Brain health has been on Emma Heming Willis’ mind a lot recently. In the spring of 2022, her husband, actor Bruce Willis, was diagnosed with aphasia. The family recently announced that it has unfortunately progressed to frontotemporal dementia. Even before the diagnosis, Emma was considering brain health as it related to her “mommy brain.” It became clear that although the majority of Alzheimer’s patients are women, brain health is not discussed frequently enough with women. Emma teamed up with Helen Christoni to create Make Time which launched with four products that support brain health in women. We talked to the team behind the brand to learn all about how the products and community aim to support “brain, body and beauty—in that order.”
What inspired the creation of Make Time?
Emma: “A few years ago, I saw a doctor to try and address the root cause of my ‘mommy brain,’ and he introduced me to brain health, which I had never heard of before. When I started prioritizing my brain, my overall wellness improved. I was on a regimen of supplements which were great, but I don’t like taking pills. In conversations with my friend and now cofounder Helen, I mentioned that I wished I could drink these supplements daily and mix them in water or a smoothie, and Helen thought we can definitely do that. That’s when Make Time was born.”
Brain health is a heavy but important topic. What do you wish people would more openly discuss? How do you hope this brand and the Make Time Movement initiate that?
Emma: “No one is talking to women about their brains, and we’re really at risk. Women make up two-thirds of the world’s Alzheimer’s patients. Women over 60 are twice as likely to develop Alzheimer’s than breast cancer. Make Time is committed to starting this conversation about women “making time” for themselves and putting brain health first. Women can do this and take care of their bodies and beauty too. Our mission is to raise awareness about the importance of brain health and dementia. We are very proud to launch Make Time with a social impact program where five percent of all purchases will be donated to Hilarity for Charity, which raises awareness and cares for families impacted by Alzheimer’s by supporting caregivers, brain health research and education.”
How do you prioritize your brain, body and beauty?
Helen: “It’s all about making time. Self-care, which is so important, has been aligned with massages, getting our hair done, manicures, etc. which are all amazing. But, if you’re like us and many women we know, we just aren’t making the time to even take a walk, get to the gym, or call a friend because we’re running around trying to balance everything that life throws at us. So, how do we change that? We set our ‘make time intentions,’ and we make a habit of taking care of our brain, body and beauty in that order. We can start with things like taking our supplements, reading a book, taking a hike, giving ourselves an at-home mask. This looks different for everyone. Making time is all about you and your needs!”
What is the best tip you have for promoting brain health?
Emma: “It’s your brain, so think about it. That’s the first step. When you make time to put your brain health first, everything else will benefit. We invite you to join us @maketimewellness, where we’ll be having this conversation daily.”
Tell us a bit about each of the supplements and gummies.
Helen: “We’ve spent years developing delicious drink mixes that women can take daily in water or add to a smoothie. Our brain health and prenatal vitamin powders contain essential, effective ingredients like MCTs, omegas and curcumin to boost and support our brains while keeping our bodies healthy and beautiful. We’re committed to supporting research, education and giving back while helping women make more time for themselves. We’re launching with four products.
Make Time for Brain Health ($50) is a delicious orange, sugar-free drink powder that supports brain, body and beauty. It contains multivitamins, biotin, folate, curcumin, omegas, MCT and L-carnitine to support overall health and well-being, energy, clarity, focus and the health of hair, skin, nails and brain. Truly, it’s an all-in-one supplement that makes it easy for a woman to cover her daily nutritional needs.
Make Time for Prenatal Health ($50) is a light, easy apple drink powder that supports a woman’s wellness while preparing for pregnancy. Make Time for Prenatal contains folate, biotin, iron and essential vitamins. Make Time Multivitamin Gummy ($25) is a sugar-free gummy that supports overall wellness. The Make Time Prenatal Gummy ($25) is a sugar-free gummy that supports women’s wellness while preparing for pregnancy.”
