Episode 583: Dr. David Perlmutter: Brain Health Expert: The Daily Habits That Protect Your Brain as You Age

**Dr. David Perlmutter** (0:01)
Hi, guys, it's Tony Robbins. You're listening to Habits and Hustle. Crush it.

**Jen Cohen** (0:06)
Welcome to Habits and Hustle, where I sit down with the world's biggest thinkers, entrepreneurs, top experts to uncover the habits, strategies, and mindset shifts that actually move the needle in your health, happiness, and success. And today, I'm sitting down with Dr. David Perlmutter, a board certified neurologist, bestselling author, and leading voice in Brain Health and Neurodegenerative Disease. We discuss why protecting your brain starts decades before symptoms appear, how inflammation and metabolic health impact brain function, and what you can do now to reduce your risk of cognitive decline. We also cover loneliness, sleep, strength training, oral health, fasting, and insulin. Oh my God, the list goes on. This conversation is packed with practical ways to take more ownership of your brain health instead of waiting until something goes wrong. David breaks down that everyday habits, health markers and lifestyle choices that actually influence how your brain ages, plus some of the emerging science that can completely change the way we think about Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative diseases. So now, let's dive in.
Before we get into today's episode, I have a quick question. Do you ever hit 3 p.m. and feel like your brain's just done? That afternoon crash used to be really real for me. My focus would completely disappear. Everything felt harder and I'd wonder how I was supposed to get through the rest of the day. I tried pretty much everything for energy and focus, and I'm very skeptical of just taking supplements that promise too much. But MagicMind is one of the very few things I genuinely notice when I don't take it. It's a two-ounce shot that I take in the morning, and I literally feel sharper, more focused, and much less likely to hit that afternoon wall, which matters when I'm juggling podcasts, the training, the kids, and everything else. It contains Lion's Mane, Ashwagandha, Tumorik, Matcha, and it's non-encapsulated to improve absorption. Every batch is also third-party tested for purity and potency, and maybe my favorite part is it literally just takes two seconds. I'm not doing like a 15-step morning wellness routine because I don't have the time or the patience. You can get 50% off your first order at magicmind.com plus a 100-day money-back guarantee. You can also use their store locator to find MagicMind near you. I promise you, you will not be disappointed. Like I said, I was skeptical when I started taking it, and now I really do notice when I skip it. And to me, that says everything. So, go to magicmind.com today and get 50% off your first order.
You guys, we have a special podcast today. You know, I'm on this really big bandwagon of doing everything for our brain health, cognitive health, all the things. And we have a doctor named Dr. David Perlmutter, who I still can't believe I've never met before. This is absurd considering I've been doing this for many years. You've been doing this for even more years. And we just never, our paths never crossed.

**Dr. David Perlmutter** (3:27)
Well, the circle is complete now, isn't it?

**Jen Cohen** (3:29)
Yes, it totally is. The loop is now finally closed. Doctor, what do you want me to call you? David, Dr. Perlmutter?

**Dr. David Perlmutter** (3:35)
David works?

**Jen Cohen** (3:36)
David or Dr. Perlmutter?

**Dr. David Perlmutter** (3:37)
I, you know, you say Dr. Perlmutter, I keep looking for my dad.

**Jen Cohen** (3:41)
Okay, so I'll call you David, but yes. But I know, right, you still probably still look for your dad. I know, I don't like when my kids' friends call me Miss blah, blah, blah. I feel like a very old person. I don't like it. I like them to call me Jennifer. So David or Dr. Perlmutter has written his 16th book, and this one is called Brain Defenders. You may have read his book Grain Brain.
There's so many books, but we're going to talk all about the new book, and like I said, it's called Brain Defenders. I can never seem to see that. Harness the power of your immune cells to protect your brain for life. So thank you for being here.

**Dr. David Perlmutter** (4:21)
Well, thank you for having me.
The subtitle really tells it all. It tells the story of the power of the brain's unique immune cells called microglial cells to really determine your brain's destiny, whether you're going to be along for the ride with your brain or the brain is not going to be there to participate in the rest of your life. So we fear things like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's and all of these issues that we run the risk of, but it turns out that we absolutely have a big say in determining whether that's in our future or not, and it all has to do with what's going on with the brain's immune cells over which you have control. That's what we'll talk about today.