A new book explains how to help keep your brain in fighting shape throughout your life.

For many people, middle age arrives with some minor mental slip-ups. These “senior moments” are universal experiences that come with aging—and typically harmless. The Centers for Disease Control says one in nine adults ages 45 or older report at least occasional confusion or memory loss.

But how do you know when these occurrences are normal? And how can you protect against more serious cognitive issues as you get older?

“The aging process looks different for different people. But generally, you can think of your brain like a house. If you take care of it, you can maintain a house for decades,” says Vonetta Dotson, associate professor of psychology and gerontology at Georgia State University, and author of a new book Keep Your Wits About You: The Science of Brain Maintenance as You Age (APA, 2022). “But if you neglect it, you’re more likely to have problems over time.”

Dotson says scientific advances like functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) are allowing researchers to gain new knowledge of the most complex organ in the human body—and identify ways to protect it.

Here, she discusses some of the latest research in this growing field: