I was sitting in the Palm Court room of the luxurious Langham Hilton in London. Across the street was the BBC building, where I had just spent most of the day being interviewed. My hostess was Erin Pizzey of Saga Magazine, England's most prestigious periodical for people over fifty. I felt emblazoned by her outpouring of admiration for my new book, Brain Longevity, The Breakthrough Medical Program that Improves Your Mind and Memory (Warner Books US, Random House UK). It was clear to her that this book, co-written with noted science writer Cameron Stauth, was monumental. As we sat back in the over-sized chairs, while they served us peppermint tea, she looked at me and said, "This is your mission, isn't it? Isn't it your life's work?"

"Yes, it is true." I answered "It is my mission to make this work available to health care practitioners so they can in turn help their patients prevent and reverse memory loss." Beyond that, we can show people how to develop and maintain high levels of brain power at any age or stage of life." "The reason," I continued, "is that the brain is after all just flesh and blood."

This fact has been ignored by neurological researchers for years, as they struggled to find the one "magic bullet" that would reverse Alzheimer's disease. Now, recent studies showing a positive correlation between vitamin E and slowing of cognitive decline in patients with moderate Alzheimer's, has many researchers saying that enhancing overall brain health may be one of the key factors in maintaining optimal levels of brain function as we age.

It makes sense that a brain longevity lifestyle program would be effective because it nurtures the brain on every level. Lifestyle modification has already proven to be effective in helping patients suffering from the three greatest killers of people in the world; heart disease, cancer and strokes. As Erin and I discussed the program, it was she who put the tremendous social implications of Brain Longevity into perspective. She felt it was critically important to get this information out so we can avoid the potential holocaust of brain degeneration in staggering numbers as we age as a world- wide society. "You know," she told me, "I've read that because Alzheimer's Disease is a disease of age (with nearly fifty percent of people developing it at age eighty-five) if we can slow the incidence of it by five years, we can virtually cut it in half." And she went on, "If we can slow it by ten years, we can literally bring an end to this scourge. We will simply out live it, and we have got to do it."

"It is also imperative to help people with age associated memory loss," I explained, " because fifteen percent of people with what used to be thought of as a benign disorder progress to real dementia. If we can do this, perhaps we can limit the cognitive decline associated with aging. Instead of entering a spiral of degeneration with every passing year, we can enter into a cycle of regeneration, imparting wisdom to the generations that follow.

The Brain Longevity Program consists of four pillars.

1) The first pillar is nutritional modification, including a fifteen to twenty percent fat diet and special supplements. Many times I am asked if someone on a Brain Longevity Program has to be a vegetarian. The answer is no. They simply have to move away from what used to be called a high fat American diet, rich in high cholesterol foods such as meat and eggs. Adding breast of chicken, fish and non-animal protein products such as tofu is helpful. Certain fish is especially good for the brain. These fish includes salmon, tuna, trout, mackerel, and sardines. As far as supplementation is concerned, the most important are B complex vitamins for energy, 50 mg a day vitamin E, 400-800 IU a day for anti-oxidant action, Co-enzyme Q-10,100 mg a day, for its neuro-protective effects, the herb Gingko Biloba, 120 mg a day to increase blood flow to the brain, and a relatively new brain-specific compound with the imposing scientific name of PhosphatidylSerine. I tell my patients to simply remember it as PS, like that old Beatles song, P.S., I Love You. PS, in doses of 200-300 mg a day, is the subject of many studies around the world, showing that it improves attention, concentration, short term memory and imparts a protective effect against stress chemicals. This is critically important and leads to the second aspect of the Brain Longevity Program.