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DESCRIPTION OF THE HEALTHY BRAIN PROGRAM
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THE HEALTHY BRAIN PROGRAM is an innovative approach to the care of the brain.
Brain disease, reaching epidemic proportions, is having a greater impact on our society than any other illness. The Healthy Brain Program© teaches what is good and bad for the brain. The program succeeds by producing a cognitive shift, realizing the brain, like the heart, as a vital bodily organ and by providing actionable plans in eight well researched, evidence-based, disciplines of biomedical knowledge:
The Eight Pillars of Brain Health and Longevity:
1. Safety
2. Nutrition
3. Physical Fitness
4. Mental Activity
5. Sleep
6. Stress Management
7. Hormone Balance
8. Treatment of Disease (risk factors for dementia)
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Brain disease is increasingly recognized as a major killer. For this reason alone, there is need for higher awareness of prevalence of brain disorders and the desirability of prevention, early diagnosis and treatment. Given that we know a great deal about the brain, prevention of brain disorders and promotion of brain health is a very practical endeavour.
The Healthy Brain Program©, also known as The Healthy Aging Program© consists of a main didactic lecture and eight small group interactive seminars or series of workshops where facilitators use overhead slide presentations and offer Q&A opportunities.
The main lecture and slide presentation, lasting about an hour, gives an outline and overview of the whole program. It explains the need for a higher level of awareness of the brain as an organ, like the heart, requiring preventive care and maintenance. The brain is our best health care system; it deserves more attention. The following headings are covered in the core orientation lecture:
1. Why brain health is becoming very important
2. Obstacles to brain health
3. Introduction to the brain as an organ
4. Brain deterioration – vulnerability - the bad news
5 The staying power of the brain – the good news
6. What protects the brain – precepts of brain health
The Eight Pillars of Brain Health©
In the past, the lecture has been accredited for 1.5 hrs of MANPRO-M1 credits by the British Columbia College of Family Physicians. With minor adjustments to suit the participants, it can be delivered to other health care professionals, special interst groups and the general public.
Each of the The Eight Pillars of Brain Health© can be delivered in a lecture, seminar or interactive workshop format.
What is novel about this approach is that it pulls together eight distinct, well researched disciplines of scientific knowledge which are presently accepted to be major factors influencing brain health and longevity. These precepts have been compiled into distinct themes for small group workshops to explore whatever research has shown to be significant in brain health. These are what we have called The Eight Pillars of Brain Health and Longevity©.
In the workshop format an effort is made to produce a shift in thinking so that the brain is more clearly conceptualized as an organ of the body, deserving care and maintenance.
When the whole program was delivered in one day-long symposium, it has been accredited by the British Columbia College of Family Physicians for an additional 7.5 hrs of MINPRO-M1 credits.
In summary, The Healthy Aging Program© and The Eight Pillars of Brain Health and Longevity© are novel themes for health education and promotion. This fresh outlook fosters a positive attitude and empowerment regarding brain health issues.
Participants in previous events have reported the material to be enjoyable, stimulating, enlightening and motivating. Some have claimed major shifts in thinking about health, self-care and lifestyle.
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