“I don’t think I’ve ever mentioned that my father and his father both had Alzheimer’s disease—or something,” Helen began. “We called it ‘Old-Timer’s Disease.’ Maybe I should do some of those brain tests you talk about.”  Helen had been my patient for years, and she followed my website for guidance between annual appointments. She said she had become worried that her brain “isn’t what it used to be.” She continued to work as a therapist without problem, but now had to add her own personal appointments to her work schedule. “I completely forgot a lunch date—I never do that!” So we took five minutes to perform a MOCA test—an excellent and reliable cognitive test that anyone can learn to administer online. Her results were 26 out of 30—still “normal” but lower than I would have expected. Next, we arranged for some lab tests, which revealed that she carried the so-called Alzheimer’s gene ApoE4, which increases her risk. She also had borderline elevations in blood sugar and fasting insulin as well as low levels of several critical hormones and suboptimal amounts of several cr …