Dementia Prevention with Emily Clionsky, MD and Mitchell Clionsky, PhD

Join this incredible power-hour as we discover ways to improve our brain’s future! Welcoming special guests, Emily Clionsky, MD and Mitchell Clionsky, PhD, authors of the new book DEMENTIA PREVENTION: Using Your Head to Save Your Brain (Hopkins Press, April 4, 2023). And their message is a clear one – dementia is not inevitable! Furthermore, it is preventable in 1 out of 2 people! But that isn’t just their opinion, their work is deeply steeped in research.

Drs. Clionsky, a physician and neuropsychologist couple have cared for their own parents with dementia, and talk about ways to improve your brain's future, many of which may seem surprising. From vitamins, to your activities, social infrastructure, even mental outlooks, and even how you breathe while you sleep and so much more can play a significant role in how dementia may impact our lives.

In fact, in Dementia Prevention: Using Your Head to Save Your Brain, they share 20 factors that impact dementia risk, including 17 that are changeable in adulthood as well as proven psychological methods to change your habits and health to alter your brain’s future. They educate us on the various types of dementia and clear up some confusion we may have on this topic. But in this episode, they also offer a cliff-notes and layman’s understanding of what exactly is happening when dementia takes hold, allowing us to better understand how we can utilize our stakeholder opportunity to circumvent its potential onset.

But this neuropsychologist team also focuses on areas often overlooked such as hearing, vision, and the many health factors such as blood pressure, exercise and sugar levels that are important to be aware of as it relates to dementia. They echo a welcoming sense of empowerment for everyone, even those who may have a genetic predisposition for dementia, to take control and change several risk factors in their favor.

Together, they have treated more than 25,000 patients with cognitive impairment and are responsible for developing the Memory Orientation Screening Test (MOST), which has been used by hundreds of doctors. DEMENTIA PREVENTION: Using Your Head to Save Your Brain is the culmination of 45 years of extensive clinical evaluation and treatment. It brings together proven science from a wide spectrum of medical specialties -- ones that often do not talk to one another or read the others’ research. Drs. Emily and Mitchell Clionsky skip the fads, the unsupported claims of advertised products, and fringe theories.

Emily Clionsky, MD is an internal medicine doctor with 25 years of experience and is a Diplomate of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. She has treated thousands of patients with memory loss at her private practice. Mitchell Clionsky, PhD is a board-certified clinical neuropsychologist with 45 years of experience evaluating and treating patients with cognitive impairment, dementia, ADHD, and traumatic brain injury. Together, they developed the Memory Orientation Screening Test (MOST), which has been used by hundreds of doctors. They live in Springfield, MA. To learn more about their great work, connect with them or purchase their book which is also available at John Hopkins University Press: https://www.press.jhu.edu/books/title/12532/dementia-prevention you can visit them at their website at: https://braindoc.com/.

Thank you, amazing Aging Rebels, for listening to the Aging GreatFULLy show! We are proud to be the Listener’s Show and create this show for YOU! If you enjoy this episode, please share it with your friends and family and leave us a positive show review on your favorite platform! We are grateful and love