According to Masud Husain, professor of neurology and cognitive neuroscience at the University of Oxford and author of Our Brains, Our Selves, “people don’t realise that high blood pressure makes a big difference to their brain health”. Get regular health checks to keep tabs on your vascular health – blood pressure, BMI, blood sugar and cholesterol – or at the very least employ a home-use blood-pressure monitor to ensure that blood pressure is consistently below 135/85 (the British Heart Foundation recommends devices by Omron). And as a baseline, aim for around two and a half hours of moderate-intensity activity – such as running, cycling or brisk walking – each week.