Q. I am told that there are foods that are better for my brain and others that can be damaging. Can you enlighten me with both?
A. This will not come as a surprise but the foods that many of us consume regularly simply because they taste good are likely not the foods that will help improve our brain function. For example, foods that contain sugar can cause a disruption of the messaging that occurs among the neurons which may affect the brain at a molecular and chemical level.
For those of us that are not studying neuroscience and need some explanations, neurons are nerve cells that send information from the outside of our body to our brain as well as sending commands to our muscles. These messages allow us to perform functions such as breathing, talking, eating, walking and thinking to name a few.
Another term that may need some explanation is neuroplasticity. Essentially, our network of neurons within our brain has an ability to change through reorganization which is termed neuroplasticity. This plasticity allows the brain to rewire itself and make new pathways and new connections. This may result from learning a new ability, receiving information, calories from our diet, psychological stress among others. It is true that our younger brains have a higher level of plasticity than our older, more mature brains however research has shown that our adult brains can be altered as well. This is great news for our aging brains as we struggle with learning new tasks, memory loss and recovering from brain damage.
Getting back to our diet and our temptations of sugar, and while we are at it, let us add saturated fat to this scenario. These food choices can cause an inflammation of the tissues involved in our nervous system and decrease our plasticity of our brain. A constant inflammatory response due to an overconsumption of these foods may ultimately result in neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s, multiple sclerosis among others. It is unfortunate that the high sugar and high fat foods that many of us gravitate towards, especially in search of comfort foods, are the ones that can cause so much damage to our body.
If sugar and saturated fats are food choices to avoid, what should we be looking to incorporate into our diet? According to many experts studying the best food choices for our brain, they should include;
Whole foods
Plenty of fruits, vegetables and legumes
Whole grains
Healthy fats, from nuts and seeds
Protein from plant sources and fish
Pro and prebiotics
As stated at the beginning of this column, none of this should come as a surprise. Seriously, can you think of any positive benefit to adopting a high sugar/ high saturated fat diet other than instant gratification? Unfortunately, the gratification is often short lived which entices us to seek more to satisfy the craving.
On the other hand, nearly every health condition imaginable (diabetes, heart disease, mental health, skin …) can benefit from healthier lifestyle choices like the ones mentioned above. We have discussed these lifestyle choices in several earlier Ask the Pharmacist columns but it bears revisiting as many of us could use a gentle reminder. Before we delve further into these food choices, it is important to remember that there isn’t one magic potion or one superior brain food that will prevent us from a declining brain function. So how do we incorporate the above suggestions into our lifestyle?
Choosing leafy greens (kale, spinach, broccoli) that have plenty of vitamin K, lutein, folate and beta carotene have been shown to help slow cognitive deterioration. Consider adding these greens into your daily routine.
Adding a fatty fish at least twice weekly will provide the body with omega-3 fatty acids and healthy unsaturated fats which have been shown to be beneficial by reducing the damaging protein beta-amyloid. The best fish choices are ones that are low in mercury such as salmon, cod or canned light tuna. Since most of us do not eat fish daily, you may consider a good quality omega-3 supplement as well and/or include some non-fish foods such as flaxseeds, avocados and walnuts.
Berries are full of flavonoids which have been linked to improve our memory. Incorporating just two or more servings of blueberries and strawberries weekly can delay a decline in your memory by 2.5 years.
Many people drink coffee or tea for a quick “pick-me-up” but studies have shown caffeine can offer much more. Those with a higher caffeine intake scored higher on mental function tests and might also help with retaining new memories.
Nuts are a great source of both protein and healthy fats and if you like walnuts, they have been shown to improve cognitive test scores. Walnuts are high in alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) which is a type of omega-3 fatty acid. This ALA not only great for our brain but also for our blood pressure.
In summary, rather than opt for the high sugar, high carbohydrate, high saturated fats options for your meal planning consider treating your brain to a delicious salad each and every day. To incorporate all the above brain enriching foods, be sure your salad is chalk full of kale, spinach and other leafy greens as your base with salmon or canned tuna included for your protein, a large serving of berries and top it off with mixed nuts (be sure your mixed nuts include walnuts!). Your brain will thank you!
For more information on this or any other health topic, contact your pharmacist.
