50+ Boost Your Brain Camp Graduates Second Class

Some 75 older adults did a final round of stretching exercises before participating in graduation ceremonies for the 50+ Boost Your Brain Camp in Eatonville.

This was the second class to graduate from the Brain Camp sponsored by Orlando Health, Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church and the Town of Eatonville thanks to a grant from the Winter Park Health Foundation as part of the Boost Your Brain initiative.

Ira Goodman, M.D., a neurologist for Orlando Health’s Memory Disorders Clinic, encouraged the crowd to continue working on the five pillars of brain health; physical activity, mental stimulation, socialization, good nutrition and spirituality, as a means to reduce the risk of cognitive decline.  “What you’ve been doing for the past eight weeks works far better than any pill,” he added.

In addition to receiving graduation certificates, attendees enjoyed a healthy lunch, and went home with an exercise resistance band (to promote further physical activity) plus a copy of the book “Save Your Brain, 5 Things You Must Do to Keep Your Mind Young and Sharp,” written by Paul Nussbaum, Ph.D.

The camp drew older adults living in Eatonville, Maitland and Winter Park, as well as several people from Kissimmee who were interested in replicating the program in Osceola County.

Grant partners Orlando Health, Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church and the Town of Eatonville are coaching this group, as well as other interested parties from Palatka and elsewhere in the state, so that they can provide similar programming in their communities.