Boosting Your Brain Health

There are several ways that you can boost your brain health. If you live in a coastal state or in Colorado, you are probably already doing things that boost your brain health. The first thing is eating DHA omega 3 in fish like salmon or trout. Included in your diet should be colorful fruits and vegetables.

Secondly, get at least 30 minutes of physical activity each day. You don't have to go to the gym - walk for 30 consecutive minutes.

Thirdly, play games, learn a new language, do crossword puzzles, soduko, or have a hobby that requires you to think some.

Lastly, socialize, volunteer, participate in clubs, or attend religious services.

The more active you are the better your brain health.

Other Anti-Inflammatories for the Brain

Yesterday I was talking about the anti-inflammatory effects of turmeric. The last brain food I want to mention is another anti-inflammatory food. I should actually say foods, because it is any of the omega 3 fatty acids.

Foods in this category are things like flax seed oil, olive oil, avocados, and fish such as salmon. I have written many things about the omega 3 foods, you can see these postings under omega 3.

Bottom line is that these are also anti-inflammatory foods and they help protect the brain from stroke.

A Spice That Helps Your Brain

I have written about this spice before as an anti-inflammatory and it is part of the anti-inflammation diet. Turmeric which is often used in soups, stews and casseroles does indeed help the brain as well.

Turmeric helps keep the brain healthy by decreasing oxidation which occurs with increased inflammation. Turmeric also decreases plaque in the blood vessels.

The brain is similar to the heart in that plaque in blood vessels can become oxidized and break free. In the heart this causes a heart attack, in the brain it causes a stroke.

More Brain Health Foods

To fight inflammation which is a key problem in the brain, a good source of omega 3 is essential. Nuts are one of the best sources. Specifically almonds, pecans, and walnuts. I have written about almonds and walnuts before, but nothing about pecans.

Pecans are high in antioxidants as well as containing omega 3 fatty acids. This makes them very beneficial in terms of decreasing free radical damage, but also to decrease inflammation in the brain and decrease plaque in the blood vessels in the brain, putting you at less risk for a stroke. Stroke like a heart attack is not from the high cholesterol, but rather from the high degree of inflammation in the brain which causes a chunk of plaque to break loose and become lodged in a blood vessel.

Brain Health Food

You'll love these next foods for brain health. I've spoken about most of them before, but this is in relation to brain health and keeping your brain functioning at a high level.

These three things should be taken in moderation, so a little is good, but a lot is not. The reason they are good is because of the antioxidants that they contain. The first of these is coffee. You can see back in August on the 21st, I talked about the effects of coffee. This was mostly focused on the caffeine effects of coffee. So this is the important thing to know. Again, there is some good in a little coffee. A lot of coffee is not so good. For brain health 1-2 cups a day maximum. This does not mean 1-2 of the extra large grande sizes. This means 1-2 of the 6-8 ounce size cups.

The second food here is red wine. Red wine is loaded with antioxidants. Again, this does not mean you drink a bottle of red wine every day. If you are aware of the Mediterranean diet, this diet is to eat lots of fruits, vegetables, fish, poultry, beans, and nuts and then wash it all down with a glass of red wine. Remember though, if you are trying to lose weight, it may be better for you to not do the alcohol every day.

The last food in this high antioxidant grouping is chocolate. Now I have your attention. The best is to eat raw cacao as it is highest in antioxidants. I have a couple of entries in the blog on chocolate, just click on the word chocolate to see those.

Brain Health

I said I would talk more about foods that help your brain stay healthy and functioning at it's best. One of the things that really helps brain health is to reverse or minimize oxidation and inflammation. Oxidation occurs because of free radicals, so there is a huge need for us to decrease this potential damage to the DNA in our brain cells. The way to do this is with antioxidants.

The best antioxidants for the brain are the darker colored vegetables and fruits. Vegetables include spinach, brussels sprouts, beets, and eggplant. Fruits include berries, plums, prunes, cherries, red grapes, and oranges.

For the anti-inflammatory foods, go back and review the anti-inflammatory diet information starting on 2/13/09.

Keep Your Brain Healthy

Want to know how to keep your brain functioning at it's highest and best level? I think we all want to go here. If you have had a relative or known someone who suffered from Alzheimer's Disease, then you have probably already wondered how you can keep your brain functioning at it's best.

I believe there are 5 things you can do to keep you brain functioning at it's very best. The first thing is to eat well. I have written a few things about brain foods. If you look in the key word list on this blog under Brain Food, you will find them. One of the things that I have found to be most helpful in clearing my thinking is to actually cleanse the body which in turn cleans out the bad chemicals from the brain as well. I just recently did a series on cleansing, but if you are interested in cleansing the mind, respond to this post and I will send you more information.

Just some simple basics that clog up your brain are things like sugar and flour. Better to look to foods with natural sugars and whole grains or nuts. Researchers describe brain food diets as those that include fruits, vegetables, nuts, beans, fish and poultry.

There are some specific foods which help the brain. Berries, especially blueberries improve short term memory, help clear arteries and improve blood flow to the brain.

More on brain foods tomorrow.

Low Glycemic Index Foods

Since I was talking about sugar yesterday, it came to me today that there is a buzz out there about low glycemic index foods - what are they and why should we eat them?

First let's talk about what what the glycemic index is. The glycemic index tells us how specific carbohydrates affect our blood sugar levels. Now you may think, I'm not a diabetic so why should I worry. Trust me, there is a reason. If you have any excess weight, it may be do to the fact that you are eating high glycemic index foods. Eating low glycemic index foods can really boost your ability to lose weight, think more clearly, have more energy, and reducing hunger.

What low glycemic index foods do is trickle glucose into the system instead of giving the system a blast of sugar which taxes the pancreas, kidneys, heart, and brain. Not to mention what it does on the individual cellular level. This trickling effect also translates into you feeling full and satisfied for a longer period of time.

Tomorrow I'll get into the different foods.

Almonds - Another Brain Food?

Yes almonds are another brain food, but they are much more than that. First, let me just say that when you eat almonds, you want to be eating the raw almonds. Not dry roasted or salted, just plain raw almonds. The benefits of the this nut will astound you.

Almonds are a source of vitamin E, protein, magnesium, calcium, phosphorus, and iron. They also contain phytonutrients (sometimes referred to as phytochemicals). These phytonutrients are the antioxidants which are not vitamins, such as lycopene, anthocyanins, and flavanoids. All of these offer the body essential nutrients to fight off disease and to maintain wellness.

Let's look at some of the benefits. I think one of the most exciting things is the research that has shown the benefit to someone who wants to lose weight and also to diabetics (who often need to lose weight). You may wonder how this works. Two things have been identified. First, almonds slow the absorption of carbohydrates. This in turn results in a slower increase in blood sugar levels which helps keep insulin levels in check. Big benefit to diabetics.

The second thing identified in the research is that almonds give you a sense of fullness (satiety) which means you will actually consume less calories. They are great as a healthy snack and you can see the benefit if you are attempting to lose weight.

Walnuts are Brain Food

Walnuts are brain food. Since the brain is at least 55% fat, the brain needs fat to maintain its structure. The type of fat that it needs is omega 3 which is found in walnuts. The outer membrane of every cell is composed a fatty lipid layer. The cell must pass toxins from the inside to ouside the cell through this layer. Like wise, for the cell to be nourished, nutrients must pass from the outside into the inside of the cell through this lipid layer. We have become as a society so "fat" conscious that we believe that everything should be low fat and food that have fats in them are not good for us. This is just not true.

The Omega 3 fatty acids are essential to making the cell membranes able to get nutrients in and toxins out. Walnuts are a great source of omega 3. This is particularly important as far as our brains are concerned. Toxic build up in the cells of our brains leads to unclear thought processes and cell death. While we only use a very small portion of our brain, look at the number of olde people who have dementia. It doesn't take the whole brain or even a quarter of the brain to die for us to be in trouble. Walnuts can also serve as a brain food by supporting the cells to function normally.