How to Reverse Cognitive Decline, Grow Your Hippocampus, and Protect Your Brain from Alzheimer’s Disease with Nutrition, Exercise, Sleep, and Stress Reduction
Your brain is physically shrinking right now, and most people have no idea it’s happening. In this episode, you will discover the exact mechanisms behind cognitive decline, why brain fog is always treatable, and the proven strategies to grow your brain back, protect your memory, and slash your Alzheimer’s risk regardless of your genetics.
Host Dave Asprey sits down with Dr. Majid Fotuhi, a neuroscientist and neurologist who earned his PhD from Johns Hopkins University and his medical degree from Harvard Medical School. He currently serves as an adjunct professor at the Mind/Brain Institute at Johns Hopkins while also teaching at George Washington University and Harvard Medical School. With 37 years of experience in clinical practice, teaching, and neuroscience research, Dr. Fotuhi pioneered the Brain Fitness Program, a multidisciplinary approach to cognitive performance and brain vitality at any age that has produced measurable results documented in peer-reviewed journals. He is the author of three books including the bestselling The Invincible Brain and one of the world’s leading experts on neuroplasticity, hippocampus growth, and successful aging. If anyone has earned the right to tell you your brain can get better, it is him.
Dr. Fotuhi and Dave break down why Alzheimer’s is not a single disease but a soup of modifiable problems, why your lab results can show "normal" while your brain is starving, and how the five pillars of brain health connect directly to longevity, mitochondria function, and human performance. They also get into the brain effects of GLP-1s, the therapeutic promise of psychedelics like psilocybin and ketamine, the role of nootropics and supplements like B12, lithium orotate, and CoQ10, and why your VO2 max may be the single most important number for brain aging.
You’ll Learn:
-Why 97% of Alzheimer’s cases involve multiple modifiable causes and what to do about each one
-How to physically grow your hippocampus through exercise, meditation, and nutrition
-Why "normal" lab ranges are actively harming millions of people and what optimal actually looks like
-The 7 everyday things that are shrinking your brain right now
-How stress, loneliness, and isolation cause measurable brain atrophy
-Which supplements including B12, lithium orotate, CoQ10, and nootropics support long-term brain -health
-Why VO2 max predicts brain aging better than almost any other marker
-What psychedelics like psilocybin and ketamine actually do to your brain according to a Johns -Hopkins neurologist
-How the APOE4 gene affects Alzheimer’s risk and why exercise can erase that risk entirely
-Why mitochondria health is the foundation of both brain function and longevity
Resources:
• Learn More About Dr. Fotuhi’s Work At: https://drfotuhi.com/
• Purchase Dr. Fotuhi’s New Book The Invincible Brain: https://a.co/d/0iHCgPpL
• Get My 2026 Clean Nicotine Roadmap | Enroll for free at https://daveasprey.com/2026-clean-nicotine-roadmap/
• Dave Asprey’s Latest News | Go to https://daveasprey.com/ to join Inside Track today.
Thank you to our sponsors!
– Viome | Check it out at viome.com and use code 10DAVE for 10% off. It’s time to stop guessing and start knowing your body.
– BrainTap | Go to http://braintap.com/dave to get $100 off the BrainTap Power Bundle.
– Pique | Go to Piquelife.com/dave for 20% off.
– BodyHealth | Visit BodyHeath.com and use code DAVE20 for 20% off your first purchase
Timestamps:
00:00 – Trailer
00:59 – Intro
03:00 – Cannabis & Nicotine
04:15 – Understanding Alzheimer’s
05:38 – Five Pillars Explained
07:55 – Best Cognitive Training
09:08 – Brain Size & Growth
12:36 – B12 & Lab Ranges
17:48 – Head-to-Toe Evaluation
24:17 – Sex & Brain Health
25:43 – Loneliness & Isolation
33:59 – ApoE4 Genetics
35:28 – Alzheimer’s Declining
48:44 – Lithium & Brain
59:38 – VO2 Max & Fitness
1:06:42 – Psychedelics
1:09:38 – GLP-1s & Brain
1:12:38 – Closing & Action Steps
Connect with Dave Asprey!
Website: https://daveasprey.com
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@daveaspreyofficial
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dave.asprey/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Daveaspreyofficial/
X: https://x.com/daveasprey
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/daveaspreybpr
The Human Upgrade Podcast: https://www.instagram.com/TheHumanUpgradePodcast/ https://m.facebook.com/Thehumanupgrade/
Danger Coffee: https://dangercoffee.com/DAVE15
Dave Asprey’s BEYOND Conference: https://beyondconference.com/
Dave Asprey’s New Book – Heavily Meditated: https://daveasprey.com/heavily-meditated/
Dave’s favorite supplements: https://www.shopsuppgradelabs.com/discount/DAVE15
Join my Substack: https://substack.daveasprey.com
Upgrade Labs: https://upgradelabs.com
40 Years of Zen: https://40yearsofzen.com
