daveasprey.com/ to join Inside Track today. • Danger Coffee: https://dangercoffee.com/discount/dave15 • My Daily Supplements: SuppGrade Labs (15% Off) • Favorite Blue Light Blocking Glasses: TrueDark (15% Off) • Dave Asprey's BEYOND Conference: https://beyondconference.com • Dave Asprey's New Book – Heavily Meditated: https://daveasprey.com/heavily-meditated • Join My Substack (Live Access To Podcast Recordings): https://substack.daveasprey.com/ • Upgrade Labs: https://upgradelabs.com Timestamps: 00:00 – Intro 00:19 – Story #1: Viagra & Cancer 02:01 – Story #2: TV Watching & Brain Aging 03:16 – Story #3: Heat Exposure & Biological Age 04:46 – Story #4: Chicken Farming 06:34 – Story #5: CO2 Therapy & Brain Detox See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
It has been ten whole months since Sulu parodied this song (and fifteen years since we did), so it was time. What we learned about "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious": o The writers of a 1949 song called "Supercalafajalistickespeealadojus" sued Disney...and LOST. The court found that variants of the word had been around for decades. So, as it turns out, neither they nor the Sherman Brothers (who wrote the Mary Poppins song and a ton of other classic Disney tunes) originated the term. o The Julie Andrews and Dick Van Dyke recording was released as a single that made it to the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at #66 the week ending May 15, 1965. The #1 song that week was... Herman's Hermits' "Mrs. Brown, You've Got a Lovely Daughter" ...which together scans perfectly to "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious." The Charmin Brothers: M. Spaff Sumsion: Lyrics Robert Lund: Vocals, instruments, and production
A dive into the data reveals that, despite dire past predictions, the prevalence of dementia is actually waning. We take a look at Pix, a beloved Brazilian digital-payments system, and why it so bothers President Donald Trump. And we attend one of the concerts that reveals how the appeal of emo music is holding strong across generations. Guests and host:Jonathan Rosenthal, international correspondentCarla Subirana, news editorSarah Lawrynuik, deputy editor of “The Intelligence”Jason Palmer, co-host of “The Intelligence”Topics covered: dementia, global health statistics, ageingBrazil, Pix, payment systems, Donald Trumpemo music, My Chemical RomanceListen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—subscribe to The Economist. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
A dive into the data reveals that, despite dire past predictions, the prevalence of dementia is actually waning. We take a look at Pix, a beloved Brazilian digital-payments system, and why it so bothers President Donald Trump. And we attend one of the concerts that reveals how the appeal of emo music is holding strong across generations. Guests and host:Jonathan Rosenthal, international correspondentCarla Subirana, news editorSarah Lawrynuik, deputy editor of “The Intelligence”Jason Palmer, co-host of “The Intelligence”Topics covered: dementia, global health statistics, ageingBrazil, Pix, payment systems, Donald Trumpemo music, My Chemical RomanceListen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—subscribe to The Economist. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Could 12 everyday high-fibre foods really help lower your risk of heart disease, dementia and some cancers? The world is obsessed with protein, but fewer than 1 in 10 people eat enough fibre. But this year, fiber is making an unexpected comeback. In this episode, legendary chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and ZOE's Chief Scientist Professor Sarah Berry ask whether fibre is another food trend or a powerful part of our diet that we have overlooked. Taking inspiration from Hugh's new book High Fibre Heroes, they explore how fibre feeds your gut microbes, helps you feel full and slows the release of sugar into your blood. And, by the end of the episode, you'll know how to eat more fibre without costly ingredients or difficult recipes, and how to turn familiar foods into simple meals packed with flavour. Are you buying more protein while overlooking the foods your body may need most? The answer could already be in your cupboard, freezer or fridge.
I am a huge lover of the arts and feel they are not valued enough when it comes to their health benefits. In this episode I look at some benefits to our health and why it is important to support the arts in general.Links:Singing: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/saving-lives-in-slow-motion/id1573742958?i=1000570759791Dance for Parkinsons Disease: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/health-21767149Study on Dance and Parkinsons: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33038925/Music for Dementia: https://www.musicfordementia.org.uk/Melodic Intonation Therapy: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2780359/Music and depression: https://www.cochrane.org/evidence/CD004517_music-therapy-depression?utm_source=chatgpt.comSocial connections: https://www.who.int/news/item/30-06-2025-social-connection-linked-to-improved-heath-and-reduced-risk-of-early-deathCampaign for the arts: https://www.campaignforthearts.org/More from me: https://drayan.co.uk/Save your life in slow motion and those of others by subscribing now and sharing. Thank you for listening and for your support. It means a lot to me. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
How can Texas improve healthcare access, strengthen public education, and prepare its workforce while balancing competing budget priorities? On this episode of Texas Talks, host Brad Swail welcomes State Representative Donna Howard, who represents House District 48, for a wide-ranging conversation on healthcare, higher education, workforce development, public school funding, and the state's fiscal outlook. As Vice Chair of both the House Higher Education Committee and Article II Appropriations, Howard offers insight into some of the biggest policy debates facing Texas ahead of the next legislative session. The discussion explores the challenges of funding public education, improving rural healthcare access, expanding workforce training through community colleges, and addressing shortages of nurses and healthcare providers. Howard also discusses property tax relief, the Sunset Commission's ongoing review of health agencies, dementia research, and how lawmakers are preparing for the state's next budget cycle. The episode covers: Texas public education funding and property taxes Community colleges, workforce development, and credentials of value Rural healthcare access and provider shortages Expanding the role of nurse practitioners Sunset Commission priorities and state health agencies Texas budget outlook heading into the next legislative session Howard also discusses child healthcare, Medicaid enrollment challenges, maternal healthcare deserts, medical research, housing growth, local infrastructure, and the difficult balancing act legislators face when weighing competing policy priorities. 00:00 — Community college funding controversy 00:33 — Introducing Rep. Donna Howard 02:06 — Sunset Commission and health agency review 04:10 — Children's healthcare and Medicaid challenges 07:23 — Public education funding and state mandates 08:17 — Community colleges and workforce outcomes 10:34 — Higher education priorities 12:22 — Nursing shortages and workforce development 16:28 — Education funding and ESAs 17:45 — Property taxes and state revenue challenges 25:05 — Rural healthcare and maternal health access 27:16 — Nurse practitioners and healthcare shortages 32:58 — Dementia research and medical innovation 36:25 — Housing growth, infrastructure, and local planning 40:35 — Texas budget outlook and closing thoughts Watch Full-Length Interviews: https://www.youtube.com/@TexasTalks Follow us on social mediaX: @Texas_DispatchInstagram: thetexasdispatchLinkedIn: The Texas DispatchTikTok: texas_talks_podcast Find more at The Texas DispatchYour source for state news, policy, and investigative journalism.https://thetexasdispatch.com
Published in the Alzheimer's & Dementia Journal, the study said that even though India's ageing population faces a ‘dementia burden', data on what its risk factors actually are is still quite limited.
Brain Talk | Being Patient for Alzheimer's & dementia patients & caregivers
The experience of dementia, for people living with memory loss and for the family members and friends who care for them, is often told through the language of loss. But there is a growing effort to change that, creating work that centers connection, humanity, and what remains. One of those projects is “Memory Generation,” an interview-based theater production set in a memory cafe, where people affected by dementia gather in a space built around creativity and community.Memory Generation was created by Sara Zatz and Sherrine Azab and premiered this year at La MaMa in New York City. Zatz is the artistic director of engagement at Pink Fang,, where she develops community-based work rooted in first-hand interviews. Azab is a Detroit-based theater director and co-director of the ensemble A Host of People. Both drew on their own experiences as family caregivers for loved ones living with dementia, as well as interviews with people across the country and the lived experiences of the show's performers.In this Live Talk with Being Patient's Mark Niu, Zatz and Azab discussed how they built the production, why they set it inside a memory cafe, and how they worked to portray caregiving without reducing it to its hardest moments. They also reflected on questions of consent and whose stories get told, the strain that limited resources place on caregivers, and how the arts and community might help build what they describe as a more dementia-friendly society.---If you loved this Live Talk, visit our website to find more of our Alzheimer's coverage and subscribe to our newsletter: https://www.beingpatient.com/Follow Being Patient: Twitter: https://twitter.com/Being_Patient_Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beingpatientvoices/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/beingpatientalzheimersLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/being-patientBeing Patient is an editorially independent journalism outlet for news and reporting about brain health, cognitive science, and neurodegenerative diseases. In our Live Talk series on Facebook, former Wall Street Journal Editor and founder of Being Patient, Deborah Kan, interviews brain health experts and people living with dementia. Check out our latest Live Talks: https://beingpatient.com/live-talks/
Late last month, John shared two theories about the Cormoran Strike series of novels, both from Katya Slonenko, a member of the Reddit r/CormoranStrike online fandom: Dementia, Jewelry, and a Nine Inch Cock: The Mystery of Shanker's ‘Old Man,' His Given Name, and Why He's Never Killed Jeff Whittaker and Katya Slonenko: Leda Strike's 'Mistress of the Salmon Salts' Pudenda Tattoo. John corresponded with Katya while preparing those posts and invited her to join him and Nick for a discussion of her ideas, of life as a Redditor, and her thoughts about Rowling's artistry and meaning. She accepted the invitation but said she wouldn't be free until July to talk. Hence the wait! As expected, though, speaking with her about her own journey to expertise in Rowling Studies, her ideas about the clues Rowling has embedded so carefully within the first eight books and especially in Hallmarked Man, and the Reddit posts of which she thinks Hogwarts Professor readers need to be aware was well worth the wait.You'll want to read those posts from June before listening to get the most out of this conversation, but, regardless of your preparation, John and Nick believe that every Serious Striker and Rowling Reader will be charmed and challenged by Katya's remarkable insights, generous spirit, and winsome personality. The conversation includes three other Reddit community posts — about Leda's ‘Carnival' dress (Arachulia), about the real name of her first husband, and about the Harry Potter tattoo Rowling-Galbraith hid on a Strike novel character's shoulder — which took the discussion above and beyond the two Katya theories in the June posts.Nick and John close the conversation by inviting her back and they hope readers here will share the questions they want us to be sure to ask her on her return visit in the comment thread below. Or just ask her yourself! As she demonstrated on the threads beneath the June posts, she is generous with her time in responding to other Strike fans.Can't wait for more Katya Slonenko? Follow her at r/CormoranStrike, on Instagram (Tattoos!), on FaceBook, and check our her older, longer posts on Medium…The Ten Plus Questions with Links1. Welcome, Katya, and thank you for joining us! The serious readers at Hogwarts Professor have been buzzing about your Shanker and Leda r/Cormoran Strike Reddit posts and we're thrilled to be able to talk with you about those ideas. First, though, tell us about your first Rowling reading experiences and how you started posting on Reddit about the Strike series.2. I'm guessing that Reddit Strike fandom may be as unfamiliar to Hogwarts Professor readers as it was to me. What is it about the Pelican_Girl and TopRequirement670 moderated posts and that international community that you love the most?3. Shanker! I confess -- I hadn't given him a thought really beyond a doppelganger twin for Strike before Fiona from Adelaide introduced me to the ideas that he had to be involved in the death of Leda Strike and that the Riccis were also somehow party to it. Ed Shardlow shared your Reddit post on the subject and my mind was blown; you made a compelling case soon after the publication of Hallmarked Man last year that Shanker is a Ricci, the illegitimate son of Nico ‘Muccy' Ricci, but to avenge Leda Strike's death he has become a Met or MI5 informer. Let's start with the four pointers that Shanker gave Strike in one conversation that he is a Ricci-by-blood and what made you think of that connection:* Shanker's statement that his father had dementia or was senile;* Shanker's report that his dad taught that jewelry was the way to a woman's heart;* Shanker's claim that his ‘old man' was said to have a “nine inch cock;” and* Shanker's saying that his begetter “‘ad kids wiv abou' ten diff'rent women.”4. I see the trigger now that you've detailed it but you dug and made four more connections that were buried in the texts of the series' other books:* Shanker's knowledge of the Ricci clan, especially Mucky,* his Strike-witnessed working with Mucky in drug deals,* “he deals cocaine and is good with a knife;” and, best of all,* the reaction Robin had to both Shanker and Luca at their first meeting, the fun-house mirror upside-down reflection of the attraction half-siblings feel for another intuitively. Robin is viscerally repulsed and afraid of the half-sibling Ricci boys.We cannot not see these connections after you point them out, but they're nigh on invisible until they're pointed out! Why do you think you saw them when we missed them -- and why do you think Rowling has taken such care to make them invisible in plain sight?5. And Shanker is an MI5 informant? Where does that come from?5.5 Let's not forget that you also make an intelligent guess, the first one I've heard, about what Shanker's given name really is, one based on the names of Nico Ricci's two children out of ten for whom we have names.* Katya shared not only her reasoning about why Shanker's name is John or an Italian variant of the Evangelist's name but also her theory about the parentage and name of the other remaining character in the series who also remains nameless: the mysterious ‘Strike' with whom Leda ran away from Cornwall! (Be sure to read the comment thread for Redditor conversation about other possible Ricci children…)6. Your thoughts about Shanker all feed into theories about Leda Strike and her mysterious death in the end, which brings us to another aspect of her life and death about which you've brought an important and unique perspective. I'm talking about the Mistress of the Salmon Salt tattoo. Did you know anything about tattoos, Katya, before writing this piece?7. As a tattoo artist yourself, what do you make of Leda's tattoo placement?8. Tattoos are meaningful, powerful reflections or revelations of the person's interior life or self-understanding (see the post about Katya's ‘Salmon Salt Tattoo' theory for much more on this). What do you think this tattoo communicates about Leda? Is it another example of Rowling's text-within-the-text or a variant of her using cryptonyms to signal important information about a character's inner life?What Tattoos Mean in Cormoran Strike and a Catalog of Examples* From Katya's 2023 ‘Mistress of the Salmon Salt Revisited:'I hear you asking - why can't Leda's be just a tattoo, without any deeper meaning to it? That's because all the other tattoos in the Strike books have meaning and provide a clue to their wearers' characters.Here are some examples:* Kelsey Pratt's One Direction tattoo is an obvious link to her being a One Direction fan. (How Leda's tattoo is different? She chose the name of the particular song, not the more generic name of the band, to be tattooed on her)* Laing's rose pierced with a dagger bluntly means violence to women. Rose is a woman in the language of symbols, while the dagger is… well, a dagger.* Polworth's St Piran's cross means he's a Cornish patriot. I'll be surprised if it also doesn't mark him as The Hanged Man (a symbolic bearer of a cross)* Portia Bayliss's trident refers to her Caribbean roots* Edie had a small black heart on the knuckles because she was the creator of ‘The Ink Black Heart' cartoon.* Zoe's tattoos are of ‘The Ink Black Heart' characters she identifies with.* Pez Pierce has The Beatles quote around his neck - Strawberry Fields was (is?) a place in Liverpool.* Union Jack, a skull, and a Nordic “Chaos” rune give a good impression of what the Turisaz character will be about (all tattooed on visible spots like head or neck - he wears them proudly!);* Same with Algiz and Uruz, sans the Union Jack and the skull.* Noli Seymour's tattoo stands for “Golden Prophet”. It denotes her connection to the Universal Humanitarian Church and her status there as the current Golden Prophet.* An ace of spades was inked onto his left cheek, and a tattooed tiger covered his throat. - Jordan Reaney's tattoos are pretty telling, too.* Not a character, but still - JK herself has a tattoo, “Solve et Coagula”, which means - “I'm a writer of an alchemical detective series!” :DSo you see, all these tattoos are chosen to reflect their owners' personal histories. That's generally a feature of Rowling's writing: if she describes a character, every little detail works for the portrait she wants to paint. There are no details put there “just because” - everything is important. How the characters dress and speak, what they eat and drink, what music they listen to, and what tattoos they have tell us something about the character.What does Leda's tattoo contribute to her portrait?Nothing!In Career of Evil, when we learn of its existence, the tattoo adds literally nothing to Leda's portrait. Why is it mentioned in the story to which it makes zero contribution, except for serving as a plot device enabling the killer's obsession?Because it will be important later.* Katya shared in her answer her theory from experience that Rowling-Galbraith had secretly marked a character as a Harry Potter fan by giving her a shoulder tattoo that Potter-heads would recognize!9. Rowling's Solve et Coagula tattoo: what do you think she is telling the world about herself? Is there a correspondence or tie between the author's tattoo and its placement and Leda's?10. Whittaker quotes a line from the Salmon Salt song by the Blue Oyster Cult — “She was the Quicklime Girl” — while testifying at his trial on murder charges; what do you think that tells us about her death? Does it suggest it was suicide or murder? Do you think Whittaker did it? 11. And another one to make eleven! You thought at one point because of the meaning of ‘Mistress of the Salmon Salt' that we had to take seriously the possibility that Leda herself was a serial killer. But you've changed your mind. Why is that? * In addition to her own thinking on this subject, Katya shared yet another Redditor theory, this one from Arachulia about The New Dress that Aunt Joan said was the real reason that Leda had left her Nancarrow home in Cornwall with the mysterious ‘Strike.' Enjoy! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit hogwartsprofessor.substack.com/subscribe
Caring for those with dementia represents a major public health challenge, with caregivers, especially spouses, providing long-term, largely unpaid care. With caregiving stress linked to a decline in mental and physical health, it is crucial to understand the complex burden these care partners face in order to support them. Dr. Donna de Levante Raphael joins the podcast to shed light on the effects of caregiving on the spousal caregiver and share possible interventions and programs to support their needs. Guest: Donna de Levante Raphael, PhD, gerontologist, director of research, Alzheimer's Foundation of America Show Notes Read Dr. Donna de Levante Raphael's newly published review, “The Impact of Dementia Caregiving on the Health of the Spousal Caregiver,” on the MDPI website. Learn more about Dr. Donna de Levante Raphael at her profile on the Alzheimer's Foundation of America website. Learn more about ambiguous loss and anticipatory grief, mentioned by Dr. de Levante Raphael at 34:44, by listening to our past episode, “A Guide to Grief: Strategies for Navigating Loss and Dementia.” Connect with us Find transcripts and more at our website. Email Dementia Matters: dementiamatters@medicine.wisc.edu Follow us on Facebook and Twitter. Subscribe to the Wisconsin Alzheimer's Disease Research Center's e-newsletter. Enjoy Dementia Matters? Consider making a gift to the Dementia Matters fund through the UW Initiative to End Alzheimer's. All donations go toward outreach and production. Learn about Dr. Chin's book, When Memory Fades: What to Expect at Every Stage, from Early Signs to Full Support for Alzheimer's and Dementia.
Old Man Joe Is Learning French Dedicated to all those learning a new language. Parody of "Old MacDonald" Keyboard, Lyrics and Singing by Joe J Thomas More at: JoesDump.com Copyright 2026, Joe J Thomas, Joe's Dump, JoesDump.com All Rights Reserved. Not A Quinn-Martin Production.
Nolan talks to UUP leader Jon Burrows & Commissioner for Older People in NI Siobhan Casey
In this not-to-be-missed episode of Healthy Her, host Amelia Phillips welcomes back neuroscientist Dr Sarah McKay to discuss dementia – now the biggest killer of Aussies (overtaking heart disease). Dr Sarah discusses the 14 modifiable risk factors and outlines simple steps you can start taking today to lower your risk of dementia by up to 45%! The risk factors are: Early life and Environment Low education Air pollution Lifestyle & behaviour Physical inactivity Smoking Excessive alcohol intake Brain & sensory health Untreated vision loss Traumatic brain injury Hearing loss (new) Cardiometabolic health High blood pressure Type 2 Diabetes Obesity High LDL cholesterol (new) Mental & social wellbeing Depression Social isolation About the guest: Dr Sarah McKay is an Oxford-trained neuroscientist, author, speaker and educator whose work sits at the intersection of neuroscience, women’s brain health and real life. She specialises in translating complex brain research into practical strategies we can use every day for improved health, mood, and performance. She has appeared on the Mel Robbins podcast and is the author of three books on brain health: The Women's Brain Book, Baby Brain, and Brain Health For Dummies – published earlier this year. Visit Dr Sarah's website: https://drsarahmckay.com/Dr Sarah on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drsarahmckay/ Purchase the paperbacks: https://www.booktopia.com.au/search?author=Dr+Sarah+McKay Purchase the audiobooks: https://www.audible.com.au/author/Dr-Sarah-McKay/B07C5F1X3T About the host: Amelia Phillips is an exercise scientist, nutritionist, and published researcher (BSc, MNut) with a career spanning 26 years in health. A respected media presenter, Amelia has been featured on Channel 9’s hit show Do You Want to Live Forever? and is dedicated to helping people build a life of energy, connection, and purpose at any age or stage of life.Instagram: @_amelia_phillipsHave a question? Email: ap@ameliaphillips.com.auFind out more at: www.ameliaphillips.com.au CREDITSHost: Amelia Phillips Guest: Dr Sarah McKay Audio Producer: Darren RothMusic: Matt Nicholich Production Partner: Nova Entertainment Pty Ltd Healthy Her acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the Land we have recorded this podcast on, the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. We pay our respects to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy informationSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Превише телевизије може оставити траг на мозгу: Нова истраживања откривају шта се дешава са можданом белом масом. Савремена научна истраживања показују да дуготрајно и пасивно гледање телевизије заиста може бити повезано са променама у структури мозга.Генерацијама су родитељи упозоравали децу да ће им „телевизор покварити мозак“. Иако је то дуго звучало као претерано упозорење, савремена научна истраживања показују да дуготрајно и пасивно гледање телевизије заиста може бити повезано са променама у структури мозга.Ново истраживање научника са Универзитета Јужне Калифорније, објављено у часопису Alzheimer's & Dementia, показало је да особе које су у средњим годинама веома често гледале телевизију касније имају већи ризик од смањења запремине појединих делова мозга, али и више оштећења у такозваној белој маси мозга.
This is a catch-up version of James O'Brien's live, daily show on LBC Radio. To join the conversation call: 0345 60 60 973
This week Devo is throwing a birthday party! Who's birthday is it??? Who cares, CAKE!!! Meanwhile, Mikey Mason is quietly fading into obscurity, shaboingboings are having a critter party, and Bill McClintock is causing another genre car crash. I can't look away! 1. "Get Off My Lawn" by Mikey Mason 2. "Jimothy" by shaboingboings 3. News of the Stupid! 4. "The Power of Disco" by Bill McClintock Mikey Mason is at MikeyMason.com Shaboingboings can be found on your favorite streaming service Bill McClintock is on YouTube Thank you to our Patreon backers for making this show possible!!!
When the Times reporter Ellen Barry's father developed dementia after a fall, her family spent years trying to manage his erratic behavior and confusion. They struggled to convince him that he was home, he was safe, and he shouldn't try to leave. The experience was exasperating and impossible to understand. Today, Ellen tells the story of those years, and of how she discovered scientific research that helped explain everything her family had lived through — research that could potentially help to save precious memories from being lost forever. On Today's Episode Ellen Barry, a mental health reporter for The New York Times Background Reading When My Father's Canary Flew Away Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
How do we help children understand dementia without creating fear or confusion? In this episode of The Aging Well Podcast, Dr. Jeff Armstrong welcomes author, filmmaker, and dementia advocate Evan Bass Zeisel to discuss his children's book, How to Play With a Grandma. Drawing on his work in dementia research, interactive theater, and storytelling, Evan shares practical ways families can help children maintain meaningful relationships with grandparents experiencing Alzheimer's disease or other forms of dementia. Together, they explore the importance of communication, empathy, the Hope Model of dementia care, and how education can strengthen intergenerational bonds even as memories begin to fade.Learn more at https://evanbass.com/BUY How to Play With a Grandma on Amazon and support this podcast at https://amzn.to/4vgLHZsFilm: How You Are to Me https://dementiaspring.org/spotlight/how-you-are-to-me-by-evan-bass/Please, support The Aging Well Podcast by hitting the ‘like' button, subscribing/following the podcast, sharing with a friend, and….Tip Jar! All donations support this podcast to keep it going. https://paypal.me/theagingwellpodcastBUY the products you need to… age well from our trusted affiliates and support the mission of The Aging Well Podcast. (We receive commission on these purchases. Thank you.)The Aging Well Podcast merchandise | Show how you are aging well | Use the promo code AGING WELL for free shipping on orders over $75 | https://theagingwellpodcast-shop.fourthwall.com/promo/AGINGWELLAuro Wellness | Glutaryl—Antioxidant spray that delivers high doses of glutathione (“Master Antioxidant”) and the new Copper Tripeptide (GHK-Cu) | 10% off Code: AGINGWELL at https://aurowellness.com/agingwellpodcastNutritional Biochemical Inc. (NBI) | Trusted supplement. NBI stands 100% behind the quality of their formulations and the science on which they're based. | Click the following link and use the discount code AGINGWELL for 10% off: https://shop.nbihealth.com/agingwellJigsaw Health | Trusted supplements. “It's fun to feel good.” | Click the following link and use the discount code AGINGWELL for 10% off: https://bit.ly/4ks3Y0OBerkeley Life | Optimize nitric oxide levels | Purchase your starter kit at a 15% discount | Use the promo code: AGINGWELL15 | https://berkeleylife.pxf.io/c/6475525/3226696/31118Oxford Healthspan | Primeadine®, a plant-derived spermidine supplement | 10% off code: AGINGWELL | https://www.oxfordhealthspan.com/AGINGWELLKneeMo | A smart device programmed to reduce your knee pain and keep you moving. | Click the following link and use the discount code AGINGWELL15 for 15% off: https://thekneemo.com/ref/agingwellProlon | The Fasting Mimicking Diet (FMD) is a revolutionary five-day nutrition program scientifically formulated to mimic the effects of a prolonged water fast while still allowing nourishment - supporting the benefits of fasting without the challenges and risks that come from water-only fasts. | For the best available discount always use this link: https://prolonlife.com/theagingwellpodcastL-Nutra Health | The medical division of L-Nutra, focused on helping people manage and potentially reverse chronic health conditions, like type 2 diabetes, prediabetes, insulin resistance, and obesity, using personalized, lifestyle-based programs grounded in evidence, not prescriptions. | Use this link: https://l-nutrahealth.com/theagingwellpodcastFusionary Formulas | Combining Ayurvedic wisdom with Western science for optimal health support. | 15% off Code: AGINGWELL | https://fusionaryformulas.com?sca_ref=9678325.IHg5xYhdOzzke8ZrDr Lewis Nutrition | Fight neurodegeneration and cognitive decline with Daily Brain Care by Dr Lewis Nutrition—a proven daily formula designed to protect and restore brain function. | 10% off code: AGINGWELL or use the link: https://drlewisnutrition.com/AGINGWELL
The Plant Free MD with Dr Anthony Chaffee: A Carnivore Podcast
Dementia is a metabolic disease, not a genetic one. Here's what's really destroying your brain, and how to prevent and possibly even reverse it. Dr. Anthony Chaffee MD.
According to one recent study, there are two specific over-the-counter medications that can cause a 44% increase in the risk for developing dementia. Does this mean I have to throw out everything I have in my medicine cabinet? Join us this week as Teepa discusses why medications and dementia are a tricky correlation, and why medical providers' familiarity with the Beers List can be very helpful.Want to go deeper?The more you understand about brain change and the factors that affect it, the better equipped you are to ask the right questions — and to support the people around you. Positive Approach to Care® (PAC™) offers learning experiences for care partners and professionals alike.
This week, we conclude our 4-part series on the 6th-leading cause of death in America. We discuss how to protect the brain at all stages of life. In this episode, we talk about:—Why Dr. Prather thinks it is an excuse that Alzheimer's is increasing because people are just living longer or it's diagnosed better, but that it is actually increasing because there is some kind of stressor that wasn't there before. —The importance of protecting Brain Health starting in the womb. And how Iodine is the most critical part of Brain development and will determine how smart your child will be. —How breastfeeding is more beneficial for the development for the baby's brain and cuts down on brain problems later in life.—Why an annual Hair Analysis for children and adults is important to identify Heavy Metal toxins, which damage the brain.—The link between gut health and Alzheimer's. And the reason Dr. Prather recommends an annual stool kit for everyone (even babies) to identify the parasites and infections that can damage your Brain health. —How probiotics in the diet (such as fermented foods) and high Fiber intake are key reasons for healthy longevity in the "Blue Zone" areas of the world which have a large number of people living over the age of 100. —The health benefits of the Biblical dietary laws.—Why Sunshine is the best Vitamin D for the body, and is also estimated to provide 34 nutrients that come directly from the Sun. And why Dr. Prather says it is "untrue" when they say Sunshine is bad for us. —The role proper sleep plays in Dementia and Alzheimer's because our body washes the brain of the amyloid plaques while we sleep. And how using pharmaceuticals for sleep actually interferes with this process. —How being around grandchildren is scientifically proven to help both the health of the grandparent and the development of the child. http://www.TheVoiceOfHealthRadio.com*Receive exclusive bonus content as a member of our Voice Of Health Patreon Community:https://www.patreon.com/cw/VoiceofHealthPodcast
Hey, it's Amy Newmark with your Chicken Soup for the Soul and I'm excited about sharing stories with you from Chicken Soup for the Soul: Care for the Caregiver, which is our most recent book. The stories in this book provide support and tips and plenty of humor for people who are involved in caregiving for family members with dementia, whether Alzheimer's or one of the other kinds. These stories are incredibly helpful to someone who is starting to navigate the caregiving journey and they are also helpful and supportive for old pros. The dementia caregiving journey lasts for years, and everyone can benefit from the wise words and the humorous anecdotes shared by people who have been there, done that. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Episode 177 - Did Don Quixote have Dementia! Just one of the questions on this weeks D' Word with Jan Bee Brown, Dementia Inclusive Storyteller and Shanty Woman.Disclaimer: Please note that all information and content on the UK Health Radio Network, all its radio broadcasts and podcasts are provided by the authors, producers, presenters and companies themselves and is only intended as additional information to your general knowledge. As a service to our listeners/readers our programs/content are for general information and entertainment only. The UK Health Radio Network does not recommend, endorse, or object to the views, products or topics expressed or discussed by show hosts or their guests, authors and interviewees. We suggest you always consult with your own professional – personal, medical, financial or legal advisor. So please do not delay or disregard any professional – personal, medical, financial or legal advice received due to something you have heard or read on the UK Health Radio Network.
In this original What the Dementia episode, we will discuss the purpose of a memory care facility and how it compares to other care options like in-home support and skilled nursing care. We break down what memory care is designed to provide, who it's best suited for, and how caregivers can think through whether additional help at home or a residential setting may better meet their partner's needs.This episode will cover:— What a memory care facility is designed to provide— How memory care differs from other levels of care— When in-home support may be appropriate— Types of in-home care and support options— How to think through the best fit for your situationMENTIONED IN EPISODE | Newsletter | https://letsbambu.com/newsletterBlog: What is Memory Care? | http://letsbambu.com/post/what-is-memory-careCONNECT, GET RESOURCES, LEARN MORE, + SIMPLIFY YOUR CARE JOURNEY:LinkTree | https://www.letsbambu.com/b/linktreeMUSIC CREDIT: Listen To SpillageVillage - Tropical Landing Pop Songs At Looperman.com DISCLAIMER: The information contained in Bambu Care LLC's website, blog, emails, programs, services and/or products is for educational and informational purposes only. While we draw on our prior professional expertise and background in other areas, you acknowledge that we are supporting you in our role exclusively as a Dementia Care Consultant. By participating in Bambu Care, LLC's website, blog, emails, programs, services and/or products, you acknowledge that we are not a licensed psychologist, professional counselor, or medical doctor. We in no way, diagnose, treat, or cure any illnesses or diseases. Dementia Care Consulting is in no way to be construed or substituted as psychological counseling or any other type of therapy or medical advice. The information provided by Bambu Care, LLC also does not constitute legal or financial advice nor is intended to be. Dementia Care Consulting is not a substitute for the services of a CPA or attorney.
Our continuing series featuring the personal stories of dementia has revealed something: Caregiving is critical in a person's dementia journey. Miles for Memories also knows a caregiver sometimes needs help and advice.This time on Creating Dementia Solutions, Miles for Memories founder Sherii Sherban talks about a new caregiving concept under development called Caregivers for Alzheimer's and Related Dementia Support (CARDS). Sherii shares how the concept features a mentoring program, what will be a 24-hour online resource center - and the chance for anyone to be part of a dementia caregiver coalition.Episode ResourcesMiles for Memories websiteMiles for Memories technologySherii Sherban talks to Community Matters about MFM technologyMore Creating Dementia Solutions episodesABOUT MILES FOR MEMORIESMiles For Memories is a Calhoun County, Michigan organization created in 2013 to raise awareness and funds for Alzheimer's Disease. Later in 2014, the vision was expanded to include all types of dementia. MFM raises money each year through sponsorships, community events, and grants to gather funds to create local programming for both the person living with dementia and the caregiver. Along with local efforts, 20% of the funds to prevention-related dementia research. Miles for Memories is a committee of 70-plus volunteers and are always looking for more to get involved.
Had an idea for a fairy simple premise: what is considered cool? And also, what is considered NOT cool. Heavily inspired by "Stop Putting Protien in Everything" by Wolves of Glendale. Lyrics and vocals: Insane Ian Music, mixing, mastering: Ben Stahl Single art: Kendra Shepherd
How can you enjoy sugar without gaining weight, fuelling cravings or crashing later in the day? The answer, surprisingly, is not to cut it out. In today's episode, Professor Tim Spector and Professor Sarah Berry discuss which forms of sugar affect your blood sugar levels most, and what small changes you can make today to reduce the impact. They also explore how sharp blood sugar spikes and dips may affect hunger, energy, inflammation and long-term health. By the end of the episode, you'll know how to spot hidden sugars, how to avoid the afternoon slump and energy crashes, and, most importantly, how to enjoy cake with less impact on your blood sugar. Sugar is not the enemy. But could a few small changes help you enjoy sweet foods without the cycle of cravings, hunger and energy crashes?
You've probably seen the headlines about Ozempic and other GLP-1 drugs and Alzheimer's disease. One week it sounds like a breakthrough. The next, not so much. A large study found a much lower rate of Alzheimer's diagnoses in people taking these medications. Then a major clinical trial published this year found something very different. Neither one is wrong. And understanding why matters, especially if you're the one trying to make sense of it for your family. In this video I walk you through what the research on Ozempic and other GLP-1 drugs actually found, the meaningful difference between preventing this disease and treating it once it's already there, and what this means whether your loved one already has Alzheimer's or you're a caregiver thinking about your own brain health. If you'd like to see this episode on video, you can hop on over to my YouTube channel here. → Join the Care Collective: https://tinyurl.com/podcast-cc → Get free weekly tools and tips in my newsletter, The Dementia Dose: https://tinyurl.com/dementiadose-podcast ⏱ CHAPTERS 0:00 - The Ozempic and Alzheimer's headlines everyone's seen 0:51 - The study that found a 40 to 70% lower Alzheimer's risk 2:09 - Why a diabetes drug could protect the brain 4:16 - The 2026 clinical trial that changed the picture 5:26 - Prevention vs. treatment: what the research actually means #dementia #dementiacaregiver #ozempic #alzheimers #dementiaresearch --- Hi, I'm Dr. Natali Edmonds, a board-certified geropsychologist specializing in dementia care. Whether your loved one has Alzheimer's, frontotemporal, Lewy body, vascular, or mixed dementia, we believe that to create a dementia-friendly world, we must first create a caregiver-friendly world. This content is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always consult with a healthcare provider for medical guidance.
Join Dr. Martin in today's episode of The Doctor Is In Podcast.
When older adults report memory lapses and other cognitive difficulties to their doctors, what could be going on? David W. Goodman, M.D., explains what differentiates dementia from ADHD in older adults and discusses safe treatment options for ADHD in older populations. Resources: ADHD and Dementia Free Download: Free Guide to ADHD in Older Adults Read: Inside the Aging ADHD Brain Read: A Critical Need Ignored: Inadequate Diagnosis and Treatment of ADHD After Age 60 Read: Adults with ADD: Is Dementia in Your Future? Access the video and slides for podcast episode #612 here: https://www.additudemag.com/webinar/adhd-and-dementia/ Thank you for listening to ADDitude's ADHD Experts podcast. Please consider subscribing to the magazine (additu.de/subscribe) to support our mission of providing ADHD education and support.
In this episode of Living With Alzheimer's, Christoph interviews Jonathan Trieber, Chief Executive Officer of Skil-Care Corporation, a manufacturer of safety and comfort healthcare products for patients in both facility and home-care settings.Jonathan shares his professional journey and how he is continuing the legacy of his father-in-law by leading Skil-Care in providing medical products that help patients stay engaged, comfortable and safe.Christoph and Jonathan discuss common sources of patient overstimulation and how that can lead to agitation and negative outcomes for people living with dementia.Jonathan shares environmental changes that can help reduce patient overstimulation.And the two wrap up the conversation discussing how shifts in caregiver behavior can reduce patient agitation.You can learn more about Jonathan and Skil-Care at skil-care.com.
I knew fresh air is good for those with Dementia, as well as exercise. However, it can be hard to get a 94 year old with Dementia to do somethings. This weekend, I manage to get my mother to sit with me on our front porch. To my surprised, we enjoyed the fresh air for 5 hours!!! Sundowning was almost non existent and she went to bed with no problem. Got to get more of that fresh air!
Tuesday, July 21. The seven stories you need to know today.Read today's briefing.
When does normal aging end and something more concerning begins? In this episode Shoshana invites neurologist Drs. Ayesha and Dean Sherzai to discuss their studies on Alzheimer's and Dementia. They debunk myths around Alzheimer, discuss what a brain-healthy way of eating looks like, and share why good sleep hygiene is more crucial for brain health than you think. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Can Infections Drive Alzheimer's? Nikki Schultek, founder of Intracel Research Group and co-founder of the Alzheimer's Pathobiome Initiative, details evidence that pathogens may contribute to Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative and neuroimmune disorders beyond the amyloid hypothesis. Schultek recounts her own misdiagnosed systemic illness with neurodegenerative symptoms, later found to involve Lyme disease, Babesia, and chronic infection with the intracellular respiratory bacterium Chlamydia pneumoniae, treated with combination antibiotics. The discussion covers PANS/PANDAS as an infection-associated pediatric neuropsychiatric condition, parallels with neuroinflammation and blood–brain barrier changes, and a 2023 Alzheimer's & Dementia “research roadmap” documenting 86 infection-associated dementia cases and calling for actionable testing and collaboration. They review links involving herpes viruses, COVID-related cognitive decline, gum pathogen P. gingivalis therapies, and controversies around chronic infection diagnosis and long-term antibiotics, and share resources including alzpi.org, ILADS, MAPS, and Schultek's Pathobiome Research Center at PCOM.
Episode: 140 RAISING PPA assessment and treatment from the Ground Up: In Conversation with Jeanne Gallée In this episode you will discover: · Assessment and Intervention Aren't Separate — Conversation itself can double as both. By listening closely and responding to what a client offers, in a "more art than science" way, clinicians gather meaningful data and provide support at the same time, rather than treating these as two distinct phases of care. · Rigid Testing Can Erase the Person Behind the Diagnosis — Traditional standardized assessments often serve the goals of an institution or research protocol more than the person being assessed. Frameworks like RAISE and the PACT scale shift the focus toward strengths, natural conversation, and what someone can still do, rather than repeatedly measuring decline. · PPA Needs Its Own Identity and Training Path — Because primary progressive aphasia sits uneasily between post-stroke aphasia care and traditional dementia care, clinicians often receive little formal training in it. A global survey found major gaps in education and confidence, underscoring the need for dedicated resources, like Dr. Gallée's PPA roadmap, built specifically for this population. Do you ever wish you could step back in time and undo the missteps and errors of the past? What if you had the opportunity to build something from the ground up? Certainly, knowing what you know now, you could begin in a better place. But of course, there's always pitfalls with new beginnings, even with the knowledge of lessons from the past. You could, however, make a positive impact on that new beginning. Welcome to the Aphasia Access Conversations podcast. I'm Jerry Hoepner, a professor from the University of Wisconsin Eau Claire, and co-facilitator of the Chippewa Valley Aphasia Camp, Blue Gold Brain Injury Group, Mayo Brain Injury Group, Young Persons Brain Injury Group, Brain In-Cog, and Thursday Night Poets. I'm also a member of the Aphasia Access Podcast Working Group. Aphasia Access strives to provide members with information, inspiration, and ideas about their aphasia care through a variety of educational resources. I'm privileged to introduce today's guest, Dr. Jeanne Gallée, who is a clinical scientist in the Department of Medicine at the University of Washington. Dr. Gallée is a licensed speech language pathologist practicing in the greater Washington state area. She completed her Bachelor of Arts in Cognitive and Linguistic Sciences at Wellesley College in 2016 and Doctor of Philosophy at Harvard University in Speech and Hearing Bioscience and Technology in 2021. She has been recognized as a Distinguished Early Career Professional by ASHA and a Distinguished Scholar by the Tavistock Trust for Aphasia. Her work is dedicated to improving assessment practices and functional outcomes for individuals living with aphasia and neurodegenerative conditions. Jerry Hoepner: Jeanne, it's really nice to see you again today, and to have this opportunity to have a conversation with you as a recent recipient of the Tavistock Scholar Program, and to talk about your work with individuals with primary progressive aphasia. So, thanks for being "on" today for the conversation. Jeanne Gallée: Thank you so much for having me, Jerry. I'm really honored to be here. Jerry Hoepner: Likewise, I'm really excited for this conversation, and as I just alluded to, I wanted to congratulate you on being awarded the first Tavistock Scholar with an emphasis doing work in primary progressive aphasia, and I thought maybe I could get your thoughts on being selected as a Tavistock Scholar. Jeanne Gallée: Thank you. It feels honestly incredibly remarkable in the sense that I think it represents a shift in how we're thinking about the separate diagnoses of progressive aphasia versus an aphasia that's due to an acute injury. And I'm really honored to be a part of that. I think there have been many discussions growing over the years, and I think we're seeing that shift in how we do think about addressing assessment and intervention and general care for people across the aphasia continuum. Jerry Hoepner: Agreed, I think there's been so much growth in the last five years in that area. I can remember at the outset of the pandemic, having discussions about "What do we do with people with primary progressive aphasia who were a part of our aphasia group? Should they be a part of our aphasia group? How do we pivot to that in an online context?" and it feels like we've come so far in our conversation about where primary progressive aphasia fits in in all of those different contexts. Jeanne Gallée: Right, I entirely agree, and I think the journey of my own work has already evolved in so many ways that I couldn't have imagined, like you say, five years ago I completed my doctoral work March 2021 and just seeing the phenomenal amounts of change that have really taken place since then has been incredible, and I feel very lucky to be part of that momentum right now. Jerry Hoepner: Absolutely, it's exciting to see these things move forward. And one of the differences that I see is primary progressive aphasia started out within the Life Participation Approach, just soundly from day one, as opposed to a lot of aphasia care, which has kind of evolved from this medical model, and how refreshing it is to see something built from the ground up. Done right, so to speak. I don't know if you have thoughts on that piece… Jeanne Gallée: No, I do. I think that's a really interesting point. I think I might be part of the camp that at times feels like progressive conditions get a little bit lost in the rehabilitation space, but I think you're absolutely right. I think the absence of pharmacological treatment, or a cure that has long standing effects for these progressive conditions has made rehabilitation specialists much more attuned to focusing on quality of life, life participation, maintaining autonomy, and so forth. So, I think I forget that perspective sometimes. Perhaps from the space that I work in, I tend to be in a more interdisciplinary environment where I feel on the opposite end. I'm often asked for justification for providing these types of services, and that fits in nicely with our previous discussion on how we do see that differentiation and how people with aphasia due to a progressive condition may be siloed from people who have the more quote unquote traditional aphasia symptoms. Jerry Hoepner: Yeah, that's a really good point. And you know, referring to those previous conversations we discussed that need for primary progressive aphasia to have a space of its own. It's tricky because it doesn't fit into post-stroke aphasia quite right, and it doesn't fit into the Alzheimer's and dementia world quite right. So, yeah, it's nice to see this developing in the Life Participation kind of context, really excited about Anna Volkmer's conference dedicated to primary progressive aphasia. Yeah, what an excellent point, that even though we feel like it's great to build it from the ground up, there's still people in that interdisciplinary context, who are very much looking at this, like,"Justify this. How is having conversations and doing activities with someone justifiable, as a, you know, as a skilled intervention?" Jeanne Gallée: Right. I think a lot of it comes back to misunderstandings about the scope of our profession. So, coming from the speech language pathology standpoint, we may have a perspective that other providers may not. And it's interesting, particularly when that confusion or disconnect happens in conditions that are communication led, where we see the symptoms primarily touching upon our ability to interact verbally or non-verbally to communicate. And it's fascinating, and I think speaking to that silo, we see PPA having been a relatively new and still considered very rare condition, but there's so much overlap with other conditions, right, in the kinds of symptoms that we see and there's so much where, as any speech pathologist with experience in acquired neurogenic communication disorders, we can see that we can apply our skill set, but again, likely due to the terminal nature of the condition, we end up seeing providers taking it a different route, or saying either there's only the pharmacological route, or we just let it lie or let it be as is, which we wouldn't do with any other condition. We wouldn't say that for someone with ALS. We would want to provide them the supports, even if they're temporary, to improve quality of life. So, it is an interesting, almost cultural phenomenon as well. I think. Jerry Hoepner: Yeah, that I think it's really fascinating, and I'm so glad you brought that up. It reminds me of kind of the phrase, the company we keep, right? It's easy to be amongst, you know, people who are in the [Life Participation Approach to Aphasia] LPPA world, who think the way that we think, and who do the way that we do. And I do a lot of work in the area of cognitive communication disorders with acquired brain injuries, and so forth, and there's been a remarkable shift in the last five years there as well towards a more Life Participation bio psychosocial approach, and some of the work that I've been passionate about for years has been more and more accepted. So you feel like when you're in that company of all of your people that everything's all good, but it also reminds me of something that my friend Natalie Douglas always says, which is that "We need to be out there amongst others who need to understand the importance of this kind of a perspective, and sharing that." And when you talked about those other professionals, I really didn't think about that until you said that. Right, really important to get them on the same page, and to help them understand why this is so important. Jeanne Gallée: Right? And I think that's where the conference that you mentioned, the first PPA only conference that's taking place this summer in London, is so special because one of the reasons why we were so motivated to have this type of a conference is that there wasn't really the space at the typical aphasiology conferences, and then the larger neurology-based conferences, or more broadly dementia-based conferences, also didn't quite feel like a home. I think, especially their studies of quality of life, in particular, we're really not seen as rigorous in those contexts. So, this conference, what's nice is that we have that uniting force of everyone being focused on PPA, but it's super interdisciplinary, and that I think will really promote some fantastic conversations. Jerry Hoepner: Wow, that's really encouraging and exciting to see that move forward. I'm not in the primary progressive aphasia world, although when we're at aphasia camp and things like that, certainly that's a part of my role. But as soon as I saw the call for papers come out, I'm, you know, texting and messaging all of my PPA folks to say, "Did you see this? This is great. Are you doing something?" It's very exciting. So, I'm excited to see where that moves in the future and to hear how things go this time around. That's great. Jeanne Gallée: Likewise, I'm really excited, and I do really believe it will lead to a whole future cascade of collaboration. Jerry Hoepner: Yeah, amazing. Well, before we delve into your amazing work, I've been reading your articles, and it's been just a pleasure to read it. I'm always impressed with how certain themes of importance can come across in different areas of our field, and it's been fun to see that. I wonder, because I'm looking at the list of collaborators, just some incredible collaborators on that list, in those papers, I'd love to hear a little bit about your mentorship, both in primary progressive aphasia and kind of thinking about the Life Participation quality of life kind of context as well. Jeanne Gallée: Yeah, I think in hindsight my mentorship experience seems more linear than it did in the moment. And I think it goes back to my original journey in my doctoral program. The program I was in, the Speech and Hearing Bioscience and Technology program at Harvard was a little bit different from others, where we didn't apply to work with a specific mentor, but truly just to get into the program. And they encouraged a pretty extensive shopping period to work with a variety of mentors to get a feel for topic area, mentorship style, and so traditionally first year students didn't even have any experiences, they just focused on the very time-intensive and rigorous coursework. I came in and started my first experience with Evelina Fedorenko at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, who had worked with an undergrad. And that I think from the get-go gave me a very holistic view. I think, of the ways in which we could think about language, and in particular, the language network. So, there I was working on MRI studies of what activations do we see in the language network. In response to linguistic stimuli. And we were working with undergrads at MIT who were all healthy between the ages of 18 through 30, and I just felt at a certain point that I had this growing interest towards thinking about what happens when something goes wrong. So when it's atypical processing of language. I first thought I might be interested in pediatric population, so I was all over the place, but through the partnership that my program had with the MGH Institute of Health Professionals, I ended up having this amazing opportunity to be mentored by Evelina Federenko, as well as Sophia Vallila Rohter at the Institute of Health Professions, as well as the Frontotemporal Disorders Unit at Mass General Hospital, through my actual clinical training. So I had this quite hefty consortium of mentors, and I think that has its own set of challenges, right? It's a little bit less mentor-directed and more on the student to say, "This is exactly what I want to work on." But I think that allowed me to build a network of experiences and mentors, and that just has bled into every experience I've had since then. I also think the pandemic, you brought that up before, had a huge role in this, and all of a sudden people were very, very open to virtual meetings and connections and wanted connection. I think everyone felt very stuck at home and wanted to find more people and to find meaning and Anna Volkmer and I had the opportunity to meet at the Academy of Aphasia in Macau in 2019. And honestly meeting her in our connection has been also one of those launching pads for me to really jump out into the world of international collaboration. So all that to say, I think a lot of chance encounters and just a lot of plunging into possible conversations head first has led to this phenomenal mentorship team. And a lot of people who I collaborate with now I see as my inadvertent mentors, and that includes Anna, that includes Maya Henry at UT Austin, Amy Mooney in Oregon, just people who have consistently volunteered their time to mentor me in ways in which I can only say I would have never expected. Jade Cartwright and I have had such a phenomenal collaboration over the past few years as well, where we just had the same interests, and Zoom allowing, we were able to build on those. Jerry Hoepner: That's really an amazing answer to that question. I love the term inadvertent mentors, because I just think that those are the best mentors, where you're as much a mentor to them as they are to you. And it's just this really reciprocal relationship, but it's also built on this organic, like passion and interest for the same kinds of topics. Where it's not forced and that's a really nice kind of look back on your entire process. I was also struck by the term "mentor shopping", or "mentor shopping period", whatever. And I think that's really great that you had an opportunity for that not to be so mentor-led, and I mean it clearly shows through when you talk about your clinical experience and how that was connected to your research experience, and kind of all used to create this amalgamation of who you are. I mean, it's clear in talking with you, it's clear in reading your work that you have that strong, multi prong kind of basis. It's not just research, it's not just this specific area of research, it's really broad and the clinical connection is there, so that makes a lot of sense when I hear you talk about that, for sure. Jeanne Gallée: Oh, thank you. Yeah, I think in hindsight, again, it seems more linear, and in the moment it sometimes felt a little wild, I will say, in terms of just wrangling what do I actually want to pursue, and how. And I'm still figuring that out. But I think this community of collaborators and mentors is truly what has kept me in the field and as well. Jerry Hoepner: Yeah, I think when you can connect with other people who are passionate about the work that you're doing. I can't imagine sitting at alone in my office doing a project, and I mean it's just so much more fun when you're doing it with other people. And other people who can expand the way that you think, which I'm sure everyone that you've mentioned on that list really does, when you can say, "Well, I think we should do it this way" and someone says, "Have you thought about…" and it just completely wrecks your world in a good way, "Like, oh my gosh, I didn't think about that, that's so exciting!" and then you just get into this back and forth. Yeah, very fun to hear about that. And again, it clearly shows through in the work that you do. In our previous conversations, you also mentioned this idea, and this again built on those clinical foundations that your initial mission was really to help develop interventions for people with primary progressive aphasia, and then you kind of got not off track, but inadvertently focused on working on assessments. You mentioned that there's just such a need, and this is so common in a lot of areas, but there's a need for more person-centered, ecologically valid strength-based assessment, and that the traditional measures just don't tell us enough. So, I'm really excited to talk about the work that you're doing on assessment, and how that brings us closer to what we need from an intervention standpoint, too. Jeanne Gallée: Yeah, so that really is at the heart of what has been my experience. Also, right from the get-go, we started talking about the differences, or the possible differentiation that the field has historically taken in thinking about post-stroke aphasia versus primary progressive aphasia. One of my first real PPA projects in my doctoral work was meant to be a naming treatment study for people living with PPA, and one of the roadblocks I kept hitting was also my mentors and reviewers telling me that I was trying to add too many things. And in that process I realized I don't think just using something that exists for post-stroke aphasia is going to be the best way to address the patients I'm seeing right now. And it's not because there's something wrong with that treatment. That treatment was not designed for these individuals. And that led to many more rabbit holes, and you know me really just feeling this existential crisis of "Well, why are we working on the stimuli that we are, and why are we asking questions about these ones?" And I have so much respect for the assessments that exist, and the individuals behind them, and the time they invested in making them. I am also of the belief that we can move forward and improve our processes. There are certain assessments that may be widely used and have so much again power behind them. You know, we have best associated certain assessments with characterizing a diagnosis, but what I ended up seeing in my placements and throughout my clinical work is that many assessments serve more of a mission of an institution or a research protocol than the person being assessed. And in the face of a person with a terminal condition who is using their precious time to serve you in that space, I just think it's so much more important, or that much more important, to really consider what is most functional for them. What will serve them? And how we, how can we give back to that person? And again, part of that emotion, I think, comes from having worked in many research-centered spaces, where someone might not get intervention afterwards, or they might not understand why they are participating in up to five hours of assessment, and I think that's where that passion for focusing on reprioritizing the patient or the client really came from. Jerry Hoepner: I think that attention to "what's in it for them", is really important and clearly based in kind of where your heart is at and where your clinical mindset is at. Because it's easy to go in and say, "Well, we need this data. We need all the data that we get." but to what end, right? Like, how is it going to help? And how is that going to give us any more information about how to help this person, then what they can't do, right? So, I appreciate that mindset a lot, you know. It makes me think, and this is a little off track, and we didn't talk about this question earlier, but what a shift it will be clinicians working with people with primary progressive aphasia, and how they'll be able to shift from using kind of the existing tools that were out there for other purposes to moving towards tools that are designed specifically for people with PPA, and maybe just a snapshot of your thoughts about that piece. Jeanne Gallée: So I think it's really important to know where the field comes from, the work in which it was grounded in. So, I think it, it makes sense to talk about standardized assessment scores. It makes sense to talk about, you know, the specific assessments that can help us quickly differentiate presentations or needs, right? So, using the symptom-led approach, can we identify specific behaviors really quickly in a standardized way? I think the issue comes in when we stop being dynamic in how we use them. It's very easy to use an assessment in a way that feels rote. It feels just like a test, and it's like you said, "just collecting data for the purpose of collecting data." And lose that aspect of humanity. And maybe I'm putting words in other clinicians' mouths, but especially when a certain condition is rare, like PPA is. You may not have very much experience with seeing someone with PPA, or any type of progressive condition, and feel really stuck and needing to be in the motivation of being really professional, sticking to a certain set of tests. "This feels right." Right, this is what someone told me to do. I can fill this out, and there's something very potentially vulnerable or scary about just going with your gut in those moments. And what Anna Volkmer and I have spoken about so often is just the power of having a conversation with someone, and seeing what you can learn from that conversation, not only about the person themselves, but their communication behaviors. And how you can get so much from that conversation, including the trust and comfort of the client in front of you. Jerry Hoepner: Absolutely, yeah. One of the things that I think about when you're talking about that is, in working with people with acquired brain injuries and traumatic brain injuries one of the things I've learned is they will tell you, or they will ask, right? They'll say, "What is this? "What kind of information is this giving you?" "Why do we have to do this stupid test?" And I think that's good. I think that's a mindset that we should have when we're thinking about all of the assessments that we do. Why are we doing this? Is this really necessary? And they're very willing to say, "If it's necessary, that's fine, I'll do it, but are you getting something from this that I'm not seeing?" Right, I love that question, and I think it speaks to what you just said, right? Like, there's so much information that we can gather from conversations, from our interactions with people, we should be thinking about getting that, and if we're doing something else, we should have a why directly following, yeah. Jeanne Gallée: Yes, the why is so important, and you're right. Sometimes we do just need to get certain information. I think for me, one of the most striking moments early on in my training was having small talk. You know, just conversation with a person with semantic variant primary progressive aphasia, and thinking, "Wow, this all feels quite typical. I'm curious about why they're here? What their testing will look like…" and then moving on to the Boston Naming Test and immediately seeing the challenges that came. That dichotomy is really helpful to have in those moments, but again, there's the argument of why are we asking about the name abacus, right? Why are we using that right now, and how does that represent how someone is performing functionally in their everyday life? Jerry Hoepner: Absolutely, yeah, totally. I agree. Can you share a little bit about the RAISE framework, which I really love, because it relates to the way that I think about assessment from the standpoint of counseling, like you build on relationships and connections. William Miller is famous for saying, "The last thing you should ever do at the beginning of a session is assessment." You're beginning of a relationship with someone, don't assess first thing. So, I love that piece, and then thinking about the pact, and I'll let you kind of expand those, but I'll let you unpack them – ha ha- but how that starts to move us towards intervention. Jeanne Gallée: Right. So the RAISE assessment framework was really built out of those conversations, and I guess realizations on my own part about that discomfort with the really rigid end that assessment can…I'll restate that. The rigidity that assessment can have, so again speaking to really, really standardized sets and rigid protocols of specific measures that someone uses, and like you said, having the experience of multiple research participants, as well as patients, asking "Why are we doing this? I know I'm not good at this. Why are we doing it again and again?" And in those moments, not feeling like I had the power to really justify exactly why we were doing everything, apart from, "Oh, this is important for the research study." Which it was, but just feeling like there was that aspect of humanity that was missing, and coming up with my own toolkit in those moments to fill in those blanks. So right after the completion of my PhD, Anna Volkmar and I started speaking a lot more about the power of conversational assessment. And then that led into conversations where we worked with Anne Whitworth, Deborah Hersh, and Jade Cartwright, where again, through the power of Zoom across all times. I was pregnant with my first, and meeting everyone usually at midnight my time. I already was nocturnal at that point! Where we would just be discussing all of these issues, and what was amazing about this is that, particularly Anne and Deb come from more of the post-stroke aphasia world, and had these amazing principles grounded in those populations where Deborah Hersh had also really come forward with the concept of therapeutic assessment. So as you had said assessment and intervention shouldn't be separate, they belong together and coexist at all times if we're smart about it. And what we ended up doing, first informally and then formally through the more official Delphi process is coming up with a set of principles as a framework for assessment. So, to take a step away from, "Oh, it's just Lucy Goosey, we're having a conversation and chit chat." What we're actually promoting is a pretty structured set of principles to guide the ways in which we can cultivate assessment for individuals with PPA and their loved ones. Jerry Hoepner: Yeah, absolutely. I was kind of scanning on my computer, I was trying to think of the name. I love this name of the article, where it says, 'Please don't assess me to death, or something like that. Jeanne Gallée: Yes, yeah. Jerry Hoepner: Yeah, and, and thinking about that whole entire process from beginning to end as a relationship, as you know, not discreetly assessment, not discreetly intervention, I think it's just really important. Can you talk a little bit about the PACT and kind of where that has moved things in terms of the assessment piece, but also kind of set a set up for intervention and what that looks like? Jeanne Gallée: Great, so the PACT the Progressive Aphasia Communication Toolkit kit builds off of what we put forth with the RAISE assessment framework. So with RAISE we promote that the relationship might be temporary, it might be a single interaction, or it might be long term, and we cultivate that through conversation and then the PACT is a set of scales that leverages that conversation, we take that natural or as natural as can be interaction and use it to come up with a concrete framework of communication strengths. So that might all sound very esoteric. To make that more concrete, there are four scales to the PACT. They're all clinician ratings, where the clinician is asked to look at a pre-recorded conversation that would occur naturally in a clinical or research context, and then on a scale from four to zero, rate the person speaking's strengths. So within the domains of speech and voice, as well as language and social pragmatics, as well as discourse, and the point or the purpose of that was to really anchor a person's communicative ability in one of these more natural environments with a provider. We collect so much phenomenal qualitative data, but at times it can feel challenging to quantify it and the hope with the PACT is that we can quantify our very real, possibly subjective evaluation of a person's communication at a certain moment in time. Jerry Hoepner: Yeah, and what I love about that, and you might have a slightly different thought about this, because you're deeper into it, but from an assessment standpoint, you can then do that all the way through. You can say, "Here's where they are this year, here's where they are next year, here's where they are the year after that, or you know, two years ago, or whatever your lens is at that point." You can do that without kind of this constant repeating of, "Okay, let's see how bad you are today compared to a year ago, or compared to two years ago." Just a very different mindset. And I love the focus on "What can you still do? What what's working? And how can we leverage what's working to really help you to actually communicate today?" As opposed to saying, "Oh boy, the ship is sinking." which is kind of the typical approach. Jeanne Gallée: Yes, that exactly what you're saying. The tendency tends to focus on what's no longer there. And while that might be helpful in clinical trials to characterize a person's performance diagnostically and the trajectory of a diagnosis over time. It really does not serve the person who goes home after the assessment, nor their loved ones to help them maintain that autonomy and quality of life, and also caregiver burden. And that is actually one of the points I really love about the PACT, is it builds on that RAISE aspect, that final tenant of evolution or adaptation over time. There's no repeat measure conflict here, where you know something might seem familiar. One of the unique parts of the PACT is that the clinician doesn't fill out the scale while they're talking to the person, they're really just recording them talking, so it is on the clinician side where, as often as they'd like to, they could implement the structured prompts of the PACT and then fill out the scale and see how performance might vary over time. They might see effects of context of the conversation, or the environment, or maybe the time of day, you know, phase of life, but it remains a way to use that really important information you gather through these conversations without recreating a testing environment frequently. Jerry Hoepner: I really love that framework. I think there's a lot of room for that to be used in other contexts as well. I just think it's really a wise way of thinking about it. I also, you just mentioned caregivers and caregiver burden in this context, and how does that fit into this entire RAISE framework, the PACT, and so forth. Jeanne Gallée: I think for both the RAISE assessment framework as well as the PACT the carers play an essential role in the sense that if they are available and present in the patient's life, then they are involved in the process. And so within the RAISE framework, the care partner is involved to provide feedback or to be given feedback, and in the PACT the same occurs, where if they are present at the time of the conversation, they are involved in the conversation. What I tend to do in the people I have piloted the PACT, I say come in as you would naturally, but then also take a step back. Let the person that with PPA that we're talking to take the lead, but I want you to interact as you would naturally. And then they're separately also asked to comment on the strengths that the person with PPA has. Their feedback is so integral because if they are present in a person's life, they play an essential role in promoting anything that we do work on in speech therapy. Jerry Hoepner: Absolutely, yeah, really well said. And I wanted to dig in, partly because I have envy of this figure, the roadmap figure for PPA, and I think it really sets up well for as we think about professionals out there too, like what's the roadmap, not just for the person and their partner, but what's the roadmap for clinicians, future clinicians, all of that. Maybe you can talk a little bit about that figure. Jeanne Gallée: I'd be delighted to. So, this was one of those, I would say classic for me moments where I had an idea and went to PowerPoint and started playing around with a visual of what I was thinking. The roadmap paper in no way is meant to be the only guide for how we can work with a person with PPA, but was really born out of discussions with Amy Mooney, as well as Zoe Ezzes, and Kristin Schafferr Mendez through the National Aphasia Association about the possible gaps in education or preparation a person might experience when first working with people living with PPA. There are so many ways in which we could say, "Oh, just work on this exact task. Work on these.." and that can feel so lost and unanchored, unmoored moreover. And I wanted to provide the clinical toolkit that I've been using to help me think about my broader approach. So to not get lost in the weeds, but just generally think about what's my purpose here, what's my journey, and so at the center of this road that I created is the tenant of providing that person-centered care, like we aim to with the RAISE assessment framework, so really bringing it back to establishing that honest and holistic and person-centered relationship with your client and their care partners. And focusing on creating a journey that's unique to the client that I think can feel hard when there are so many unknowns with a condition like PPA, where you're always working with an interdisciplinary team. Which you may or may not have contact with. So the first part of this roadmap is really defining your role. Who are you as a professional, and what kinds of support can you provide, and part of defining your own role includes defining your role relative to the rest of the interdisciplinary team. How can you provide a different approach from the neurologist or the neuropsychologist who play vital but very different roles in a person's care journey? Part of that definition also includes advocating across professions, so a classic conundrum that people with communication-led disorders face is that they may not have certain challenges in other domains, but their communication results in a domino effect of difficulties. And so, as the speech language pathologist, coming up with ways in which you can provide supports to other providers or your client to improve their communication can be essential for that comprehensive care. That might include coming up with a communication notebook that has a single page related to specific questions or common topics when talking to the neurologist or the physical therapist or other providers. And then part of this roadmap includes referring out. So having the humility and confidence to say I can't help with this in the ways that you may need. I will either refer you to a specialist within our field or outside of our field to help with these specific aspects, and I think that's just responsible care. Jerry Hoepner: Absolutely. Really well described, and such a perfect. A segway to my next question. I always tell my students, assessment isn't just the first and last session that you're working with someone, and the same goes for intervention, right? It's not excluded from the beginning and the end, right? Like, you can't do intervention on day one, you can't do it on the last day, right? I think we kind of silo those things as well, you know, we assess and we intervene every day side by side. Can you share a little bit of your perspectives on this? And, and how that relates to kind of what we just talked about in terms of that roadmap? Jeanne Gallée: Yeah, I think part of the challenge with some of these concepts is that it's very helpful to have experience in working with individuals, whether it is through formal speech therapy or elsewhere, to feel comfort with the unknown. Because a lot of it relies on your ability to listen and to respond to what you notice. You may inadvertently put in assessment by asking follow-up questions to a point a person made when you were talking about their commute. Ad you may offer different technological supports or just visual supports to your client in that conversation in a way to build up supports to see, "Oh, do we see a difference in how they're responding to what I'm saying? And how I provide support? Or when I dial it back, do we see a completely different direction?" So, it is this beautiful, possibly more art than science approach of responding to what a person is giving you. And there are so many individual differences in all of us. I always joke about how when I used to collect data on the picture description using both age match controls and people with PPA, I would almost burst out laughing when some of the controls provided responses, because I would get one to two sentences sometimes because see the difference in motivation. A person who does not have a communication concern, does not see the need to show exactly what they can do. And would benefit from some encouragement to show exactly how much they can say, whereas a person with PPA, who might have an Aphasia Quotient that recognizes their aphasia, might speak for five to 10 minutes to show exactly everything that they can accomplish. And so I think having that in your back pocket is really important when it comes to thinking about coming up with your recipe of all the ingredients of your assessment and intervention approach and counseling approach. So, I think that's where most of my work comes from, is that there is no one size fits all, but there are certain ingredients or components that we need to apply, and the exact ratios depend on the person you're working with. Jerry Hoepner: That is such a good description of dynamic assessment and intervention and how that I agree, probably more art than science. And that's hard for people who want a black and white answer, like "Step one…" but it's so true, and, and being effective in working in this context, that really moves us nicely into a recent paper that you did, those global perspectives on the management of PPA, and I was struck by the numbers here. Only 40% of respondents said that they had received training in primary progressive aphasia at their university, and they identified all of these needs, right, like online instruction, sample tools, and activity dealing with end of life care and trainings for end of life care. When you mentioned counseling, that totally relates to what we're up against in terms of counseling, right? No one feels confident or has very good self efficacy. Tey don't know if what you know the lines are, what part is theirs and what part is someone else. And I think just really important to like I said, lay out a roadmap and help people to understand what we were just talking about in terms of that art and science of how do you navigate this space when it has to be individualized for every person, and that can feel uncomfortable for a lot of people. So, I'd love to hear more of your thoughts on that, and kind of what you learned from that context. Jeanne Gallée: Yeah, so this research study. Was really an amazing endeavor on part of everyone who was involved. It felt like a grassroots effort to find the speech language pathologists around the world who aren't associated with a particular institution who do work with primary progressive aphasia. So of course it will never be a fully representative sample of every clinician who does so, but I do think we worked very hard to cast a wide net. So we used a snowball method. I contacted almost 40 institutions and governing bodies to find speech language pathologists who do have experience with PPA, because while more and more non-specialist providers will be seeing this patient population, we wanted to hear from the people who currently are in the field and creating their own expertise and toolkits to work with these individuals. So, what we found is that a lot of people are out on their own creating their own wheels, so to speak. And it just really led to that beautiful conclusion of now with the power of our globalization of education and sharing of resources, we can come up with a resource that's shared worldwide. Of course, there will be adaptations to fit different contexts, cultures, languages, but one of the issues has been that the systems of care for PPA have often relied upon very specific individuals. And that's reflected in the educational level. Even I was in the master's program between 2017 and 2019, I didn't hear about PPA formally in my coursework, and if it was mentioned we did not go into any of these aspects of specialized care. Part of that might have been because I didn't take very specific courses that then you know were optional or precluded, so I might have missed it, but I really didn't receive that education in the classroom. I received it through my clinical training, which I would argue is possibly even more valuable, right? You have that experiential training. But I think for clinicians who might want to transition in their careers, or you know, inadvertently in their place of work, are transitioning based on who shows up, that is a huge disservice. Jerry Hoepner: Yeah, agreed. And it's a complex issue, right, because I can remember actually teaching about this back before Tom [Sather] was in my department. I taught the aphasia class and the acquired cog class, and I was thinking, like, where do I talk about primary progressive aphasia? Do I talk about that in acquired com? Do I talk about that in aphasia? Do I do it in both? Where do I talk about end of life care, and like, how does that fit in, because that's, you know, at that point I was teaching dysphasia, too. Believe it or not, and I'm like, it's kind of there, it's kind of here, it's kind of, it's kind of in counseling, it's all right. So that makes it tricky to have kind of a uniform message when it's all over the place. And love to just get your thoughts on that too. Like, where do you put that stuff? Like, it's it's PPA, it's end of life care, it's aphasia, it's right, it's counseling, it's so many things at once. Jeanne Gallée: It is so many things at once, and I do think that speaks to the fact that it may well need its own class as part of progressive conditions. Jerry Hoepner: Yeah. Jeanne Gallée: But I do think a large part of what we share there is that understanding of we may also need to shift the identity of who we think about when we think about life care. And when we think about a progressive condition. Since a huge flavor, so to speak, of PPA is the fact that it is early onset, and especially with our cultural shifts, and you know, people starting families later in life. The face of a person with PPA looks very different from, at least in my childhood, of what looked like typical Alzheimer's disease dementia. And it's a younger, possibly more dynamic working person, possibly with little kids at home. And I think that's where that symptom-led approach has been most beneficial for my practice. Where we think about "What are you experiencing and how is it impacting your life?", rather than saying "This is the diagnosis, let's put you over here in this box." Jerry Hoepner: Yeah, the idea of putting it in a box and siloing things really resonates in this context, and I love what you said about identity, right? The identity - what we all have in our mind's eye when we think about end of life care is not the typical person with primary progressive aphasia. Like I can remember as an elementary school student visiting the nursing homes and singing to the residents and things like that, and this was not, this was not the group of people that we were thinking about in that context. Very, very different, and I just think that's a really good mindset shift to recognize how actually broad that is. I'm sure there's people listening to this who work in, you know, end of life pediatric care who want to slap me in the face right now, but right, we have such a different mindset when we're thinking about end of life care, and that reset that you just made super important. Jeanne Gallée: Yeah, yeah, and easier said than done, I think, As well as just seeing who shows up to the University of Washington support groups, and just the own perspectives that individuals bring there. But I think we can do it. I think, as a field, that will be the way in which we can become the best generalist provider, so to speak, where we take general principles of addressing symptoms or situations, and then apply those to diagnoses across the spectrum. Jerry Hoepner: Absolutely, really well said, and a great place to kind of wrap up our questions, but I want to give you the opportunity, are there points that you want to share before we kind of close our conversation? Things that we missed. Jeanne Gallée: I think the general thread throughout our conversation has just spoken to the power we do have as providers or researchers working with patients with primary progressive aphasia or related conditions, I think when we feel that our expertise in the newest theories or approaches might be lacking, we can always rely upon our empathy and full body listening, just to bring in elements that go across the lifespan, and that in of itself can lead to so many honest and transparent choices in our clinical care that can best serve our communities. I think we are much more empowered than we think we are. Jerry Hoepner: Absolutely, that's a really important thread through many places where clinicians feel uncomfortable. They've got it there and they just have to gain that confidence, and being empowered to step into those moments. Well said. Well, Jeanne it's been just a really fun conversation. I'm sure we could talk all afternoon, but I look forward to catching up to you at future conferences and things like that. It's been my pleasure to have this conversation. So, thank you for being a part of it. Jeanne Gallée: Right back at you, Jerry. Thank you so much. This has been a really fun conversation, and like you said, I hope to meet in person in the near future. Jerry Hoepner: Agreed. On behalf of Aphasia Access, thank you for listening to this episode of the Aphasia Access Conversations Podcast. For more information on Aphasia Access, and to access our growing library of materials, please go to www.aphasiaaccess.org. If you have an idea for a future podcast series or topic, email us at info at aphasia access.org Thanks again for your ongoing support of Aphasia Access. Resources and Readings 1) The RAISE Assessment Framework: Gallée, J., Cartwright, J., Volkmer, A., Whitworth, A., & Hersh, D. (2023). "Please Don't Assess Him to Destruction": The R.A.I.S.E. Assessment Framework for Primary Progressive Aphasia. American journal of speech-language pathology, 32(2), 391–410. https://doi.org/10.1044/2022_AJSLP-22-00122 Gallée, J., Volkmer, A., Whitworth, A., Hersh, D., & Cartwright, J. (2024). Applications of the R.A.I.S.E. Assessment Framework to Support the Process of Assessment in Primary Progressive Aphasia. American journal of speech-language pathology, 33(5), 2280–2290. https://doi.org/10.1044/2024_AJSLP-24-00085 2) A roadmap for clinicians just starting to work with PPA: Gallée, J. (2023). A Roadmap to enhance care for people living with primary progressive Aphasia: What Can Be Done Now?. Perspectives of the ASHA Special Interest Groups, 8(5), 847-862. https://doi.org/10.1044/2023_PERSP-23-0002 3) Aspects of language functioning in early and late-onset Alzheimer's disease dementia: Gallée, J., Gibbons, L. E., Choi, S. E., Lee, M., Scollard, P., Trittschuh, E. H., Mez, J., Saykin, A. J., Foldi, N. S., Mukherjee, S., & Crane, P. K. (2025). Facets of language performance in early-onset and late-onset Alzheimer's disease dementia. Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association, 21(9), e70705. https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.70705 4) The Progressive Aphasia Communication Toolkit (in production at Alzheimer's & Dementia, but here is the preprint): Gallée, J., Cartwright, J., Henry, M. L., Mooney, A. R., Stark, B. C., Volkmer, A., Dietz, A., Nakano, C., Battista, P., Beales, A., Beber, B. C., Cadório, I., Caldwell, M., Davies, K., Ezzes, Z., Gauch, M., Graney, T., Grobler, S., Haley, K. L., Hausmann, A., … Crane, P. K. (2025). The Progressive Aphasia Communication Toolkit (PACT): A Strengths-Based Approach to Multidomain Evaluation for Intervention. medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences, 2025.11.25.25340904. https://doi.org/10.64898/2025.11.25.25340904 5) A global survey on SLP perspectives on the management of PPA: Gallée, J., Cartwright, J., Grasso, S., Jokel, R., Lavoie, M., McGowan, E., Pozzebon, M., Beber, B. C., Duboisdindien, G., Montagut, N., Norvik, M., Sugimoto, T., Townsend, R., Unger, N., Winsnes, I. E., & Volkmer, A. (2024). Global perspectives on the management of primary progressive aphasia. Scientific reports, 14(1), 19712. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-70156-5 6) Aspects of language functioning in early and late-onset Alzheimer's disease dementia: Gallée, J., Gibbons, L. E., Choi, S. E., Lee, M., Scollard, P., Trittschuh, E. H., Mez, J., Saykin, A. J., Foldi, N. S., Mukherjee, S., & Crane, P. K. (2025). Facets of language performance in early-onset and late-onset Alzheimer's disease dementia. Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association, 21(9), e70705. https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.70705
Dr. Tommy Wood, BM, BCh, PhD, is a professor of neuroscience at the University of Washington and an expert on brain health, neuroplasticity, and cognitive performance. Dr. Wood explains how to use specific forms of exercise, dietary strategies, and compounds to enhance the rate and stability of mental and/or physical skill development. We also discuss science-based tools to preserve cognitive function, reduce dementia risk, and offset loss of memory after a concussion or other brain injury. This episode provides practical, science-based tools for learning new information and skills and for improving your overall ability to learn. Read the episode show notes at hubermanlab.com. Thank you to our sponsors AG1: https://drinkag1.com/huberman David: https://davidprotein.com/huberman Function: https://functionhealth.com/huberman Rorra: https://rorra.com/huberman Timestamps (00:00:00) Tommy Wood (00:04:05) Neuroplasticity; Neurogenesis; Synaptic Pruning (00:11:11) Aging & Neuroplasticity; Familiar vs Novel Tasks (00:14:33) Protocols Book; Sponsor: David (00:16:49) Aging, Training & Processing Speed (00:21:56) Enhancing Neuroplasticity with Age, Tool: Motor & Cognitive Challenge (00:26:56) Learning New Skills, Dance, Sports, Arts; Psychological Benefits of Challenge (00:36:50) Flow, Clutch States; Virtuosity (00:46:59) Power of Practice (00:50:55) Sponsor: AG1 (00:52:14) Tools for Focused Work & Learning; Distractions (01:00:17) Nutrition for Brain Health, Dementia; Critical Nutrients (01:06:56) Nutrient Timing, Supplementation; Omega-3s, Tool: Blood Tests (01:16:41) Sponsor: Function (01:18:19) Enhancing Brain Health, Nutrition & Supplements (01:23:10) GLP-1s, Peptides, Supplements & Evaluating Efficacy (01:32:56) Stimulants: Feeling vs Performance (01:37:18) Exercise & Enhancing Cognitive Function, Tool: Optimize Exercise Volume (01:43:18) Long-Term Cognitive Health & Exercise, HIIT (01:47:17) Sponsor: Rorra (01:48:31) Cortisol Benefits, Acute vs Chronic Stress (01:54:24) Resistance & Aerobic Exercise, Brain Gray & White Matter, Cognitive Health (02:03:37) Cognitive Decline, Dementia, Alzheimer's Disease, Modifiable Risk Factors (02:09:47) Shingles Vaccine & Dementia Risk; Tool: Avoid Illness for Cognitive Health (02:18:28) Concussion, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), Creatine (02:24:04) Treating TBI, Supplements, Physical Therapy (02:32:16) Strongman Competition (02:38:51) Zero-Cost Support, YouTube, Spotify & Apple Follow, Reviews & Feedback, Sponsors, Protocols Book, Social Media, Neural Network Newsletter Disclaimer & Disclosures Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
This week Devo might be a little hard to see through all the smoke, but he's definitely here. Meanwhile, The Improv Guy is up to nerd stuff, MC Hammersmith is definitely a gangsta, and Green Foot is monching some snacks. Om nom nom. 1. "M'Lady" by The Improv Guy 2. "I've Definitely Got a Gun" by MC Hammersmith 3. News of the Stupid! 4. "Left Over Pizza" by Green Foot The Improv Guy is on YouTube @ImprovBroadway MC Hammersmith is at MCHammersmith.com Green Foot is on Instagram @Green_Foot_Band Thank you to our Patreon backers for making this show possible!!!
A UT San Antonio researcher warns that dementia cases could triple by 2050 and that no health system on earth is ready for it. But Dr. Claudia Suemoto says the outlook isn't hopeless: everyday choices around exercise, diet, and community can meaningfully lower your risk, especially if you start by around age 35.
Seattle wants a registry to stop people from knocking on your door about your house. Is it legal? Seattle and King County are making major reforms to KCRHA. Illinois Governor JB Pritzker says Trump has dementia. // Big Local: A Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife officer found a couple trying to smuggle live crabs in their clothes. A weeks-long elevator outage at an Everett apartment has left some tenants stranded. // You Pick the Topic: Washington seniors are being warned about Social Security move that can’t undone. Xbox and Apple laptops are more expensive now.
What really helps you live a long, healthy life? Can healthy ageing be as simple as a few everyday habits? In this episode, Dr. Ezekiel Emanuel, world-leading oncologist, bioethicist and World Health Organization adviser, shares six rules from his book Eat Your Ice Cream that may help lower your risk of dementia, heart disease, cancer and early death. Ezekiel explores the science of healthy ageing, longevity and disease prevention, and explains why many wellness trends distract us from what matters most. By the end of the episode, you'll have six practical habits that have the biggest impact on living well for longer. From building stronger relationships and staying mentally active to improving your diet, exercise and sleep, Ezekiel offers a simple framework designed to support health over decades, not weeks. If you want to live a longer, healthier life, are you focusing on the habits that matter most?
It's our 200th episode of RECESS, and Juliet and I are marking the milestone with laughs, a little blood, and a lot of gratitude. We look back at the last 50 episodes — we runs through the extraordinary lineup of women guests who've joined us, a powerhouse group that deserves more ears, and highlight one of our favorite recent episodes with John John Florence.Then yes, we have to address the incident. On the 4th of July, at the Marin County Fair, I picked up the child's sledgehammer, went a little too hard on the high striker, and the thing bounced back and opened up my head. A surgeon friend materialized to administer three staples and with zero blood on the white shirt, we were on our way back into the fair for fireworks. But it will go down in history as "the year that Kelly sledgehammered his head".From there, we get into the World Cup and give a long-overdue shoutout to the coaches and support staff doing the invisible, exhausting work that makes elite performance possible at that level. We also land on why Haaland wearing his mom's name on his jersey might be the coolest thing happening in sports right now.We just got back from a week on the Klamath River - no cell service, no Wi-Fi, days of being barefoot and sleeping under the stars. We were stoked to run into the Paddle Tribal Waters group on the river - a program reconnecting indigenous youth to their land through whitewater kayaking. Our bodies felt incredible. Our nervous systems got a full reset. We can't recommend fully disconnecting out in nature enough.And finally, we share a note we got from Jason Sacks (CEO of Positive Coaching Alliance, and prior TRS Podcast guest), who emailed us after reading an Ambush newsletter piece we ran on hearing loss and dementia risk — because hearing loss is the single biggest modifiable dementia risk factor. After getting his first hearing aid, Jason is here to say that the stigma around doing something about it needs to go.What You'll Learn in This EpisodeWhy the women guests on RECESS over the last 50 episodes represent some of the most essential health and performance conversations in the feedWhat actually happens when Kelly takes a child's sledgehammer to the head at a county fair — and why zero blood ended up on the white shirtHow elite coaching staffs manage travel, fueling, and real-time decision-making during the World CupWhy Haaland putting his mom's name on his jersey is about more than a jersey — and what mitochondria have to do with athletic potentialWhat the removal of the Klamath River dams has made possible for salmon, ecosystems, and indigenous communitiesHow the Paddle Tribal Waters program is using whitewater kayaking to reconnect lindegenous youth to their riverWhy a week barefoot on uneven terrain, off your phone, and sleeping outside resets your body and nervous system in ways daily training can't replicateWhy hearing loss is the #1 modifiable dementia risk factor — outranking smoking, education, and depression — and how treating it can change everythingKey Highlights: (00:00) Welcome back to RECESS and a milestone: 200 episodes(01:30) Kelly's pick: John John Florence, humility, and what makes a truly extraordinary athlete(02:20) Highlights from the last 50 episodes: the women guest lineup and why it matters that downloads drop when women are featured(04:10) Lisa's pick: Cesalina Gracie, training for Everest, and the unexpected controversy the episode sparked(05:00) The 4th of July high striker incident: one child's sledgehammer, three staples, and a surgeon who showed up to the fair(09:44) Kelly reads the actual text exchange from that night, including Kelly's medical self-assessment: "cut plus"(11:10) World Cup and a shoutout to the coaches and support staff doing the invisible work behind elite performance(14:45) Haaland's jersey, mitochondria inheritance, and why your mom is the reason you can suffer(16:47) Kelly's session with Rich Roll on his new Open Container format and what it looked like to problem-solve in real time with an elite athlete(20:06) The Klamath River: 300 miles of free-flowing water following the largest dam removal project in U.S. history(20:50) Paddle Tribal Waters: indigenous youth returning to the river through whitewater kayaking, two years in the making(22:29) Running into the group at camp, and what it feels like to watch teenagers discover a superpower(25:29) What a week on the river — barefoot, phone-free, sleeping outside — actually does to your body and nervous system(27:08) Bird Club, the initiation ritual, and a golden eagle with a seven-foot wingspan at ten feet off the windshield(29:30) Hearing loss as the #1 modifiable dementia risk, and a follow-up from podcast guest Jason Sacks on his first week with a hearing aid(32:54) Summer to-do list and send-off
Welcome to TUESDAY MORNING RB with Matt Forte for Tuesday July 14, 2026Topics:- The World Cup is down to the Final Four (1:15)- Matt's World Cup prediction (02:50)- Seeing famous people at sporting events (07:55)- Reaction to the ESPN report on NFL players dying from higher dementia rate (12:02)- What we learned at church (25:28)Special thanks to our friends at IJM. Join athletes, fans and IJM in the fight to end modern slavery. Because everyone deservesthe freedom to play. Visit ijm.org/freedomtoplay to learn more.Have a question? Got a guest suggestion? Want to advertise with us? Email us - jason@sportsspectrum.comWATCH all of our podcast episodes on our YouTube page:https://www.youtube.com/SportsSpectrumMagazineSign up for our Sports Spectrum Magazine and receive 15% off a 1-year subscription by using the code PODCAST15https://www.theincrease.com/products/sports-spectrum-magazine Do you know Christ personally? Click below to learn how you can commit your life to Him.https://sportsspectrum.com/gospel/
Neurologist Dr. David Perlmutter Explains Brain Inflammation and Alzheimer's Risk Your brain has its own immune system, and when it turns against you, it becomes the hidden driver behind Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, depression, and even long COVID. This episode hands you the science to recognize it early and reverse it. Get Dr. Perlmutter's new book Brain Defenders: https://drperlmutter.com/books/brain-defenders/ Host Dave Asprey sits down with Dr. David Perlmutter, a board-certified neurologist and six-time New York Times bestselling author whose work sits at the intersection of neurology, nutrition, and brain health. He is a Fellow of the American College of Nutrition, serves on its Board of Directors, and sits on the Editorial Board of the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease. His books, including the number one bestseller Grain Brain, span 32 languages and have sold over a million copies, and his upcoming release, Brain Defenders, explores the pivotal role of microglia, the brain's immune cells, in protecting, repairing, and reprogramming the brain for lifelong resilience. Dave and Dr. Perlmutter break down how microglia, the brain's resident immune cells, shift from a supportive state into a destructive one called M1, and why this shift, not amyloid plaque, may be the real driver of Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and other neurodegenerative conditions. They dig into why the leading amyloid-clearing drugs fail to improve cognition, what a landmark JAMA study revealed about reversing cognitive decline through lifestyle intervention alone, and why a single daily serving of ultra-processed food raised Alzheimer's risk by 13 percent in a 12.7 year study. They also cover new research on GLP-1 drugs and brain inflammation, the surprising role of gum disease and oral bacteria in dementia risk, and why 40 hertz light therapy is emerging as a low-cost tool for clearing brain plaque and calming neuroinflammation. You'll Learn: Why the shift from supportive to destructive brain immune cells may be the true root cause of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's Why leading Alzheimer's drugs fail to improve cognition, and what the original research behind the amyloid hypothesis actually showed How one daily serving of ultra-processed food raises Alzheimer's risk, and what a landmark lifestyle intervention study found instead Whether GLP-1 drugs help or harm brain inflammation, based on new Parkinson's and Alzheimer's trial data How gum disease and oral bacteria are linked to dementia, and simple daily habits that reduce that risk Why 40 hertz light therapy is emerging as a tool to clear brain plaque and calm neuroinflammation How ketones, DHA, and metabolic health protect the brain after head injury Thank you to our sponsors! - Beyond Wonderland Conference | Oct 13 - 14, 2026. Get your ticket now at wonderlandconference.com. - ZenBud | Dave's Nervous System Biohack. Visit zenbud.health and use code DAVE15 at checkout for a discount. - Pique | Head over to Piquelife.com/Dave to get 20% off your order. That's P-I-Q-U-E life dot com slash DAVE - PredictiveMind™ | Get your Brain Pattern Mapping report at predictivemind.io/dave and use code DAVE for 10% off. Dave Asprey is a four-time New York Times bestselling author, founder of Bulletproof Coffee, and the father of biohacking. With over 1,000 interviews and 1 million monthly listeners, The Human Upgrade brings you the knowledge to take control of your biology, extend your longevity, and optimize every system in your body and mind. Each episode delivers cutting-edge insights inhealth, performance, neuroscience, supplements, nutrition, biohacking, emotional intelligence, and conscious living. New episodes are released every Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Sunday (BONUS). Dave asks the questions no one else will and gives you real tools to become stronger, smarter, and more resilient. Keywords: microglia, brain inflammation, Alzheimer's prevention, Parkinson's disease, amyloid hypothesis, neurodegeneration, GLP-1 drugs, semaglutide, ultra-processed food, gum disease and dementia, oral microbiome, 40 hertz light therapy, ketones, DHA, mitochondria, brain fog, long COVID, David Perlmutter, Brain Defenders, Grain Brain, functional medicine, biohacking, longevity, neuroplasticity Resources: • Get Dr. Perlmutter's New Book Brain Defenders: https://drperlmutter.com/books/brain-defenders/ • Learn More About Dr. Perlmutter's Work At: https://drperlmutter.com/ • Get My 2026 Clean Nicotine Roadmap | Enroll for free at https://daveasprey.com/2026-clean-nicotine-roadmap/ • Dave Asprey's Latest News | Go to https://daveasprey.com/ to join Inside Track today. • Danger Coffee: https://dangercoffee.com/discount/dave15? • My Daily Supplements: SuppGrade Labs (15% Off) • Favorite Blue Light Blocking Glasses: TrueDark (15% Off) • Dave Asprey's BEYOND Conference: https://beyondconference.com • Dave Asprey's New Book – Heavily Meditated: https://daveasprey.com/heavily-meditated • Join My Substack (Live Access To Podcast Recordings): https://substack.daveasprey.com/ • Upgrade Labs: https://upgradelabs.com Timestamps: 00:00 – Trailer 00:40 – Intro 02:38 – Ultra-Processed Foods 06:34 – Are Carbs Bad? 08:48 – Alcohol & Brain Health 12:28 – Microglia & Inflammation 24:37 – Head Injury & Recovery 29:27 – Oral Bacteria & Dementia 34:08 – GLP-1s & Brain Inflammation 40:20 – 40 Hertz Light Therapy 48:35 – Air Pollution vs. Lead 50:27 – David's Closing Truth See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.