In addition to engaging in cognitive activities that cross-train, I recommend something else for all my patients: regular memory workouts to grow the hippocampus and improve skills of memorization. That’s because the hippocampus, you’ll remember, is one of the first areas of the brain to deteriorate as we age. Building it up will help offset that

green tea—has even been shown to promote healthy brain activity.

Curcumin, a bright yellow powder, is a natural product of the curry spice turmeric and has been shown to have a multitude of beneficial effects, including acting as an anti-inflammatory and increasing blood flow to the brain.

Bowman found that people with high blood levels of vitamins B, C, D, and E had larger brains and performed better on memory tests than those with lower levels of those vitamins.

in order to remember someone’s name, we should associate it with a specific attribute.

caffeine also prevented or reversed a decrease of BDNF seen in the hippocampi of the rats fed a high-fat diet alone.

Obesity Excess weight and obesity—particularly in the form of belly fat—are known brain shrinkers, reducing cognitive function in the short term and raising the risk of dementia in the long term. Responsible weight loss or healthy weight maintenance almost always involves dietary changes and exercise, both of which can grow the brain.

A Growing Hippocampus Some of the most dramatic evidence of the brain-growing effects of cognitive stimulation—not too surprisingly—centers on the highly malleable hippocampus, the area central to learning and memory. “Practice” leads to a hippocampus that’s measurably larger. There’s almost overwhelming proof of this phenomenon.

We can, of course, not only reverse the brain atrophy associated with aging but also expand the brain’s size—even before shrinkage begins.