We see it often here at SFCJL: a family member or friend brings in a special meal or treat to share with their elder living on campus, eliciting joy, appreciation and a flood of wonderful memories and stories.
Can something as commonplace as dinner bring back memories for people experiencing cognitive decline? Researcher, actor and playwright Jake Broder believes so and is studying the connection between food and memory, and how these recollections can create delight and novelty for older adults with memory impairment. As the first event in our 2024-25 Reimagining How We Age speaker series, Jake will join The J. Jewish News of Northern California food writer Alix Wall in conversation on Wednesday, September 25, at 6 pm, on SFCJL’s campus.
In this talk, you’ll hear more from Jake about his groundbreaking work, which was featured today in The J Weekly and last fall in The New Yorker. “Broder, a fellow at the University of California, San Francisco, campus of the Global Brain Health Institute, would interview four people with mild to moderate cognitive impairment, drawing out the story of a food that they remembered fondly.”
He would then help them re-create the dishes. Finally, participants would recount their tales to an audience of friends and staff members as they all shared the food. The larger goal of the Dinner Party, as Broder calls the event, was to explore the power of food in triggering memories, improving quality of life, and enhancing neuroplasticity—things that are difficult to achieve with medicines.”
Join us for this fascinating look at new research exploring the connection between food and memory at the Barbo and Bernard Osher Performance Center at the San Francisco Campus for Jewish Living, 302 Silver Avenue, San Francisco.
This free event is co-sponsored by The J. Jewish News of Northern California and the Global Brain Health Institute.