The Neurogenesis Diet and Lifestyle: Upgrade Your Brain, Upgrade Your Life (Holistic Mental Health series)

I got this book to improve my brain, body, mind and, spirit. It’s one of the best books I’ve ever read to improve my life. A lot of people read books hoping that by the end of them something will just click and life will get better. That’s not what this book is about. It emphasizes holistic, reasonable and well thought out ways to increase the neurons firing in your brain. The author provides generous amounts of scientific research and quantifiable studies that clearly show how to improve your life.I really liked that it was straight to the point. It wasn’t things that had just helped the author it’s evidence of changes for the betterment of humankind. I high lighted things that really pertained to me and implemented, the neuroprotective changes that needed to happen.After reading, I have a better understanding of how to shift my day into a more positive and happy experience. A lot of the practices like diet and exercise, take time to change and I recommend taking small steps to change each area of your life. That’s how I read the book. By going through each chapter and improving my life after each one in some small way or large.I skipped most of chapter 7 as talks about a lot of other religions than the one I practice. But I found that the chapter on the mind makes up for what skipped over, as it talks about mind fullness. Again some of it talks about many different religions but am loyal to mine and it provides me with all I need.Please take away from my review that if you want to improve you can, and that there are two paths in life, one where the body and mind, spirit and brain are in sync and another where some or all are out of balance and life tends to spiral out of control.It’s a worthy read. :)

Good so far just bad shape

This book does an excellent job of summarizing the current scientific knowledge about how we can sharpen our minds and maintain a healthy brain. Everyone could benefit from reading this book. Think about it: every aspect of your life from the way you feel to your job/academic performance to your relationships will be affected, positively or negatively, by the state of your brain. Much of the scientific knowledge Dr. Cortright shares is not widely known (i.e. Including the spice turmeric, blueberries, green tea, a healthy Omega 3/6 ratio, etc. for a super brain-healthy, neurogenic diet). And while some of his advice is well known (that exercise is a necessary health booster), Cortright gives us a new reason to do it: it grows new brain cells! Cortright recommends a low-sugar, healthy diet, and unlearning poor eating habits requires a bit more information than the book offers. Two healthy cook books I recommend are  Eat to Live Quick and Easy Cookbook: 131 Delicious Recipes for Fast and Sustained Weight Loss, Reversing Disease, and Lifelong Health  and  The Fat Chance Cookbook: More Than 100 Recipes Ready in Under 30 Minutes to Help You Lose the Sugar and the Weight . I have written a fuller review on my blog (I put a link to it in the comments) that has some useful tips and lifestyle advice.

Brant Cortright's book is an excellent summary of published neurogenic science. He has assembled the results of most of the clinical trials and done a wonderful job for those of us that want a fast updating on the state of the science. I discovered Brant Cortright when a friend of mine send me a link to his Youtube talk at Google.It has a good summary of healthy foods, but fails to connect the dots regarding lifestyle and how to integrate diet into a more comprehensive picture for maximal neurogenesis. The pieces are there, like a jigsaw puzzle, but you'll have to put them together to reinvent your lifestyle for yourself.Just one item. The Finnish study on neurogenesis that showed cardio raised neurogenesis by up to 500% and resistance exercise made no difference is wonderful and yet fatally flawed. The study itself is very helpful in pointing the way towards further research. I contacted the authors and never heard back, so it looks like I'll have to design further experiments myself. Hint: these results are likely to be the result of fat-burning (or being in ketosis).

I have MCI, mild cognitive impairment, and this book is extremely helpful and thorough when it comes to guidance for health.

This book is a game-changer for the fields of psychology and psychiatry. Debunks the myth of SSRI's and NDRIs as an effective treatment for depression, with new science that reveals it is the rate of neurogenesis that is the central mechanism determining depression. What we believe to be "normal aging" is actually an artifact of a neurotoxic lifestyle and diet that slows the brain down much more and much faster than necessary. Hands down one of the most ground-breaking books on the latest neuroscience developments as they relate to aging and emotional disorders. Presented in an easily digestible style as well; science communication at its best! In terms of practical applications to increase the rate of neurogenesis in ourselves, the recommendations are a bit more limited, but that is simply because the science to validate this aspect is still evolving.

Definitely worth the read and a decent amount of good information. I already do a lot of the recommendations in the book but it was good to read some of the science and get some other ideas. Only reasons I didn't give it a five star rating was first because I thought there was a little bit more fluff than I would have liked and second, and most importantly, his "Future Dreams" sections were full of economic ignorance, an anti-market mentality, and a messed up view about human nature. The rest of the book was great though and worth the time to read (really it's a pretty quick book to read).

Not much use it’s a heavy text book and never seems to actually get around to the point. I read a lot but this was a waste of money. Don’t bother if you just want to know the diet , it seems to be just a few fruits and veg, some meat and fish. Very vague about the real items to eat but loads about science. You have been warned!

Good read. I have begun to implement some of the things recommended and have noticed improvements. It is in need of editing however, as there are a few typos and grammatical errors in the book. Other than that, I would consider this a solid introduction to neurogenesis and a great addition to the bookshelf of any brain hacker.

Upgrade Your Brain, Upgrade Your Life.

This book is costing me a fortune! Haha... I’ve been buying it for all my loved ones. It will be such a game changer in their health and happiness. Thoroughly recommend.

Quite good book, but there are not many books on this subject