How to protect brain health and even prevent Alzheimer's disease with a key nutrition strategy.

If you could protect your brain from deteriorating function, nourish your neurons, and even increase neurotransmitter production just by eating more delicious whole foods... would you do that?

 

The best and worst foods for the brain

To improve your mental abilities, eat more foods
from this nine What
not to eat if
you want to promote brain health A healthy lifestyle means a healthy brain For those of you who answered "yes", there is good news... food, of course, can improve your mental abilities. And if you're wondering which foods are best for the brain, check out the nine that top the list.

 

To improve your mental abilities, eat more foods from this nine.

1. Curry

Curry contains turmeric, a spice that in turn contains the anti-inflammatory antioxidant curcumin. Curcumin is able to cross the blood-brain barrier— so it is promising as a neuroprotective agent for a wide range of neurological disorders.
Studies have shown that curcumin is able to suppress the accumulation of destructive beta-amyloids in the brains of patients with Alzheimer's disease, as well as destroy existing plaques. Curcumin has even been found to improve memory and stimulate the production of new brain cells, a process called neurogenesis.

One tip... some curry powders may contain very little curcumin, compared to turmeric powder itself, so for greater health benefits, choose it.

2. Celery

Celery is a rich source of luteolin, a plant compound that can soothe brain inflammation, the leading cause of neurodegenerative disorders. Luteolin has also been linked to reduced age-related memory loss in mice. 2 In addition to celery, peppers and carrots are also good sources of luteolin.

3. Broccoli and cauliflower

Broccoli and cauliflower are an excellent source of choline, a vitamin B known for its role in brain development. Choline consumption during pregnancy has "super-charged" the brain activity of animals in the womb, suggesting that choline can increase cognitive function, improve learning and memory.
It even reduces age-related memory decline and the brain's vulnerability to toxins in childhood, as well as provide protection later in life. Eggs and meat are also considered excellent food sources of choline.

4. Walnuts

Walnuts are an excellent source of plant-based omega-3 fats, natural phytosterols, and antioxidants. In addition, their ability to reverse brain aging in elderly rats has been proven. For example, DHA is a type of omega-3 fat that has been found to increase brain function and even promote brain healing, although in higher concentrations this substance is found in omega-3 fats of animal origin, such as krill, unlike walnuts.

5. Crabs

One serving of crabs contains more of your daily need for phenylalanine, an amino acid that helps form the neurotransmitter dopamine, brain-stimulating adrenaline and norepinephrine, thyroid hormone, and can also help fight Parkinson's disease. In addition, crabs are a great source of vitamin B12, which improves brain function.

6. Garbanzo beans (chickpeas)

Garbanzo beans are one of the best food sources of magnesium (except kelp and green leafy vegetables). Magnesium citrate has a beneficial effect on cellular receptors, speeding up the transmission of messages, as well as relaxing blood vessels, which provides greater blood flow to the brain.

7. Red meat

Red meat, such as pasture beef, is an excellent source of vitamin B12, which is vital for proper brain function. People with high levels of vitamin B12 deficiency markers tend to perform worse on cognitive tests and also have a smaller total brain volume, suggesting that a lack of vitamin can lead to brain shrinkage.

8. Blueberries

Antioxidants and other phytochemicals of blueberries are associated with improved learning, thinking and memory, along with a decrease in neurodegenerative oxidative stress. In addition, compared to other fruits, they are relatively low in fructose, so that blueberries are one of the most useful berries.

9. Healthy fats

Health-positive fats that are essential for optimal functioning of your body and brain include organic raw milk butter, ghee (raw butter from the milk of grazing cows), olives, organic extra virgin olive oil and coconut oil, nuts such as pecans and macadamia, free-range poultry eggs, wild Alaskan salmon and avocados, for example.
 

 

 

 

What not to eat if you want to improve brain health

We've looked at a number of the best foods for the brain, but just as important is what foods to avoid. Dr. David Perlmutter, probably the leading natural medicine neurologist in the U.S., in my opinion, shares his understanding of how to protect brain health and even prevent Alzheimer's disease with a key nutrition strategy... namely, the rejection of sugar and carbohydrates, including gluten.

Gluten sensitivity is one of the factors in most chronic diseases, including those that affect the brain, because of the effect that gluten has on the immune system. Unfortunately, many people, including doctors, still believe that if you do not have celiac disease, gluten is safe for
you and can be eaten as much as you like. However, almost all of us are sensitive to gluten to some extent. This is because all of us produce zonulin in response to gluten in the intestine. Gluten proteins present in wheat,
rye and barley increase intestinal permeability, which is why undigested proteins and intestinal contents, such as bacteria, enter the bloodstream. This thus sensitizes the immune system and contributes to the development of inflammation and autoimmune processes. When
gluten increases intestinal permeability, it becomes "leaky" and all kinds of proteins that previously could not penetrate the intestinal walls, including casein and other milk proteins, gain direct access to the blood, thereby posing a threat to the immune system and contributing to the loss of auto tolerance, the very concept of autoimmunity.

According to Dr. Perlmutter, much of today's burden of disease, including brain disease, stems from the fact that we contaminate our immune systems with proteins that the human immune system has not been exposed to before in human history.
 

A healthy lifestyle means a healthy brain

Your brain is not "programmed" to dry up and degrade its performance as you age. We now know that any kind of activity you engage in, whether it's exercise, the food you eat, the supplements you take, your personal relationships, your emotional state, your sleep habits – all of these factors significantly affect your every second genetic expression. And this, in turn, affects the overall health and risk of developing diseases.
Lifestyle strategies that promote neurogenesis and brain cell regrowth include the following. All of these strategies target a specific kink called BDNF, a brain-neurotrophic factor that promotes the growth of brain cells and the possibility of communication between them, as MRI shows.
Sports. Physical activity causes biochemical changes that strengthen and renew not only the body but also the brain, especially areas related to memory and learning.
Reducing overall calorie intake, including alternating fasting.
Reduce carbohydrate intake, including sugar and grains.
Increased intake of healthy fats.
Increase your intake of omega-3 fats and reduce your intake of damaged omega-6 fats (meaning processed vegetable oils) to balance the ratio of omega-3 to omega-6 fats. To do this, I prefer krill oil to fish oil, as krill oil also contains astaxanthin, which appears to be particularly beneficial for brain health. As Dr. Perlmutter explains, he belongs to the class of carotenoids aimed specifically at reducing fat damage from free radicals, and the brain, by the way, is 60-70 percent fat.