Navigating cognitive decline

By Elise Oberliesen for Aging at Altitude

Ilene Naomi Rusk, Ph. D. is an expert in brain science and psychology. Her work began in Ontario, Canada as a neuropsychologist. She earned a Ph.D. in psychology and neuropsychopharmacology from the University of Birmingham, in England.

Her knowledge runs deep on matters surrounding the brainto-body connection and her commitment to this evolving field of brain health runs even deeper.

Rusk owns The Brain & Behavior Clinic in Boulder and is the Healthy Brain Program director. Her mission is to educate people about factors that cause cognitive decline and directly work with people to delay onset.

“Mental health and stress are root causes of cognitive decline,” Rusk said, adding that other contributing factors include high blood sugar, insulin resistance and gut microbiome disturbance.

“There are data-driven things we

Refined

can do that impact our cognitive health, like preventing cardiovascular illness, and better managing your diet.”

Consider the interconnection between a wide range of systems in the body. Each system contributes to overall health – including cognitive health, she says.

Rusk looks at relationships between different systems – like how the immune system, vision and dental health create a feedback loop that delivers information from the body to the brain. And by taking care of the body, it helps protect against mental decline.

“If you’re taking care of your senses like vision and hearing, there is data to support that you are also taking care of information getting into your brain which strengthens those cognitive connections to the outside world.”

Behaviors For Building A Better Brain

What we do on a daily basis contributes to brain health – which you already know. Things like daily movement, sleep health and nutrition come to mind. The question is, how do you change bad habits? Rusk shares the payoffs tied to behavior change.

Sleep Rituals

Striving for eight hours of sleep a