Daniel Amen | |
---|---|
Born | Daniel Gregory Amen July 19, 1954 Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
Education | University of Maryland, West Germany Orange Coast College Vanguard University (BA) Oral Roberts University (MD) |
Occupation(s) | Psychiatrist, researcher, author |
Website | amenclinics |
Daniel Gregory Amen (born July 19, 1954)[1] is an American celebrity doctor[1] who practices as a psychiatrist and brain disorder specialist.[2] He is the founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of the Amen Clinics.[3] He is also the founder of Change Your Brain Foundation, BrainMD, and Amen University.[4][5] Discover Magazine recognized Amen's research on PTSD and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) as one of the top 100 science stories of 2015.[6] He is a twelve-time New York Times best-selling author as of 2023.[7][8]
Amen has built a profitable business around the use of SPECT (single-photon emission computed tomography) imaging for diagnostic purposes.[9] His marketing of SPECT scans and much of what he says about the brain and health in his books, media appearances, and marketing of his clinics have been condemned by scientists and doctors as lacking scientific validity and as being unethical, especially since the way SPECT is used in his clinics exposes people to harmful radiation with no clear benefit.[10][11][12][13]
Amen has studied brain injuries affecting professional athletes[2] and has consulted on post-concussion issues for the National Football League.[14]
insider
was invoked but never defined (see the help page).Farah2009
was invoked but never defined (see the help page).burton
was invoked but never defined (see the help page).The lack of empirical validation has led to widespread condemnation of diagnostic SPECT as premature and unproven.