BRAIN BUILDING BASICS

There are three primary neurotransmitter’s (brain chemical’s) associated with learning. They are noreadrenalin (NA), Dopamine, and Acetylcholine (ACh). NA is responsible for learning the information. NA is typically reduced in blood sugar problems and is the main brain chemical associated in most ADD challenges. When blood sugar drops the brain is unfed and basically won’t retain the material. One becomes unfocused and unattentive. May even lead to petite mall seizures.  Limiting sugar, treating yeast, and eating Blood Type beneficial foods are often helpful in this condition.

Dopamine is responsible for retaining the material. Dopamine is a precursor to estrogen and is typically reduced in hormonal imbalances. You have experienced the benefits of Dopamine if you have ever experienced the “runners high.” This is part of why cardiovascular exercise is beneficial to learning, happiness, and contentedness. Exercise also enhances the health (neuroplasticity) of the brain. With poor diet and lack of exercise the brain literally gets mushy.

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Acetylcholine (ACh) is the brain chemical for um, um, um, um, ah … Oh yea, Recall. When ACh is low then the good news is the info is in there, one just can’t access it. ACh is the brain control for the liver and gallbladder. So often “recall” problems are actually a detox problem. You may have heard me say this before… I find tomatoes to disrupt ACh metabolism potentially causing memory problems, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol. Trans fatty acids and processed foods can disrupt this pathway, as can B6 or choline deficiencies.

Chronic stress is a huge contributor to dementia type brain deterioration.  True dementia is quite often a literal atrophy of the brain due to the negative effects of the stress hormone cortisol. This is minimized by maintaining proper balance in life. Taking a Sabbath day, and vacation’s to allow the body (adrenal’s) to restore. Vitamin’s like B5, zinc, eleuthero, and adrenal glandular’s are a few consideration’s.

Excitotoxins like MSG and aspartate also can literally kill brain cells leading to memory loss. These fake foods excite nerve cells (open calcium channels causing the nerve to fire) to the point of death. The damage may be irreversible but minimized by nutrients like B6, folic acid, or B12.

Autoimmune problems of gluten sensitivity can also cause damage to the brain if untreated as the brain and the gut function are very closely related.

Take care of your brain. It is the only one you have. Fortunately, we have billions of brain cells since we are all losing them to some degree. The rate at which we loose them can be very determined by your lifestyle choices. Will you choose to flourish in those “golden years,” or flounder. The choice is now in your hands.

Cat and Mouse Lessons of Genetics, part 2

In the last post, we saw how mice that were fed nutritionally balanced supplementation were able to produce offspring that were healthier.  It completely changed the genetic picture for the mice.

In the 1940’s Dr. Pottenger noticed that his cat’s health deteriorated when he fed them cooked meat scraps. By the 3 generation fed this way the cats had spontaneous abortions, miscarriages, osteoporosis, allergies, asthma, infertility, poor fur, loss of proper nerve function (poor balance), … Just like much of our current society? After returning them to raw foods, it took 4 generations to correct what was created in 3 generations. Basically, he predicted the current plight we are in, and demonstrated how hard it is to reverse. Choose to make a difference today!

In the case of the mice that were fed nutrients, the cause of their previously mentioned clinical problems is a liver pathway called methylation. There are 3 common causes of problems here: First is from toxic metals like mercury, lead, or arsenic. Second is stress. The stress hormone cortisol inhibits this pathway. Third is a deficiency of vitamins like B12. What may happen if B12 is low?  What dietary sources provide B12? What are the benefits of consuming B12?

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