brain foods- DMAE

[theist 1]

Everybody is being extra polite to me lately. Makes me nervous /images/graemlins/smile.gif

[Priitaa 0]

 

Everybody is being extra polite to me lately. Makes me nervous /images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

 

ROFL LOL lol

 

If it would make you feel better, I could use some slurs and excellent insults! Oh, not just any type, such as a nondevotee would give and you simply think "what a jerk," then write them off. No, I can locate and administer, in proper dose, some of those devotee comments that go right to the core and get a person cooking. lol Of course, it would strictly be for medical purposes, and your nervousness would leave you. ha

 

As you can tell, I really can't do that. :-)

 

Pass the valarian root please.

[theist 1]

That was good. But I am very fragile and may start pouting also if too severe.

 

Thanks for reminding me about the valarian root. I'm out and will get some today. /images/graemlins/smile.gif

[Priitaa 0]

Yeah, I'm fragile too, sometimes. Generally due to all devotees can do, exactly as I described. Gotta laugh about it tho, in order to keep on keeping on.

 

Valerian root is excellent, but tastes awful. Mixed with hops or passion flower, etc., its a nice formula, as long as Valerian root is the first ingredient listed. Or for mild depression, mixed with St. John's Wort. (I study herbs in my spare time, which lately I haven't had much of.)

 

 

[joyrex 0]

 

All the supplements are made from bacteria and not animal products.

 

 

I'm afraid you're a bit off there. I recently discovered that for example Multi-Tabs uses gelatine in all their vitamin supplements. (D3 and B12 from animals).

[theist 1]

I was refering to the b-12 itself. It is from bacteria. Whatever else they may add to the concoction you will have to check separatly.

[joyrex 0]

Right, my bad. /images/graemlins/smile.gif I checked it further, and gelatine was listed as an inactive ingredient. But still, it's kind of sad that they're talking on their site how vegans probably need these supplements but then they aren't really that suitable.

[theist 1]

joyrex,

 

gelatine can be avoided. I know what you mean though. Sometimes I have found all vegan ingedients for something but then they put them in a gelatine capsule. Man, I feel like I need a degree in biochemistry or something just to buy some vegan vitamins. Oh well.

 

But b-12 is best taken in a sublinqual tablet anyway. I bought Country Life last time. I also use a lot of nutritional yeast from KAL and they add b-12.

 

In the future I hope some compamy comes through with a totally vegan vitamin line.

[theist 1]

Helps with alertness without that overstimulated feeling. Drink a jug of warm brahmi and peppermint before japa and SB class maybe.

 

I copied this from the web. So much comes up on from a google search.

 

Other Names: Gotu Kola, Brahmi, Chi-hsueh Ts'ao, man t'ien hsing, Indian Pennywort, Brahma-manduki

 

History:

Gotu Kola has been used as a medicine in the Ayurvedic tradition of India for thousands of years. It is listed in the historic Susruta Samhita, an ancient Indian medical text. The herb is also used by the people of Java and other Indonesian islands. In China, gotu kola is one of the reported "miracle elixirs of life". This was attributed to a healer named LiChing Yun who, legends say, lived 256 years by taking a tea brewed from gotu kola and other herbs. Gotu Kola is prominently mentioned in the Shennong Herbal compiled in China over 2000 years ago. In the nineteenth century, Gotu Kola and its extracts were incorporated into the Indian pharmacopeia, wherein addition to being recommended for wound healing, it was recommended in the treatment of skin conditions such as leprosy, lupus, varicose ulcers, eczema, and psoriasis. It was also used to treat diarrhea, fever, amenorrhea, and diseases of the female genitourinary tract. Gotu Kola was first accepted as a drug in France in the 1880's.

Gotu Kola is a rejuvenative nervine recommended for nervous disorders, including epilepsy, senility, and premature aging. As a brain tonic, it is said to aid intelligence and memory. It strengthens the adrenal glands while cleansing the blood to treat skin impurities. It is used as an aid for meditation that is said to balance the two sides of the brain. It is particularly helpful for super-stressed persons. Gotu Kola is considered "food for the brain". It is said to combat stress and depression, energize flagging mental powers, fight sterility, ward off a nervous breakdown, and improve reflexes.

 

 

It is the best rejuvenative herb for brain cells and nerves, promotes intelligence.

 

 

Dried gotu kola leaf can be made into a tea by adding 1-2 teaspoons to 150 ml of boiling water and allowing it to steep for ten to fifteen minutes. Three cups are usually drunk per day.

 

Safety:

Gotu Kola is generally well tolerated when taken internally. The topical application of gotu kola salve has been reported to cause contact dermatitis, although very infrequently. Avoid taking gotu cola if you are pregnant or is breastfeeding.

[theist 1]

Tons of info on google about lechithin.

 

From the Rodale book, Nature's Medicines:

lecithin and choline

 

Imagine a supplement that could actually restore memory. Could we use it to reverse some of the memory loss that comes with aging? What if it could also enhance our ability to think?

 

The very thought is enough to make your head spin.

 

Unfortunately, we’re not quite there yet, but research into the possibilities for lecithin has touched off some alluring expectations. *(actually we are there now. Harvard studies on choline intake of three grams showed a significant increase in memory especially short term memory)

 

The supplement that’s getting all this heady attention would seem, at first glance, to be a very unlikely candidate. Many of its effects have a lot more to do with digestion than with brain function. Yet there are components of lecithin that seem to play a critical role in nerve function—and our brains, of course, are nothing more or less than elaborate agglomerations of busy nerves making interesting connections with each other.

 

The Great Emulsifier

 

To see lecithin’s action up close, put a chocolate bar in the freezer. When you take it out some time later, you’ll notice that the whole bar is tinged with white.

 

You can chalk up that transformation to lecithin. Derived from soybeans and egg yolks, lecithin is often added to foods such as chocolate, cheese, margarine, and salad dressings. In these foods, it acts as an emulsifier, which simply means that it helps mix fats with water and keeps them from separating. When the chocolate bar is frozen, the lecithin-fat interaction falls apart. The fat rises to the surface, giving the candy that whitish tinge.

 

Lecithin forms naturally in all living cells of the body, and just as it does in food, it acts as an emulsifier. It helps keep fatty substances in bile, which is essentially a kind of juice produced by your liver. When lecithin is doing all it should, it also eases digestion and helps your body absorb valuable nutrients.

 

Lecithin also helps to maintain the structural integrity of cells, says Steven Zeisel, M.D., Ph.D., professor and chair of the department of nutrition at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill. "Without lecithin, nothing would survive, because you wouldn’t be able to separate the various compartments within cells, nor would you be able to separate cells from each other."

 

It also serves as a source of messengers used to help control blood pressure and regulate insulin, the all-important hormone that helps unlock cells so that blood sugar can be absorbed for energy. Without lecithin- derived messengers helping to coordinate these activities, many cells would be at a loss about what to do. "You wouldn’t have the ability to send proper signals," notes Dr. Zeisel. "Everything would grind to a halt."

 

None of those admirable activities suggests a link between lecithin and brain power, however. For that, we have to look at one component of lecithin—a substance called choline.

 

The Choline Connection

 

Choline is a nutrient that’s essential for helping to turn fat into energy within the liver. Although it’s a component of lecithin, it’s also sold separately as a supplement.

 

In addition to the way it helps the liver deal with fat, choline has another function: It helps transmit nerve impulses in the brain.

 

That transmission process isn’t quite as straightforward as carrying cellular e-mail from one address to another. Instead, choline is a building block of another chemical, acetylcholine, that actually carries messages between nerve cells. The brain uses acetylcholine for many purposes, including controlling memory, heart rate, and sweating, according to Dr. Zeisel.

 

SUPPLEMENTSNAPSHOT Lecithin and Choline

May help: Liver disorders, gallstones, heart disease, memory loss, depression, stress, and high cholesterol.

 

Good food sources: Soybeans, peanuts, and wheat germ; also available as an additive in chocolate, margarine, salad dressing, and cheese.

 

Cautions and possible side effects: Large doses of lecithin may cause upset stomach, sweating, salivation, and loss of appetite. Do not take doses of choline above 3.5 grams (equivalent to 23 grams of PC) without medical supervision. Regular supplementation with choline can cause a fishy body odor.

 

 

 

Tantalized by the possibility that choline could help memory, researchers have been investigating the link. To date, they’ve found that acetylcholine is in short supply among some people who have neurological disorders, but that doesn’t prove that more acetylcholine produces better brain function.

 

Related research has led to a more promising path. Researchers have run across another chemical in lecithin called phosphatidylserine (PS). The scientists have found that PS, a building block for brain cells, seems to have a particularly beneficial effect on the production and release of the chemicals that transmit messages, according to Parris Kidd, Ph.D., a biomedical consultant in Berkeley, California, and author of Phosphatidylserine: The Nutrient Building Block That Accelerates All Brain Functions and Counters Alzheimer’s.

 

In fact, PS is the single best means for conserving memory and other higher brain functions as we age, says Dr. Kidd. In studies, PS has been shown to improve the quality of life for people with declining brain function. It improves function in people with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s and counteracts some of the age-related memory loss among people who don’t have Alzheimer’s. According to Dr. Kidd, it also has some benefits that go beyond memory function: helping people cope with stress and, in some individuals, helping to alleviate depression.

 

"PS seems to have a global effect on brain functions," he says. "It helps memory, learning and concentration, mood, and daily rhythms. It seems to have a general revitalizing effect on the brain."

 

The type of PS that’s been shown to work on memory is derived from bovine brain, says Alan Gaby, M.D., professor of nutrition at Bastyr University in Bothell, Washington. A soy-based PS is being tested, but the chemical structure is a little different, so we can’t assume that its effects are the same, says Dr. Gaby. So far, it has not been shown to be effective, he says.

 

Lecithin in the Liver

 

Meanwhile, back in the digestive area, researchers can pinpoint many of lecithin’s benefits when it comes to transporting valuable resources from place to place in our bodies.

 

We are constantly secreting lecithin into our bile, says Dr. Zeisel, and that helps enzymes mix with fat so that the fat is digested.

 

The liver exports fat. To do that, it must wrap the fat in an envelope containing lecithin and certain proteins. When lecithin is unavailable, no envelope can be made, and fat accumulates in the liver. Liver cells low in lecithin fill up with fat and then die.

 

"Humans who are fed intravenously with solutions that lack lecithin and choline start to have liver cell death," says Dr. Zeisel. "This can be reversed when you give them a lecithin or choline supplement."

 

One form of choline, phosphatidylcholine (PC), seems to be particularly beneficial to the liver. In clinical studies, PC helped with alcoholic liver damage, cirrhosis, viral liver damage, and drug-induced liver damage. Animal research showed that PC supplementation was superior to any other treatment for alcohol-induced liver damage and cirrhosis.

 

PC is found in small amounts in most lecithin supplements. Greater concentrations are available in supplements labeled PC or Leci-PC.

 

Closely related to the way lecithin benefits the liver is the way it helps to prevent gallstones. The lecithin has a blending effect on bile salts and bile components. Without lecithin, the proteins in bile would separate out and form gallstones, says Dr. Zeisel.

 

Should You Supplement?

 

The average adult diet in the United States provides 400 to 900 milligrams of choline a day. According to Dr. Zeisel, that’s enough to meet your basic needs. If you take more, there’s a chance that you might get some additional benefits, but that hasn’t been definitely proven.

 

According to Dr. Kidd, lecithin offers safe nutritional support for energy and overall well-being. Supplements with additional PS benefit memory, and those with added PC benefit liver function and digestion, he says.

 

Lecithin is available in tablets or granules. Granular lecithin can be added to soups, casseroles, milkshakes, and other foods.

 

You can also get choline in tablet form, but there’s a drawback to taking it this way. It can give you a bad case of B.O. if you take it on a regular basis, because choline breaks down into a fishy-smelling compound in the small intestine. Lecithin, on the other hand, doesn’t cause an odor because it is absorbed before releasing choline.

 

*me

 

 

[theist 1]

I was googling around for some info on thiamine b-1 and the brain and I came upon this paper which gives info. on many other related substances that can help us in our service. Hard to do anything with a brain outa whack.

 

I have been taking b-1 in powdered form at 500 mg. per day for the last couple of weeks and found that because it helped so much that I plan on gradually going up to 3 gms. or so.

 

You notice the benefits within moments after placing it under the tongue, at least I did.

 

There has been a deriviative of b-1 developed that is said to be very beneficial for preventing some symptoms of diabetes. Not sure of the name.

 

----------------------

Brain Food: Formulas

for Aware Aging

 

by Michelle Badash

 

Although every major organ is critical to physiological functioning, one could say that the brain is the body's dictator. This three-pound, walnut-shaped organ encased in the skull orchestrates an astounding array of functions. Richard Restak, M.D., puts it this way: "The human brain can store more information than all the libraries in the world. It is also responsible for our most primitive urges, our loftiest ideals, and the way we think." Yet, he adds, "The workings of an organ capable of creating Hamlet, the Bill of Rights and Hiroshima remain deeply mysterious."1

 

Naturally, medical researchers have been trying to crack the mystery for years. In their efforts to analyze the central nervous system, they discovered that complex brain functions depend on a balance of nutrients. Increasing evidence demonstrates that nutrient deficiencies and chemical imbalances can disrupt both emotional and psychological well-being.

 

It May Not Be Alzheimer's

One of the most common indications of deteriorating brain function is memory loss. When many older people become aware of memory lapses, they jump to the conclusion that they are experiencing the early signs of Alzheimer's disease, when in fact their declining memory may be rooted in a nutritional deficiency.

 

In the mid-1940s and 1950s, scientific research clearly showed that healthy brain functioning depends on sufficient amounts of B vitamins. Experts today still tout the importance of B vitamins, particularly the following five (keep in mind that these vitamins are all water-soluble and should be taken together for maximum benefit):

 

B1 (thiamine) helps convert glucose into energy. It also mimics acetylcholine (a neurotransmitter involved in memory) and plays a role in brain functions related to memory and cognition.2 Chronic, heavy alcohol consumption can cause a thiamine deficiency resulting in Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome, a disease marked by mental confusion. Severe thiamine deficiency leads to beriberi, a disease characterized by weakness, wasting, nerve inflammation and numbness of the hands and feet. A recent study shows that high-dose thiamine supplementation (3-8 g/day) may actually decrease the deleterious effects of senility.3

 

Thiamine supplementation also appears to elevate mood. In another study, 120 young women took either placebo or 50 mg thiamine daily for two months. Before-and-after tests assessed mood, memory and reaction times. Women who took the thiamine supplements reported feeling significantly more clearheaded, composed and energetic.4

 

B3 (niacin) enhances the ability of red blood cells to carry oxygen. It is also vital to the formation and maintenance of many tissues, including nerve tissue. A severe niacin deficiency produces pellagra, a disease characterized by the three Ds: dermatitis, diarrhea and dementia.

 

B6 (pyridoxine) is needed for the production of amino acid-derived neurotransmitters such as norepinephrine, serotonin and dopamine. B6 deficiency can cause many ailments including slow learning and visual disturbances. Low levels of this vitamin may also provoke epileptic seizures in people prone to them.

 

B12 (cobalamin) plays an important role in the formation of the myelin sheath around nerve fibers. It also helps the body transport and store folic acid. Vitamin B12 deficiency can cause pernicious anemia, nerve dysfunction (weakness, poor reflexes and strange sensations in the arms and legs) and impaired mental activity. It has also been linked to depression, especially in the elderly.5

 

Folic acid is necessary for DNA synthesis, hence it plays an essential role in all cell divisions and in the development of the fetal nervous system. Folic acid deficiency can lead to megaloblastic anemia and poor growth in children and can also contribute to various psychiatric disturbances including depression. As many as 31 to 35 percent of all depressed patients have folic acid deficiencies.6 Folic acid supplementation is perhaps most widely known for preventing neural tube defects in a developing fetus.7

 

The following nutrients related to the B vitamins can also enhance brain functioning:

 

Choline, a component of lecithin, is critical to memory, learning and mental alertness. Manufacture of cell membranes and the neurotransmitter acetylcholine depend on it. Choline helps increase the amount of acetylcholine in the memory circuits of the temporal lobe.8 Although supplemental choline improves memory performance in younger people, it has failed to consistently help elderly adults who already suffer from memory loss or Alzheimer's disease.

 

Inositol, although not officially a B vitamin, is recognized as part of the B complex. It occurs in cell membranes as phosphatidylinositol. The neurotransmitters serotonin and acetylcholine both require phosphatidylinositol for proper functioning.

 

Two clinical trials have shown that rather large amounts of inositol can improve certain psychiatric disorders. In a double-blind, controlled crossover study of 13 patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder conducted by Mendel Fux, M.D., and colleagues at Ben Gurion University of the Negev in Beersheva, Israel, 18 g/day of inositol for six weeks significantly lowered scores on the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale.9

 

Another study conducted by Joseph Levin, M.D., looked at the effects of taking inositol for four to six weeks in patients with depression (28 patients, 12 g/day); panic disorder (21 patients, 12 g/day); schizophrenia (12 patients, 12 g/day); obsessive-compulsive disorder (13 patients, 18 g/day); Alzheimer's disease (11 patients, 6 g/day); electroconvulsive therapy-induced memory loss (12 patients, 6 g/day); attention deficit disorder (11 children, 200 mg/kg/day) and autism (9 children, 200 mg/kg).10 Inositol had significant therapeutic effects on illnesses that respond to ProzacTM, such as panic and obsessive-compulsive disorders and depressions.

 

Phosphatidylserine is the major phospholipid in the brain. Present in cell membranes, it plays a major role in determining their integrity and fluidity. The brain generally makes enough, but deficiencies of essential fatty acids or vitamins such as folic acid and B12 can inhibit production.

 

The potential benefits of phosphatidylserine on dementia and memory loss have been studied extensively. Results are fairly positive; most studies reported short-term cognitive gains in study participants. One of the larger double-blind, placebo-controlled studies followed more than 400 patients ages 65 to 93 who had moderate to severe cognitive decline. Compared to the placebo group, both cognitive and behavioral parameters improved significantly within the six-month study period for the phosphatidylserine-treated group.11 Other studies indicate that phosphatidylserine may be particularly effective in improving cognition in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease.12

 

Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), a polyunsaturated fatty acid also known as an omega-3 fatty acid, plays a critical role in infant brain development and vision. Before a child is born, DHA from the mother's blood travels to the placenta where it is used for membrane development in the brain and retina.13 Research has also linked the rising rate of depression among adults to an imbalance in the ratio of omega-3 fatty acids to omega-6 fatty acids (arachadonic acid).14

 

Two Important Amino Acids

Amino acids, the building blocks of protein, are critical to the formation and functioning of neurotransmitters. Of the 20 amino acids, two are particularly important to brain function. These are L-tyrosine and L-tryptophan.

 

L-tyrosine is one of the nonessential amino acids found in protein-rich foods such as meat, poultry, seafood and tofu. It's a precursor to the neurotransmitters norepinephrine and dopamine--chemical messengers that promote mental acuity and alertness. Increased levels of these neurotransmitters can affect mood and behavior, fostering a tendency to think more quickly and react more rapidly.15

 

L-tryptophan is integral to the production of serotonin, a neurotransmitter with sedative and sleep-promoting effects. L-tryptophan is found in foods such as bananas, milk and sunflower seeds. Once available as a supplement, it was recalled by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 1989 because of reported neuromuscular side effects. Although these effects were later traced to a bacterial contaminant from a single manufacturer, the FDA has not withdrawn its ban of over-the-counter L-tryptophan sales.

 

Critical Minerals

Iron, magnesium, calcium, copper and zinc all help keep the body functioning smoothly. Proper balance of these minerals is especially critical to brain performance; even a slight imbalance may create psychological disturbances. Here are highlights of the most important mineral functions.

 

Iron is particularly critical to motor and mental development during infancy. An iron deficiency can adversely affect the ability to learn and understand new information and may result in poor concentration and attention span.16

 

Calcium and magnesium regulate nerve impulses and aid in the formation of neurotransmitters. Excessive levels of calcium may result in mental changes--the extreme being stupor or even coma.17

 

Zinc deficiency may contribute to dementing illnesses such as Alzheimer's disease. A small study suggests that supplemental zinc may provide benefits in cases of dementing illness.18

 

The sophisticated chemistry of the brain depends on all of these nutrients, but further research is needed to elucidate the effects of supplementation on various central nervous system disorders.