Want to improve your brain health?
Info provided came from a presentation by Dr. Mark Hymen called “Healing the broken brain”
Let’s start by building some context. The body is a web of integrated systems, one system affects another system. Integrative medicine is about a fundamentally different way of thinking about health, wellness and dis-ease. It is about how our genes interact with the environment and our lifestyles that can impact our immune system, our detox system, our hormone system, our gut, our brain, etc.
Did you know that there are 37 billion billion (yes that many) chemical interactions going on in the body at any given time? 20 lab tests (blood tests) are not going to be fully representative of what is going on in the body. We don’t have to test for the 37 billion reactions but what we do need to look at is what is creating balance or imbalance in the body, which may require more blood work than usual. Speak with your doctor or a Naturopathic Doctor if things don’t seem right in your body.
Are you taking your Omega’s? Don’t know what they are and how they supercharge your brain? Read this great post about Omega’s here.
The body is an amazing healing system that we can be activate by creating the right environment.
The brain is an amazing structure with a barrier called the blood-brain barrier, but don’t let that confuse you. We think the blood brain barrier means nothing goes in or comes out but the brain is interconnected with everything else. If you want to supercharge your brain you have to supercharge your body first. What is happening in the body affects the brains ability to function.
The first thing to supercharge your body and therefore your brain is diet.
Dr. Hymen said a great quote by Michael Pollans “eat food, not too much, mostly plants.” There are some fundamentals to diet.
- Plant rich diet
- Have good fats
- Whole grains, not whole grain flour
- Use the right type of oils, olive and avocado oil as examples
- Animal/fish as condiment portions. Small amounts, preferably raised in a restorative environment.
Wondering what kind of fish oils to take? Click here to learn more about fish oils and Omega’s.
The other thing Dr. Hymen talked about was testing for nutrient and vitamin deficiencies. What one person needs may not be enough for another because there is so much variation in our DNA.
The next thing that is helpful for the body and brain is exercise. But let’s be clear, you cannot exercise your way out of a bad diet. You can’t eat junk and workout 2 times a day and you’re all good. It doesn’t work this way. Without proper food and vitamins, you might be too tired to do the next part that is required which is….
Exercise
Exercise increases brain-derived neurotrophic factor which is basically the miracle grow for the brain. It helps increase cognition, memory, neuroplasticity (meaning the brain’s ability to change) and helps birth new neurons.
- Strength training helps to build mitochondria, which is the energy powerhouse for cells. You cannot expect your cells, never mind your brain to function optimally if they don’t have any energy.
- I am a firm believer that if you don’t push your body by choice through exercise, your body will push you. You have to make your body more resilient by exercising it, that’s how the body learns.
It is also suggested that we need to increase our intensity of exercise. This means going for a walk but every couple minutes pushing your body hard for 30-60 seconds before returning to a regular walk has greater positive effects. Let’s say you only have 15 minutes to work out, it is better to do interval training as suggested above.
Need advice on proper exercise? Book a consult with one of our physiotherapists.