Interview : “45%-65% Of Brain Diseases Can Be Prevented”

The international community this commemorated World Brain Health Day. How can we take care of the brain?
World Brain Day is a day set aside by the World Federation of Neurology to raise awareness on the importance of the brain and the place of our brains in society. Cameroon has been celebrating World Brain Day since its inception and has enlarged the concept to the Brain Week in Cameroon and Africa, which has been celebrated since 2019 under the high patronage of the Prime Minister, Head of Government. 
Our brains are our future so we need to take good care of them and we are glad to inform the public that our Government and all other stakeholders have taken this message very seriously, and I can come back to this later. The human brain is the most amazing and complex organ in the human body. I usually say, “If the brain does not work, the rest does not matter.” And we have 5 ways of maintaining our brains healthy and functional so that we can guarantee our socio-economic development and wellbeing: “Use it or lose it”. 
The more we engage in intellectual activity such as reading, learning a new thing, involving in creativity sessions, the more cognitive reserve we develop and the better our brains. Physical activity improves brain structure and function so let’s be physically active. Good nutrition is good for our brains, such as balanced diets, including fruits and vegetables. Good quality sleep in good quantity restores and maintains optimal brain structure and function. Healthy and trustworthy relationships and avoiding risky behaviour is good for our brains and makes them last longer and perform better.

What diseases generally attack the brain?
There are many types of diseases that attack the brain, ranging from congenital malformations (diseases children are born with), to acquired diseases throughout life. These can be infections, abnormal growths (tumours), attacks such as stroke (brain attack) or epilepsy or diseases of abnormal aging such as dementia (memory disorders), Parkinson’s disease, etc. 
One in three of us will get dementia or stroke during our life time. This can occur at any age-any time-anywhere but the good news is: Both these disorders are preventable- treatable for the most part. In fact, 45% to 65% of brain diseases can be prevented and the time to act is now!

This year's international theme is 'brain health at all ages." Are there different approaches to brain care for different ages?
As mentioned earlier, some brain diseases are more frequent in children (malformations, some types of epilepsies) while other brain diseases are more frequent in young adults such as mental disorders. Finally, some brain diseases such as dementia and Parkinson’s disease tend to occur more in the elderly and the causes and precipitating factors are many and vary with age and sometimes even with sex so preventive measures and strategies must take this into consideration. 
In fact, the concept of brain health goes beyond disease. The World Health Organisation defines brain health as “the state of brain functioning across cognitive, sensory, social-emotional, behavioural, and motor domains, enabling individuals to realize their full potential throughout life, regardless of the presence or absence of disorders.” 
This definition emphasizes the importance of maintaining optimal brain function across various domains to support overall well-being and the ability to achieve one's potential, and this at all stages of life. In BRAIN, we have developed research programmes to promote brain health as we say, “from the womb to the tomb”.

In Cameroon, the day also marks the launch of Brain Week. What activities are planned?
The Brain Week in Cameroon and Africa (BWCA) is a concept we developed at BRAIN since 2019 and involves: Bringing BRAIN health closer to the populatio...