Sept 18 - How to have a healthy braiN...It's more important than ever!

I'm in Albania this week and loving the brain healthy foods!

Sept 18 - How to have a healthy brain…it's more important than ever!

Brain health has never been talked about more until now. This is such a big topic and without sounding too “medical” because if this is something you are interested in there are many books out there on the subject that get really technical. Dr. Amen being one of my favorites to follow!

For the purposes of this blog let’s simplify things and get right to the good stuff, what you can do NOW to make sure you have a healthy brain for your entire life. Memory loss is usually the first sign but the damage has been done in the brain years before so it’s time to start TODAY!

So what can you do NOW to protect your brain forever?

Buy Omega 2400

OMEGA 3 Supplementation/Food
This is by far the easiest way to be consistent. Our brains are made up of 70% fat so we need the right kind of fat for proper brain function. Omega 3 fatty acids are the essential building blocks for our brain that we need for learning and memory.

I believe in food first but the amount our brains need is hard to get from food but absolutely eat avocados, eat salmon and fatty fish every single day but also take an omega supplement every evening!

In my practice I found what I believe is the best supplement and I will link above because this level of supplement is "generally" only found in a clinic, not a health food store but you can purchase it from my clinic's online store. For every 1.25tsp this supplement delivers 4600mg of EPA/DHA which if you look at labels in your local health food store you will notice that maybe those will have 1200mg if at best.

While DHA is only part of the process of keeping your brain healthy, in my opinion it's an easy place to start.

Salmon I cooked in France Aug 2022
Doesn't this look delicious?
It's an amazing source of Omega, have it 3x a week!

B12/B6/Folate Supplementation/Food
B12 is needed for cognitive development, this is why I worry about my Vegan and Vegetarian clients. You MUST take a supplement or eat animal foods like liver or take liver supplements but you must take something.

B vitamin “therapy” works best with higher levels of omega 3 fatty acids so make sure you take these supplements with Omega or eat foods high in B vitamins with healthy fat like olive oil or avocados.

Some good choices are animal organs such as liver and kidneys, clams, sardines, beef, tuna but also Nutritional Yeast is amazing sprinkled on your food to give you a boost of Vitamin B12. Even with eating the proper foods a B12/B6/Folate combination is something I believe in which you can find in any health food store.

Beef from the Inn at Bay Fortune in PEI, Canada
This was the best beef I've ever had so I wanted to share it!
I believe slow cooking beef is the way to go!

YOU JUST HAVE TO MOVE...SERIOUSLY YOU HAVE TO
Our brains need oxygen and exercising has you taking in more oxygen. Plus you need to move to keep your weight in check, to keep diabetes from creeping in and it’s just something you need to do to be healthy.

While cardio or burst training that gets your heart rate up is amazing and exercise that involves concentration such as balance, coordination things that challenge your balance (yoga and dance) are SO good for your brain.

My daughter Megan, her roommate Hannah and me doing yoga outside in the
beautiful Lunessence Winery in Summerland, BC, Canada but it's all about balance right?

CHALLENGE YOUR BRAIN
Think of your brain as a muscle, if you don’t use it you will lose it. Your brain is actually an organ that plays a huge role in controlling your muscles so it's important to keep it healthy! Learn a language, keep your social circles full and happy, and provide new stimuli to your mind constantly!

Just think about it, as we are young and growing we learn a lot. By the time we are in our 40's and 50’s sometimes we just go through life and not really learn anything new so our brains are not getting challenged. You need to do something stimulating enough that actually makes you frustrated…like learning a new language or building something and you have to keep things new because once you learn it it’s not new and stimulating anymore.

Bottom line is you can do nothing, you can do a little or you can really incorporate these SUPER easy suggestions (like the food above is super easy to eat) so that in 10-20yrs you won't have your brain look like the one on the right of Dr.Amen's Brain SPECT scans.

Alzheimer's is not an "old" person's disease anymore. It is affecting adults younger and younger and you don't want to be one of the unfortunate statistics so just make a plan and be consistent!

I LOVE Dr. Amen and I watch his YouTube videos religiously on brain health and if you want more "clinical" information than please visit his website and follow his social media and learn more about keeping your brain healthy!

Amen Clinics Website

Thank you for following my journey to writing a book series!
Stay balanced,
LeeAnna.B.Nutritionist