DOCTOR’S NOTE: WALK AND TALK FOR
ENHANCED MEMORY
When patients and I get to know each other, I often conduct
my visits while walking with the patient in New York City’s
Central Park. The movement and constantly changing
scenery helps the patient remember my advice, and helps
me remember the encounter!
Optimizing Norepinephrine
Norepinephrine can sometimes work against us. Unlike
in our distant past, stressful stimuli today don’t always
require our immediate focus and attention. And yet, the
physiological mechanisms remain to guide our attention
when a threat is perceived, real or otherwise. The media
often exploits this fact—something I know well, having
worked in TV. “If it bleeds, it leads” is typically the mandate
in television news, where the most stress-inducing stories
are teased at the top of the hour. This approach activates
networks in our brains that ensure that attention is paid to
such news as if our survival depends on it. Clearly, this is
often not the case. In fact, avoiding daily news is one
strategy to enhance your focus and cognition that will pay
dividends, as chronic norepinephrine release can harm your
cognitive function just as much as acute release can boost it.
How can we mine norepinephrine for greater
productivity? Exercise is one of the most effective ways of
boosting norepinephrine, and the “side effect” of that may