The Eight Most Effective
Natural Ways to Keep Your Brain Sharp
Did you know that what you eat and how well you digest and absorb
foods directly affects your brain function?
Exercising your mind by reading can certainly keep your brain sharp,
but exercising your body and choosing the right foods can also help
you preserve memory and your happy mood.
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Your Liver and Your Brain
Your brain communicates with the rest of your body using neurons that "fire,"
sending out impulses via ions and neurotransmitters that tell your body what
to do, how to feel, and what to think.
Most neurotransmitters are made of non-essential amino acids manufactured
by your liver. The neurotransmitter serotonin, however, is manufactured in
your gut. Since you cannot get these amino acids directly from food intake,
you need to ensure that your liver and your intestines are functioning optimally
so that they make these vital amino acids.
If you have been following the Body Ecology system of health and healing
you are now well aware that healthy food intake and proper digestion are key
to liver and intestinal health. Your liver helps detoxify blood from your
small intestine. When the intestines contain chemicals and toxins that are
not purified by the beneficial microflora in your intestines the liver suffers
greatly. Poorly digested foods ferment creating toxins, so it is critical
that your foods digest completely.
This will ensure that your liver is protected from these poisons that cause
it to become congested or have "stuck chi." This will keep your
liver healthy and able to make the amino acids you need for neurotransmitters.
Heart Health Improves Brain Health
Besides maintaining liver health, most neuroscientists agree with Maria Carillo,
director of medical and scientific relations for the Alzheimer's Association,
that "what's good for your heart is good for your brain."
Making sure that you have a healthy cardiovascular system also prevents stroke,
one of the leading causes of dementia in older people.
Exercise, keeping your arteries clear, and monitoring cholesterol all improve
the functioning of your brain, which uses two thirds of your body's blood
supply! So get outside and take walks, and choose foods (like the ones we
list below) to keep your heart and your brain healthy.
Fat for Your Head
Another essential component to brain function, and possibly the most important,
is eating plenty of high-quality fats. Equally important is avoiding the partially
hydrogenated fats found in margarines and fried foods. Of course, while eating
these fats is a must digesting them is even more important.
Good fats that provide both saturated fats and omega-3 fatty acids (EFAs)
are essential for a baby's brain development in the womb and continues throughout
the entire life. In fact, your brain is mostly made up of fat!
The right choice of fats can actually make you smarter and keep you happy;
they have also been linked to less frequency of depression and higher IQ's.
For more information on choosing quality fats, read: A
Key Health Secret That Everyone Should Know: Eat a Range of Good Oils.
How to Feed Your Body to Nourish Your Brain
Since diet plays such an essential role in keeping your brain happy and healthy,
here are some easy ways to boost your brain power, naturally!
- Eat cruciferous vegetables like cabbages, broccoli, kale and collard
greens. In one study, two or more servings of these vegetables daily was
linked to improved mental functioning. These veggies can be easily fermented
into cultured veggies to make them even more digestible and nutritious.
Learn the best way to eat these vegetables and read Why
You Need to Cook These Vegetables for Maximum Nutrition.
- Try Body Ecology grain-like seeds (buckwheat, quinoa,
amaranth and millet).
These high protein seeds have all the benefits of grains yet are gluten-free
and very high in protein. They help your body make serotonin, the neurotransmitter
that helps you feel happy. Serotonin converts to melatonin at night helping
you have a better night's sleep. This is one of the reasons we suggest you
eat these grain-like seeds as part of your evening meal. You can get all
of these grains conveniently online at the Gluten-Free
Mall.
- Include organic, unrefined fats from fish, seeds and nuts. Wild
Alaskan salmon & other healthy fish are top sources. Fish oil, cod
liver oil and walnut oils are also good sources of omega- 3 fatty acids.
Both raw and roasted pumpkin seed oil have zinc, vitamin E and niacin. These
along with extra virgin olive oil, organic
gluten-free extra virgin coconut oil, red palm oil, evening primrose,
borage and flaxseed oil make up a wide variety of excellent oils that are
a part of The Body Ecology System of Health and Healing.
- Saturated fats like raw butter and ghee are a must as well. Of
all the fats, raw butter most closely duplicates the saturated fat found
in breast
milk. Please remember that breast milk is rich in raw
saturated fat because it is essential for the baby's developing brain. Pregnant
women should eat raw butter and ghee before and during
their pregnancy to ensure that their baby's brain is well developed before
birth but also after birth as well. Woman who cannot nurse or who are concerned
that their breast milk lacks adequate amounts of this vital fat should put
tiny spoonfuls of raw butter and ghee into their baby's mouth several times
a day. This has been a common practice in India for thousands of years and
babies love the taste. Be sure to read, Baby
Formula: The Key Health Risks to Baby that Every Mother & Someday-Mother-to-Be
Needs to Know.
Sadly, when America turned to margarine and processed fats and started to
believe that butter was bad for us, we stopped feeding our brains the saturated
fat it needs to help prevent Alzheimer's, ADD and even autism. Many of us
will remember the margarine commercial on television where a woman dressed
as an angry Mother Nature warned us: "It's not nice to fool Mother
Nature." Decades later we can see that she was right. Today, we are
paying a heavy penalty for trying to do so.
If a goal in your life is to become healthy and happy, now more than ever
it is essential to avoid processed fats like canola oil and vegetable oil.
They have been bleached, deodorized and refined. Basically they are a poison
and are especially damaging for your liver. For more information,read Why
The Processing of Consumable Oils Has Devastated America's Health.
- Eat lightly cooked egg yolks. Egg yolks contain choline, a member
of the vitamin B family that can "supercharge" brain cells in
developing babies, and is part of a key memory neurotransmitter.
- Add ocean vegetables to your diet. Sea vegetables not only have
omega-3 fatty acids but also contain all 52 minerals your body needs to
function. Even better, they have a higher concentration of vitamins than
any other food! Experiment with adding ocean vegetables like nori, kelp,
hijiki and wakame to your diet or try Body Ecology's own Ocean
Plant Extract. Be sure to check out the recent article, Russia's
"Miracle" Heavy Metal Cleansing Sea Vegetable.
- Cleanse your liver. Your liver makes the amino acids necessary
for your brain to function. Nourish your liver with foods and supplements
that support its function. The liver likes green foods like our Vitality
Super Green with chlorophyll and fermented algae.
Body Ecology's LivAmend
was developed to increase bile flow so that toxins could smoothly leave
the liver. When you increase the flow of bile peristaltic movement in the
intestines also increases so that you can eliminate those toxins in your
stool each day. LivAmend has helped many people with constipation problems.
- Improve your digestion with fermented foods and drinks. Fermented
foods, beverages and probiotic liquids are rich in beneficial microflora
that help you digest food and absorb more nutrients to feed your body and
your brain. They also help stimulate your liver's ability to cleanse and
function optimally. Learn how to make your own cultured
vegetables and Young
Coconut Kefir at home, and be sure to learn more about Coco-Biotic
and Dong
Quai. These liquid probiotics are from a food source and are the most
potent and effective way to add friendly microflora to your digestive tract.
They are convenient, economical and delicious!
Don't let forgetfulness or a complete loss of memory stop you from enjoying
a long, healthy life surrounded by those you love. Keep yourself healthy and
smart by feeding your brain AND your body at the same time with memory enhancing
foods. You'll feel great physically and mentally!
LivAmend is a specially formulated supplement that supports
liver function, increases bile flow and improves bowel elimination -
which is all essential for physical AND mental health. It has also helped
many people with constipation problems.
Learn
More & Order LivAmend Now
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Sources:
Bhattacharya, Shaoni, "Nutrient During Pregnancy 'Super-Charges' Brain,"
NewScientist.com, 12 Mar 2004. http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn4771
Brain Chemistry: Reason We Feel Like We Do, IcakUSA.com. http://www.icakusa.com/healthcaps/nutrition/index.html
Brain Nutrition, The Brain Center, NutraMed.com. http://www.nutramed.com/brain/brain_nutrition.htm
Brain Power Nutrient Guide, PsychologyToday.com. http://psychologytoday.com/articles/pto-19960501-000039.html
Feske, Steven K., "Avoiding Dementia: Fitness and Your Brain,"
Newsweek.com. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9467736/site/newsweek/
Health Benefits of Seaweed, LoveSeaweed.com. http://www.loveseaweed.com/health.html
The Human Brain, FI.edu. http://www.fi.edu/brain/fats.htm
McKeith, Gillian, "Living Food For Health," Piatkus Books, 2000.
http://www.positivehealth.com/Reviews/books/mckith53.htm
Tropical Plant Database, Rain-Tree.com. http://www.rain-tree.com/artichoke.htm
Vegetables May Keep Brains Young, Associated Press, FoxNews.com, 24 Oct 2006.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,224317,00.html
Vitamins and Health Supplements, Vitamins-Supplements.org. http://www.vitamins-supplements.org/amino-acids/
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