Nikolaos Scarmeas

Dr Scarmeas was born and raised in Athens Greece. After obtaining an M.D. degree from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens he moved to the US and had Neurology residency training, a 2-year clinical fellowship in Aging and Dementia and  a Masters degree in Biostatistics – Epidemiology at Columbia University Medical Center. He is currently Professor of Neurology at the Medical School of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, while he maintains an Academic affiliation with Columbia University in New York.

His research interests include cognitive reserve (i.e. how higher IQ, education, more demanding occupational attainments, or more engagement in cognitive-social-physical leisure – lifestyle activities can help elderly cope better with the damage caused to their brains by Alzheimer’s disease and aging and therefore reduce their risk for dementia and slow down their rates of cognitive and functional decline). In addition, he has extensively investigated the contribution of diet (in particular composite dietary patterns such as a Mediterranean-type diet and others) in relation to dementias, Alzheimer’s disease, cognitive and other aspects of aging.