The sooner food and lifestyle choices are made to protect brain health, the better; especially considering degeneration can begin years, even decades, before symptoms. It is complicated to care for an elder and requires emotional and nutritional support for both the patient and the caregivers.This book focuses on this complexity, offering healthful advice as well as a compelling story. In telling my family story about Alzheimer's disease, I also discovered my mother's rich narrative. Her spoiled childhood in rural Mississippi during the Depression, the effects of World War II on her and her family, and her love for my father became larger as her short-term memory failed.

This hybrid book offers a confluence of personal events and relevant information about my Mother's descent into dementia. Think of the chapters as a rhythm, alternating science and memoir. Perhaps our experiences juxtoposed beside scientific knowledge will lend needed support to anyone facing these dilemmas.

Another aspiration in writing this book is to protect our children from these hardships by preparing ourselves to grow older. Soon my generation will be the elders, faced with our own health issues and imminent deaths. My prayers requested a mystical "pound of prevention" in these pages: because this book is about our future, as well as about the present predicaments with our elders. Our consciousness and preparation can serve those who will be responsible for us during those last years.