As we discussed earlier, aging involves fairly common changes in the way our brain works. There is a chemical in the brain called acetylcholine that slowly decreases as we age. Its production peaks in our thirties to early forties and then slowly declines. In some of us, it will decline fairly rapidly with symptoms like memory lapses. The general ability to interiact with others decreases. Along with this is a steady decline in your libido.
Diet is very important in maintaining good cognitive function. This begins with foods that are high in the B-complex. These include fish, eggs, nuts and green vegetables. You want to emphasize foods that act as antioxidants and avoid foods that cause oxidative stress. Foods, in addition to the B-complex foods, that you should include in your diet are fruits and colorful vegetables like red peppers, tomatoes, carrots, as well as garlic. These foods supply antioxidant factors like beta-carotene, ascorbic acid and selenium. It's sometimes easier to describe what not to eat. If you walk into the regular supermarket, you should cruise the outside of it. Select from the vegetables, fruits, fresh meats and fish, and avoid the aisles where all the processed foods are stored. If you read the labels, you will find the word “partially hydrogenated” listed on almost all of these products, or you will find a list of preservatives and artificial colorings and flavorings. These partially hydrogenated fats breakdown inside us into pro-aging free radicals. Hopefully, your diet contains sufficient quantities of antioxidants to soak up these free radicals before they cause permanent changes that speed your aging.
To sum up the diet you should be eating:
1. Eat foods with lots of color. The more color on your plate, the more antioxidants you have in your diet.
2. Don’t eat anything that has not been made from scratch. For example, make your own spaghetti sauce instead of a mass produced sauce with a list of ingredients that you cannot pronounce.
3. If you cannot pronounce it and it is on the label of a prepared food, don’t eat it.
4. If you have to fry something, use olive or peanut oil.
There are specific nutrients that you can use as supplements which may help increase your memory. These center around the raw ingredients that are needed to create the neurotransmitters (chemicals produced in the brain). Choline is a fine example of this. Choline is found in egg yolks and soy. Neither of these foods is found at high levels in most Americans diets. Without sufficient raw ingredients like choline, the brain cannot make enough acetylcholine, and your memory starts to suffer. Most of the rest of Volume 6, Issue 1 May 2003 the neurotransmitters are derived from amino acids, the small subunits of every protein. Consequently, a good diet must have sufficient intake of protein to supply the amino acids to make the neurotransmitters.
Coffee in excess causes a long list of problems, partially due to the detoxification that must take place in the liver. While a little coffee can increase brain function, excess coffee causes conditions from ulcers to breast cysts. However, drinking tea can increase antioxidant activity and promote health.
There are two sides to the brain. Each of us has two brains. One, the left, is logical and systematic. It is balancing the checkbook, spelling, and organized thought. The other brain, the right, is creative and musical. We are a bit of each. Some of us are predominately one side or the other, but we should be able to do activities that use both sides. A computer programmer is an example of someone who heavily uses the left side of the brain. An artist who creates a drawing or writes music is an example of a dominate right-brain individual. While there are extreme examples of these individuals (perhaps the most famous example being the artist Vincent Van Gogh who cut off his ear to send as a sign of his love), most of us are balanced users, utilizing each side when needed.
If we don't use our muscles, they shrink and become weak. If we don't exercise our heart and lungs, they will fail us if we push them too hard. Likewise, our brain will lose its ability to process information and make decisions if we fail to exercise it. We should exercise our minds just as we do our muscles. This requires doing activities that stress each side of the brain. For example, reading and discussing an article stresses the left-brain to work. Games, especially those that require strategy, stress the right-brain. Such games include chess and bridge. A game like poker is strictly a left-brain activity. In general, thinking outside the box and being creative is a right brain activity. Processing data in a systematic way is a left-brain activity, like balancing your checkbook. Watching television stimulates neither side of the brain.
There are some very simple tests that can be done to tell if your brain is balanced and able to function properly. If you have questions about general diet considerations, or feel that you need extra help to improve your brain function, ask us. We will determine whether you are a candidate for dietary supplementation and/or specific brain exercises to stress and improve your cognitive skills.
back to list