Welcome to The Weekly Pounce where I share research and actionable tips to help you take one step this week—no matter how big or small—toward five essential actions for achieving vibrant longevity and a healthy, pro-aging attitude.

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One health fact stands out prominently across many fields of study: a lack of B vitamins may increase your risk of dementia. In other words, there is an international consensus that we should monitor our homocysteine levels and actively keep them low through our diet or supplements. High homocysteine levels = low B-vitamin intake.

I’m sure you don’t want to just randomly start taking a B-vitamin. (Why? Your levels may already be optimal.) I encourage you this week to pounce on a home-test, or ask your doctor to add homocysteine testing to your yearly blood work. (You are getting yearly blood work, aren’t you?) 

But don’t forget, you can also add foods rich in B-12 to your diet. Check out this helpful list from Harvard Health.

I’m personally not so keen on clams, but I wouldn’t mind eating more salmon, tuna, and plain Greek yogurt. 

Researchers at Rush University Medical Center recently published a paper called “Being Social May Delay Dementia Onset by Five Years.” Five extra years added to our healthspan sounds great, doesn’t it? Read more ➜ 

Think back to this past week. Did you connect with a friend outside of your house? Did you even leave your house?!

Sit down right now with your calendar and make a date with a friend. See if you can tie it in with another essential action. Could you go to a live show? Take a class together? Explore a new restaurant? Go for a walk? Even a phone call would be better than no connection at all.

It takes some planning to stay connected, but I know you can do it! One introvert shares how he made more friends as an adult in this blog post.

Researchers from the University of South Carolina in my hometown of Columbia recently made the news. 

In a nutshell, they identified 14 foods that are either highly beneficial or pretty horrible for the hidden powers of our gut health. Why is this so important? Learn more here.

If you have time this week to take a deep-dive into their research, read their paper. 

The Gamecocks cited 150 (!) links to studies that show how the gut-biome powers up our health. Check out my full-length article on the most beneficial and the worst foods for gut health in the Pounce Pot Post. 

Try adding just one of the most beneficial foods (and removing one of the worst) to your meals this week. I bet there’s something on the list that you already enjoy!

Coffee, anyone?

This week, let’s compare the foods suggested for more B-vitamin intake with the suggested list of foods that are optimal for harnessing the hidden powers of our microscopic gut biome. 

A quick mental Venn diagram of the two lists suggests that we can enjoy the benefits of both lists by adding…drumroll, please…swiss cheese and natural Greek yogurt to our diets. 

Don’t be tricked into thinking that most yogurt in the U.S. is healthy; isn’t not. Most are over-filled with sugar, like these 17 brands with more sugar each than a jelly donut. Ick. 

I like the Chobani 20g Protein Sugar-Free and the Oikos Pro with 25g of protein. I’m sure there are cleaner brands out there, but these are the two that I can find easily in my town. Do what you can with what you’ve got.

May is the perfect month to stay active by gardening. Besides, as the Mayo clinic and the BBC share with us, gardening has benefits that reach well-beyond our physical fitness. Dig in here 🌻 and also here. 🌼