In the health and fitness sector we tend to forget (no pun intended) about the importance of brain health. As Mark Twain pointed out “The only two certainties in life are death and taxes” maybe it’s time to start keeping brain health at the forefront.
An estimated 5.8 million Americans of all ages are living with Alzheimer’s dementia in 2019. With an ever-increasing and aging population that number will certainly grow exponentially. Recent research has improved and broadened its’ scope to encompass certain aspects, like nutrition, physical exercise and maintaining strong relationships that seem to improve and possibly even prevent cognitive decline.
Nutrition and the Brain
A highly recommended video is Our Descent into Madness: Modern Diets and the Global Mental Health Crisis.’ Presented by Dr. Georgie Ede, was the first and only psychiatrist at Harvard University to offer nutrition consultation as an alternative to medication management to students, faculty and staff. Dr. Ede is currently a psychiatrist at Smith College. She talks about the importance of having the right foods in our diet and maintaining low blood sugar levels.
Our modern diets now encompass an over-abundance of carbohydrates and sugar, both of which negatively impact blood glucose and insulin, thus potentially damaging brains as well as bodies. In John Yudkin’s seminal work “Pure, White and Deadly” he warned of the dangers of sugar in the early seventies. However, here in the US we weren’t listening because Ancel Keys had pushed his saturated fat theory to the front page.
“That sugar might affect growth, maturation, and longevity is only astonishing if one continues to believe that all dietary carbohydrates have the same metabolic effect once they have been digested and absorbed. It not only ceases to be astonishing but becomes highly plausible when one remembers that sugar can induce sizable alterations in the level of potent hormones.”
John Yudkin, Pure, White and Deadly, p.166
In Amy Berger’s fabulous book, The Alzheimer’s Antidote which is as the cover states, a comprehensive metabolic and lifestyle approach to the disease. She offers a nutritional method to healing our brains with a low carbohydrate and high fat diet, along with additional lifestyle components such as, adequate sleep, less stress and regular physical exercise.
“Fat is the most important ammunition in the nutritional arsenal against Alzheimer’s disease and cognitive impairment. Fat is the key nutrient on this diet, and it will make up the largest source of calories. You read that correctly: Fat is a nutrient, and a very important one at that. The dietary strategy presented in this book is one that is powered by fat.”
Amy Berger, The Alzheimer’s Antidote, p.136
The examples of authors, researchers and nutrition leaders offer simply a chance to think different. The age-old Albert Einstein saying, “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again but expecting different results.”
Time to think different.
What can we do to support better brain health?
The CDC offers 8 things you can do. I’ve listed them below in reverse order with some additional food for thought in italics.
- Drink in Moderation- ✅
- Manage Blood Sugar-That means avoid foods that encourage spikes in insulin and blood glucose: carbohydrates and sugar
- Stay Engaged-Very challenging with Covid, start now to rebuild your connections
- Get Enough Sleep-Can’t say this enough, getting outdoors and sunshine will help
- Maintain a Healthy Weight-More important is excess waist circumference
- Manage Cholesterol-Triglycerides and the ratio of Trig/HDL might be a better predictor of insulin issues
- Manage High Blood Pressure-Understand nutrition as well as stress play a huge part in managing blood pressure
- Quit Smoking- ✅
Final note
While we all know that exercise helps our mental state, powering ourselves with nutrition that provides additional positive support is a “no-brainer.”
Imagine food for performance, not for reward or punishment, your brain will thank you.
