Healing the Modern Brain: Nine Tenets to Build Mental Fitness and Revitalize Your Mind

Psychiatrist Ramsey (Eat to Beat Depression and Anxiety) explains in this lucid guide how small lifestyle changes can mitigate a genetic predisposition for such psychiatric diseases as depression. Drawing inspiration from epigenetics, which posits that genes can be intimately affected by environmental factors, he outlines nine key habits and skills to protect the brain from the ills of ultraprocessed foods and other threats, by decreasing inflammation and improving neuroplasticity. Suggestions include exercising (which spurs neuron growth), choosing whole foods rather than processed ones (which provides vital minerals not naturally made by the body), and forging deep interpersonal relationships (which offers benefits ranging from elevated levels of molecules that help neurons grow and differentiate to a diversified microbiome). Those commonsense recommendations are undergirded by detailed explanations of the links between brain and body (for example, not eating foods with enough iron, folate, or B12 can impair the production of serotonin, increasing the risk of depression) and buoyed by an upbeat message that readers have more control over their “health destiny” than genetically deterministic views would suggest. Readers looking to boost their mental health through natural means will appreciate this actionable guide. (Mar.)