Rethinking Cognitive Decline: Stimulus, Exercise, and the Aging Brain | Dr. Tommy Wood, MD, PhD | The Metabolic Link Ep. 90
The Metabolic Link
SPECT and Clinical Imaging Limits
Tommy explains SPECT utility and contrasts MRI volumetrics and PET as stronger clinical predictors of decline.
Register for a live Q&A with Dr. Tommy Wood on Wednesday, March 25th.
Decreased glucose uptake in the brain is often considered a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease. But Dr. Tommy Wood asks whether part of that metabolic signature may reflect how little cognitive demand we place on the brain.
He sits down with Dr. Dominic D'Agostino for a nuanced conversation on metabolic health and cognitive function.. Dr. Wood is a neuroscientist, neonatal brain injury researcher, and author of The Stimulated Mind.
This episode follows the metabolic thread through every stage of brain health. Pre-diabetes and type 2 diabetes as predictors of cognitive decline. Neurovascular coupling as the reason heart disease risk factors double as brain disease risk factors. Lactate crossing the blood-brain barrier to drive BDNF production where it actually matters. Creatine as a brain energy distributor that most people still only associate with muscle. Dr. Wood lays out his Three S Model — Stimulus, Supply, Support — and makes the case that cognitive demand drives glucose uptake into the brain the same way muscular contraction drives it into skeletal muscle.
Questions Answered in This Episode:
- Does the brain respond to energy demand the same way skeletal muscle does?
- What role does creatine play in brain energy distribution, and what do the clinical trials show?
- Can heavy resistance training produce the same brain-relevant lactate response as HIIT?
- How should exercise be dosed after a concussion or traumatic brain injury?
- Is cognitive decline in your 50s, 60s, and 70s actually inevitable, or is that a statistical artifact?
- Why are pre-diabetes and metabolic syndrome among the strongest predictors of dementia?
The mechanistic throughline here is demand-driven metabolism. Dr. Wood makes the case that the same principles governing glucose uptake in skeletal muscle apply to the brain — and the conversation gets into what that means for how we interpret FDG-PET data, design lifestyle interventions, and think about neurodegeneration itself.
Find more at DrTommyWood.com
Special thanks to the sponsors of this episode:
✅ Fatty15 – Get 15% off a 90-day Starter Kit with code METABOLICLINK here
✅ Troscriptions – Get 10% off your first order with code METABOLICLINK here
✅ Toups and Co – Get 15% off your first order with code METABOLIC here
✅ ZocDoc - Find and instantly book a top-rated doctor here
In every episode of The Metabolic Link, we'll uncover the very latest research on metabolic health and therapy. If you like this episode, please share it, subscribe, follow, and leave us a comment or review on whichever platform you use to tune in!
You can find us on all your major podcast players here and full episodes are also up on our Metabolic Health Summit YouTube channel!
Find us on social:
Please keep in mind: The Metabolic Link does not provide medical or health advice, but rather general information that does not serve as a substitute for a licensed healthcare professional. Never delay in seeking medical advice from an appropriately licensed medical provider for any health condition that you may have.
The AI-powered Podcast Player
