Eating smart is good for your brain

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Eating smart is good for your brain

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Research is piling up that getting certain nutrients can help you

concentrate and learn today, and ward off brain aging in the long run

 

By LESLIE BECK

Wednesday, September 8, 2004 - Page A17

 

It's a well-known fact that the foods we eat influence our health. But

foods do more than affect our waistline and our heart. It seems that what

we eat can also impact the way our brain performs its tasks.

 

Researchers are learning that the right foods, and the nutrients they

contain, can help you concentrate, keep you motivated, improve your memory,

and possibly stop premature brain aging.

 

The foods you eat affect brain function in a number of ways. Some foods

contain nutrients that are used to manufacture brain chemicals, or

neurotransmitters, that enhance memory, concentration, and reaction time.

 

The brain uses other foods for energy. And still other foods are needed for

the development and repair of healthy brain cells.

 

To keep your brain at peak performance, research suggests there are a few

foods worth adding to your plate.

 

Let's start with breakfast. A number of studies have found that memory and

school performance suffer when the morning meal is skipped. The

memory-enhancing effect of breakfast is thought to be due to glucose, a

simple sugar supplied to the brain from carbohydrate-rich foods. Without

it, the brain's fuel tank would be drained within 10 to 15 minutes.

 

Eating for brainpower means eating at regular intervals during the day --

three meals plus midday snacks to keep a steady stream of glucose feeding

your brain. An increased supply of glucose to the brain is thought to

enhance the production of acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter that allows

nerve cells to transmit memory messages.

 

There's another good reason to start your morning with a bowl of

whole-grain cereal. Enriched breakfast cereals (along with other grain

foods) are good sources of iron, a mineral that plays a role in

concentration and learning.

 

Studies suggest that children with mild to moderate iron deficiency, even

without anemia, show poor attentiveness, memory and academic performance in

vocabulary, reading and knowledge.

 

Iron helps transfer oxygen to the brain and it's also used to make

neurotransmitters that regulate the ability to pay attention. The best

sources of iron include lean beef, liver, breakfast cereals, whole-grain

breads, raisins, dried apricots, beans, lentils, tofu and nuts.

 

A multivitamin and mineral supplement will help menstruating females and

vegetarians meet their daily iron requirements. (The recommended dietary

allowance for iron is 1.8 times greater for vegetarians.) A multivitamin

also boosts your intake of B vitamins, nutrients that play a critical role

in brain function, from manufacturing neurotransmitters to assisting energy

release in brain cells.

 

A recent Australian study found that getting adequate folate, B12 and B6

from foods and a vitamin supplement improved memory, speed of mental

processing, recall and recognition in healthy women.

 

Supplementation with B vitamins lowers levels of artery-damaging

homocysteine in the blood. Some studies suggest that a high homocysteine

level increases the risk for Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia.

 

If you eat a balanced and varied diet, you're probably getting plenty of B

vitamins. To boost your intake of Bs, reach for enriched breakfast cereals,

whole grains, wheat germ, lean meat, fish, poultry, dairy products,

legumes, nuts and seeds.

 

To keep your brain cells healthy, you might want to toss a handful of

blueberries in that bowl of iron-enriched breakfast cereal. Researchers

from the USDA's Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tuft's

University fed aging rats food pellets made with the Top 10 antioxidant

fruit and vegetables, including blueberries, strawberries and spinach, for

two months.

 

The rats' motor function and memory improved significantly, with the most

dramatic change observed in the rats fed blueberries. The blueberry diet

also appeared to slow mental decline in mice genetically engineered to

develop Alzheimer's disease.

 

Berries are loaded with antioxidants called anthocyanins that combat

inflammation and free radicals, molecules that can harm brain cells and

brain function. Blueberries may also enable brain cells to send and receive

messages more easily.

 

To preserve memory as we age, some experts feel the most important

antioxidants are vitamins C and E. Earlier this year, researchers reported

in the Archives of Neurology that the use of vitamin C and E supplements in

combination was linked with protection from Alzheimer's disease among older

adults. It's thought that these two vitamins work together to fight

brain-cell damage caused by free radicals.

 

The health of your brain depends not only on how much fat you eat, but what

type it is. Gorging on foods high in saturated fat -- fatty meats, cheeses,

and rich desserts -- can hinder brain function.

 

Studies find that rats fed diets loaded with saturated fat perform poorly

on memory and learning tests. Epidemiological studies also suggest that

people who eat plenty of saturated fat have an increased risk of dementia.

 

But not all fat undermines intelligence. Omega-3 fatty acids, especially

DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) found in fish, make up a large portion of the

communicating membranes of the brain.

 

These fats help keep the lining of brain cells flexible so memory messages

can pass easily between cells. All brain-cell membranes continuously need

to refresh themselves with a new supply of fatty acids.

 

To help keep your brain cells healthy, eat foods rich in omega-3 fats every

day. A study published last year revealed that among 815 adults aged 65 to

94, those who consumed the most omega-3 fats had a lower risk of Alzheimer's.

 

What's more, those who ate fish at least once per week had a 60-per-cent

lower risk of Alzheimer's compared to non-fish eaters.

 

Choose salmon, trout, herring, sardines, and liquid eggs enriched with fish

oil. Also flaxseed oil, canola oil, walnuts, soybeans, omega-3 eggs, and

Natrel's Omega-3 milk, which contain ALA (alpha-linolenic acid), another

member of the omega-3 family that's linked to a healthy brain.

 

A steady diet that includes these foods won't make you a genius, but it

just might bolster your thinking power and slow down brain aging -- not to

mention guard against heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and even arthritis.

 

Leslie Beck, a Toronto-based dietitian at the Medcan Clinic, is on CTV's

Canada AM every Wednesday. Contact her at lesliebeck.com.