A groundbreaking and fascinating investigation into the transformative effects of exercise on the brain, from the bestselling author and renowned psychiatrist John J. Ratey, MD.

Did you know you can beat stress, lift your mood, fight memory loss, sharpen your intellect, and function better than ever simply by elevating your heart rate and breaking a sweat? The evidence is incontrovertible: Aerobic exercise physically remodels our brains for peak performance.
In SPARK, John J. Ratey, M.D., embarks upon a fascinating and entertaining journey through the mind-body connection, presenting startling research to prove that exercise is truly our best defense against everything from depression to ADD to addiction to aggression to menopause to Alzheimer's. Filled with amazing case studies (such as the revolutionary fitness program in Naperville, Illinois, which has put this school district of 19,000 kids first in the world of science test scores), SPARK is the first book to explore comprehensively the connection between exercise and the brain. It will change forever the way you think about your morning run---or, for that matter, simply the way you think

Presenting a revolutionary lifestyle approach for the whole family, this step-by-step guide will help you to reduce your child's stress and anxiety levels by regulating their environment, eating and nutrition, energy, and encouraging emotional self-regulation. Children with autism often experience very high stress levels in learning and social environments, which can exacerbate problem behaviors and damage their physical and emotional health. This book demonstrates that lowering stress levels through regulating a child's experiences and environments, and giving them the tools to cope when stressful situations are unavoidable, can make a huge and very positive difference to their behavior, physical health, socialisation and happiness. Brimming with exercises, recipes, tips and real-life examples, this warm and supportive guide will help you transform the life of your child with autism and benefit the whole family.