Although my patient Sharon, the real estate broker, consulted me out of concern for her memory, she was also very concerned about maintaining a young appearance.
**我的病人 Sharon 是房地產經紀人，她來看診是因為擔心自己的記憶力，但她同樣非常在意維持年輕的外表。**
Her pursuit of youth had led to multiple elective surgeries and repeated exposures to anesthesia, which can accelerate brain aging.
**她對青春的追求，使她接受了多次選擇性手術，也多次暴露在麻醉之下，而這些都可能加速大腦老化。**
I was eventually able to convince Sharon to reevaluate her priorities and put her brain health ahead of her physical appearance.
**最後我說服了 Sharon 重新檢視自己的人生優先順序，把大腦健康放在外表之前。**
When she truly realized she had the ability to improve her memory, she became motivated to make healthy lifestyle changes and began my program to keep her brain young.
**當她真正意識到自己有能力改善記憶時，就產生了改變生活型態的動力，並開始接受我的方案來保持大腦年輕。**
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Sharon postponed all further elective surgeries and started doing daily fitness workouts that got her heart pumping more oxygen and nutrients to her hungry neurons.
**Sharon 暫停了所有之後的選擇性手術，開始每天運動，讓心臟把更多氧氣與養分送到飢渴的神經元。**
I taught her some basic memory methods to help her overcome her senior moments, so she no longer worried about forgetting where she parked her car.
**我教了她一些基本的記憶技巧，幫助她克服「當機」的時刻，她不再為自己會忘記車子停在哪裡而擔心。**
It also became easier for her to remember her clients’ names and the details of their transactions.
**她也更容易記住客戶的名字以及交易細節。**
Sharon began meditating, which helped her cope with the daily stress of her job, and she noticed a marked lift in her mood.
**Sharon 開始練習靜坐，幫助自己面對工作上的日常壓力，她明顯感到心情變得比較輕鬆。**
She also enriched her diet with brain-healthy omega-3 fats from fish and nuts, as well as antioxidant fruits and vegetables.
**她的飲食也加入了更多對大腦有益的 Ω‑3 脂肪（來自魚類與堅果），以及富含抗氧化物的水果與蔬菜。**
After just one week on her program, Sharon reported better recall skills, and when I reassessed her after a month, she showed significant improvements in both her verbal and visual memory scores.
**在執行這個計畫僅一週後，Sharon 就回報說自己的回想能力變好了；一個月後我再次評估時，她在語文記憶與視覺記憶的分數上都有顯著進步。**
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DID YOU KNOW?
Your brain uses approximately 20 percent of all the oxygen and nutrients in your entire body.
**你知道嗎？你的大腦大約會使用全身 20% 的氧氣與營養。**
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Protect Your Head
**保護你的頭部**
Throughout life, a variety of illnesses and accidents can compromise neural circuitry and accelerate brain aging, including head trauma, surgery, elevated blood pressure, and small strokes.
**在人生各階段，許多疾病與意外都可能損傷神經迴路並加速大腦老化，包括頭部外傷、手術、高血壓與小型中風。**
When severe, these incidents cause permanent damage, but often such brain injuries are temporary, especially when people protect their brains from further damage.
**當情況嚴重時，這些事件會造成永久性損傷；但許多腦傷其實是暫時的，尤其當人們能妥善保護大腦不再受到進一步傷害時。**
Healthy brains are able to compensate for many injuries and even grow new, sturdy cells.
**健康的大腦具有補償許多傷害的能力，甚至可以長出新的、強韌的細胞。**
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Dr. Fred Gage of the Salk Institute in La Jolla, California, and other scientists have shown that new nerve growth, or neurogenesis, is possible in adult brains.
**加州拉荷亞索爾克研究所的 Fred Gage 博士與其他科學家已證實，成年人腦中仍可能出現新的神經生長，也就是「神經新生」。**
My research team has demonstrated that brain-training exercises and healthy lifestyle choices can activate the brain’s neural circuits and make them more efficient.
**我的研究團隊也證明，大腦訓練練習與健康的生活選擇能啟動大腦神經迴路，並讓它們運作得更有效率。**
The above functional MRI scans show how an untrained brain appears when engaged in a mental challenge.
**上方的功能性 MRI 掃描顯示，當一個尚未經訓練的大腦面對心智挑戰時，會呈現什麼樣的樣貌。**
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Madame Jeanne Calment of France
**法國的 Jeanne Calment 女士**
One of the oldest documented individuals was Madame Jeanne Calment, who lived to 122 years.
**紀錄中最長壽的人之一是 Jeanne Calment 女士，她活到了 122 歲。**
She exercised regularly, ate a brain-healthy diet, remained active mentally, and had no signs of dementia throughout her long life.
**她規律運動，飲食有利大腦健康，並保持心智活躍，在漫長的一生中沒有出現失智的跡象。**
Her sharp mental acuity was apparent in some of her business transactions.
**她敏銳的頭腦在一些商業交易中表露無遺。**
At the age of 94, she sold her apartment to an entrepreneur who agreed to let her remain in the flat rent-free for the rest of her life.
**94 歲時，她把自己的公寓賣給一位企業家，對方同意讓她終身免費住在裡面。**
The entrepreneur died 10 years later, and Madame Calment continued to live rent-free for another 28 years.
**十年後那位企業家去世，而 Calment 女士又繼續免費住了 28 年。**
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Living Longer and Sharper
**活得更久，也活得更敏銳**
By keeping our brains young, we can expect more enjoyment in our later years.
**如果能讓大腦保持年輕，我們在晚年就能享受更多樂趣。**
Advances in medical technology have extended the average life expectancy in the United States and other developed countries from 46 years for someone born in 1900 to 78 years for someone born today.
**醫療科技的進步，已將美國及其他已開發國家的平均壽命，從 1900 年出生者的 46 歲，提升到今日新生兒大約 78 歲。**
Many scientists now estimate that the average human lifespan may eventually approach 120 years.
**許多科學家現在推估，人類的平均壽命最終可能接近 120 歲。**
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Effects of Brain Training
**大腦訓練的效果**
Compare the first image to the second, which represents an experienced, cognitively trained brain. You can see significantly greater neural activity (dark areas) throughout the brain.
**比較第一張圖與第二張圖；第二張代表一個經過認知訓練、熟練的大腦。你可以看到整個大腦中，神經活動（深色區域）明顯較多。**
The evidence is clear: a younger brain is a better brain.
**證據非常明確：較年輕的大腦就是較好的大腦。**
As you read through the following chapters, you will learn strategies to help you take control over your own brain aging.
**在閱讀接下來的章節時，你會學到一些策略，幫助你掌控自己大腦的老化。**
With practice, these strategies will strengthen your neural circuits, and you will soon notice improved memory and mental clarity.
**透過持續實踐，這些策略會強化你的神經迴路，很快你就會發現自己的記憶力與思路清晰度都在提升。**
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ANSWER TO BRAIN-BUILDING TEASER
PAGE 8: Two cab drivers.
**腦力小遊戲答案（第 8 頁）：兩位計程車司機。**
The cab drivers are walking the wrong way on a one-way street.
**這兩位計程車司機正走在單行道的反方向。**
