Red light therapy has gained popularity in recent years as people seek ways to improve brain health and cognitive function.Getty Images
Retirement is no longer an end, it’s a beginning. That’s the philosophy behind Third Chapter, a new series about changing hearts and minds around planning for and living a prosperous retirement. It’s about inspiring Canadians to dream big, no matter their age.
Natalie Singer is a 56-year-old nutritionist whose focus has increasingly turned toward nourishing her brain as well as her body.
Singer has always exercised, eaten well and practised yoga. But she started thinking about how to boost her brain health when perimenopause symptoms hit during the COVID-19 pandemic. She experienced brain fog and an overwhelming sense of despair.
“I felt like someone else had crawled into my brain. It was really profound,” she says.
Singer became more intentional about incorporating meditation and exercise into her daily routine, which provided some relief. She started taking supplements like lion’s mane (a type of mushroom), omega-3 fatty acids, magnesium and vitamin D. She also decided to try some treatments that purport to boost brain health and have been popping up on med spa menus and in wellness spaces in recent years: light therapy, sound baths and neurofeedback therapy.
Singer has done two types of light therapy: one that involved wearing goggles and listening to music in a room with a flashing red light, another that involved lying on a bed of salt and absorbing red and blue light frequencies. “[It] puts you in an ultra-relaxing state of mind,” she says.
Sound baths happen in a group setting, with Singer lying on a bed while someone walks around the room playing instruments (which can include chimes, gongs, drums and “singing bowls”). She also does neurofeedback therapy with a psychotherapist, who places electrodes on her head to record brain activity while she listens to music and watches nature imagery. The idea is that the electrodes provide real-time feedback on an individual’s brainwave activity, helping them to better regulate their brain function.
“It helps me shut down, relax and react less to all the stimuli that feeds my general anxiety. It’s not going to rewire your brain, but it puts you into a calm mode.”
Singer says she hopes that all her efforts will work together to keep her mentally sharp in the years ahead.
“I see the people living with dementia in my mother’s retirement home, and I don’t want my daughter to have to worry about my own mental state in the years to come.”
Natalie Singer says that troubling perimenopause symptoms prompted her to try new supplements and therapies.Supplied
Emerging therapies ‘worth keeping an eye on’
As menopause receives more medical and popular attention than ever and people embrace their neurodiversity later in life, many are looking for ways to stimulate their brains and stave off age-related cognitive decline. From word puzzles and supplements to light therapy and sound baths, the hunt is on for ways to keep our minds agile in retirement and beyond.
When we think about declining brain health, we often think about dementia. But even normal aging is marked by mild cognitive changes like forgetfulness and slower processing speeds. While cognitive decline is common, the good news is that there are lifestyle strategies that can slow down those changes and optimize brain health, says Dr. Anthony Levinson, a psychiatrist and dementia researcher with the McMaster Institute for Research on Aging (MIRA),
Dr. Levinson says that while supplements and therapies like the ones Singer has tried are “worth keeping an eye on,” the research is still emerging. He notes that there are some early-stage trials on the effects of psychedelics that may suggest mental-health benefits in a clinical setting. And GLP-1 medications like Ozempic could potentially have positive effects on cognition. (Some studies have suggested the use of these drugs may provide a degree of brain health protection.)
“But we don’t yet have consistent, high-quality studies on any of these,” Dr. Levinson says. “It’s a hard thing to study because your outcome is so far down the road. You need to follow people for many years and look to see how many develop cognitive impairment.”
Clare Kumar, a 57-year-old productivity coach and inclusivity advocate, focuses on a holistic approach to supporting brain health. Diagnosed with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (MS) in 2014, Kumar relies on medication to help control symptoms and slow the progression of her disease. But she also wants to do as much as she can to protect her cognitive ability because MS can cause neurological damage.
To that end, she follows an anti-inflammatory diet, takes vitamin supplements, exercises and tries to prioritize quality sleep.
“My quest is to figure how to stay as calm and regulated as possible and not to have spikes of stress,” she says.
Dr. Levinson says that there are lifestyle factors that can protect against dementia and cognitive decline. He identifies 14 risk factors that can be reduced with lifestyle changes such as exercising, protecting hearing and vision, managing health conditions like high blood pressure and diabetes, quitting smoking, limiting alcohol, mental stimulation and social engagement.
“These are universal recommendations and it’s never too early or too late to engage in them,” he says. “These are also helpful if you have diagnosed mild cognitive impairment.”
Taking steps to preserve brain health
Deborah Shukyn-Plageman, a 63-year-old neurodiversity coach, likes to say her body is like a junkyard dog, but her brain is like a Ferrari – a high-performance machine that requires a lot of maintenance.
When Shukyn-Plageman was diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism later in life, she became interested in finding ways to support her neurodivergent brain. In addition to support she receives from coaches and therapists, she says she noticed a difference in mental clarity when she practises meditation and takes omega-3 supplements.
“I feel a big difference when I take omega-3 versus not,” she says. “I feel smarter.”
She also believes the GLP-1 medication she is on for weight loss may have a brain-boosting side effect.
Beyond those strategies, Shukyn-Plageman says she thinks staying active professionally or academically is an important part of keeping the brain nimble for as long as possible. She gives the example of her own mother who is sharp and working part-time at the age of 83.
While Shukyn-Plageman acknowledges that people her age are typically winding their careers down, she says, “I’m still ramping up!”
Singer, Kumar and Shukyn-Plageman all say they are paying keen attention to emerging therapies and research as they take steps to preserve their brain health. But they are also doing the things that have proven to be beneficial: managing their physical health through diet and exercise, staying engaged socially and challenging themselves intellectually.
That’s an excellent place for the rest of us to start.