BEHAVIOURAL BYTES BLOG

Brain Matters Portal Launches!

Brain Health, made simple

April 2025

How’s your brain doing?

If we stopped South Africans on the street and asked how their brains were doing, what do you think they’d say?

We tend to know the answers when it comes to the rest of our bodies.

How’s your back? Agony. Office chair ergonomics are a scam.
How’s your stomach? Eish, that second kota was a mistake.
How’s your skin? Feeling dry. I slapped on some Vaseline.

We’re tuned into our aches, cramps and breakouts, yet when it comes to the brain – the organ running the whole show – crickets.

That’s not just strange. It’s risky. All across southern Africa, awareness about brain health – known as brain health literacy – isn’t where it should be. Mental struggles get brushed off, warning signs go unnoticed, and too many people start caring about their brains only when something goes really wrong.

This is why BCA created Brain Matters (a first for South Africa) – a digital space to make brain health as natural to talk about as your coffee cravings or dodging the gym. There’s science, yes, but minus the jargon. There’s advice, minus the condescension. There’s information that actually gets at what it’s like to navigate brain health in Africa, where access to help isn’t always a given, and where stigma still stops too many people from speaking up.

But we don’t want Brain Matters to be just a website. We want it to be a conversation starter. A wake-up call. A place for more awareness, more understanding, and more people prioritising their brain health before a crisis hits.

Over the next few weeks, we're excited to spark conversations both online and on the ground, bringing brain health into your feed, your group chats … and even the streets. Stay tuned! In the meantime, we’d love for you to explore Brain Matters and help spread the word…

‍