How To Build A Better BRAIN (+ Ketamine, Nicotine, Alcohol & More!) With Dr. Tommy Wood.

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Apr 16, 2026

Dr. Tommy Wood, neuroscientist and author of The Stimulated Mind, studies how environment, exercise, nutrition, and stimulation shape cognitive health across life. He explores why modern life both overstimulates and understimulates the brain. Topics include exercise types and lactate for brain signaling, AI as tool versus crutch, diet and supplement strategies, and honest takes on alcohol, nicotine, ketamine, and ketone supplements.

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INSIGHT

Brain Function Follows Daily Use

How we use our brains is the primary determinant of how they function rather than fixed biology.
Modern life simultaneously overstimulates via tech and understimulates for complex skill development, creating mismatched neural inputs.

ADVICE

Provide Rich Learning And Nutrition For Babies

Give developing brains abundant learning opportunities like reading, sports, risky play, languages, and music.
Pair that with nutritious diets (B vitamins, omega‑3s, iron), social contact, and sleep‑supportive light exposure.

INSIGHT

Reductionism Misses The Brain's System Properties

Reductionism (breaking the brain into parts) misses system-level properties where the whole exceeds sum of parts.
Counting proteins or cells under a microscope cannot capture lived skills, personality, or network dynamics.

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Full Show Notes: bengreenfieldlife.com/stimulatedmind

In this episode with Dr. Tommy Wood, you'll explore what actually determines how well your brain functions across your entire lifespan, from the inputs that drive cognitive development in infancy all the way through the habits, environments, and daily choices that either accelerate or protect against decline in adulthood and old age, all grounded in the research behind his new book, The Stimulated Mind: Future-Proof Your Brain from Dementia and Stay Sharp at Any Age.

You'll discover why the modern world leaves you simultaneously overstimulated by technology and understimulated in the ways that actually build cognitive capacity, why lactate from intense exercise may be one of the most underrated brain health tools you have, and which types of exercise target different parts of the brain. Dr. Wood also gets personal on his own diet and supplement stack, breaks down what AI is actually doing to your cognitive capacity, and gives his honest take on alcohol, nicotine, ketamine, and exogenous ketones.

You can purchase his new book, The Stimulated Mind, here.

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