Did you know that most of the weight of your dehydrated brain comes from fats, proteins, amino acids, which are the building blocks of proteins, glucose, and micronutrients?
Ever notice how after getting a quick bite to eat, we feel more energized? Also, have you noticed how when we overeat or take in too many sugary foods, that afterwards we feel like crawling up in our beds in posting the Do Not Disturb sign?
Omegas 3 and 6 are the headline fats in our brain. They are essential fatty acids, meaning that we can only get them from the foods we eat. On top of that they are linked to preventing degenerative brain conditions like Alzheimers. As you can tell we need Omega 3 and 6 fats, like the kind found in fatty fish, nuts, and seeds in order to produce cell membranes.
On the other hand as most of you already know, fats like saturated and trans fats can compromise our health, but boy do they taste good.
Proteins and Amino Acids are the building blocks for growth and development in our bodies. They also help manipulate how we feel and behave. One of the reasons for this is that Amino Acids contain the precursors for neurotransmitters (chemical messengers that carry signals between neurons). This affects our mood, sleep patterns, ability to focus, and weight.
When we scarf down a huge plate of chicken, rice, and a little gravy, little do we know the complex combination of chemical processes that go on behind the scenes in our bodies. Basically, our food especially sugary or high fat foods cause brain cells to release mood altering hormones like dopamine, serotonin, and norepinephrine.
Here’s the caveat, our brain cells are prime real estate in our bodies. In order for the nutrients in our food to get to our brain cells they have to compete with one another. This is why having a diet with a healthy balance of the right types of foods, helps keep our moods in check. It’s a hormone thang….
The goal is to try to stay in balance, not to much of this or that. We definitely want to avoid the bad stuff like saturated fats, processed sugars, etc. The thing is, is that we all too often load ourselves down with the bad stuff, which again accounts for many of our chronic conditions.
Micronutrients like antioxidants found in fruits and vegetables are major players in our brain health. They help the brain fight off free radicals that destroy brain cells. Isn’t it cool to know that the food the we eat is our first line of defense in our fight against father time and disease.
Vitamins B6, B12, and Folic Acid help protect our brains from mental decline also.
Minerals such as iron, copper, sodium, and zinc are fundamental to our brains health.
In order for our brains to use these nutrients it needs fuel. Here’s an interesting fact, the human brain makes up about 2% of our body weight, yet it uses about 20% of our energy resources (aka food that we eat). Most of this energy comes from our carbohydrate intake. Which is one of the reasons we crave carbs. Our brains can be little bitty glucose hogs.
