Review of "Brain Longevity"

This is indeed an instructive book. Written with a great deal of research into the subject and I am sure, with a sincere desire to deal with the events in the brain, leading up to middle age and then to dotage.

The cover blurb states that it is the Breakthrough Medical Program that Improves Your Mind & Memory.

 We learn that drugs, vitamins, natural medicinal products (ginko biloba) are aids while red meat is not. One of the examples quoted is where the subject has clinical evidence (not specified) that he had begun to 'turn off' the cortisol-producing stress response to he turned to meditation, which was helpful. 

"In Western terms he had learned to better control his physical stress response. In Eastern parlance he had learned to shift his focus from the finite to the infinite, and has therefore become less vulnerable to the vicissitudes of the material, temporal world. By both definitions he was a much happier man."

 While I imagine that the above information may be correct it is not much more than the sentence: Meditation helps to relieve stress.

 Which is where I begin to part company with the 449 pages I am supposed to read to find the Breakthrough Medial Program.

 If I were a car dealer (Automotive Dealer) and you, my customer, instead of an intelligent faithful reader, and it was your intention to buy from me the Chevy Corvette - or the' Vette', you hankered after, you might be put off if I started by telling you of the chemical composition of the tires, spending another hour describing the problems the maker of the pistons had when sourcing supplies, his name and opinions, going on the intricacies of the wiring looms.  Before you walked away I would stop you and tell you of the experiences of the various owners of this model with in-depth details of their family history.  Perhaps at this stage you would prefer to attack me with an axe, before running off, sobbing.

 To try and get to the Breakthrough is a strain.  drugs, mental exercises and the rest, are all probably very effective and the battle to learn about them, is in itself a mental exercise to be considered as part of the Breakthrough, but by that time, who the hell cares?

 I would strongly advise ignoring the first 300 pages, which generally go into details of case histories; go straight to the remaining199, trying to ignore the padding.

 Or you could take my medical program to Improve your Mind and Memory. This is:

·        Take exercise to improve the blood flow to your brain.

·        Take steroid hormone DHEA (apparently a youth hormone) by the bucketful

·        Join Amateur Dramatics

·        Take a University Course

·        Play Bridge or Chess.

·        Above all, avoid people and books that are boring

·        Read Oscar Wilde.

 

There.  You already feel better.

 

© 2003 Wyndham Perring

 

Wyndham Perring lives in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, UK.