Category Archives: Brain Health

Detoxify Your Brain While Sleeping!

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You are probably familiar with your lymphatic system, simply because you can feel many of your lymph nodes, especially when they are swollen!   In addition to protecting your body against infection by producing white blood cells, your lymphatic system also serves as your drainage network. Lymph contains lymphocytes and also waste products and cellular debris together with bacteria and proteins. You can see how important the lymphatic system is to detoxification!  Homeopathic drainage remedies have been around for a long time and we also know that exercise/movement aids in supporting the movement of the lymph. Jumping on a mini rebounder is one of the best ways to support your lymphatic system!

A few years ago, scientific research finally confirmed that the brain also has a drainage system.  This drainage system is now officially named the glymphatic system.  The glymphatic system is most active while we are sleeping deeply.  It drains toxins and debris while we are fast asleep. Among the debris it removes is beta amyloid protein. The less sleep we get, the less beta amyloid clearance.  In fact, a recent study showed that just one night of sleep deprivation resulted in a significant increase in amyloid beta in the brain.

Tempted to cut your sleep short working late, watching Netflix, or engaging in a late night social media binge?  Think twice about cutting back on sleep if you want to take good care of your brain. As mentioned above, the less sleep you get, the less beta amyloid clearance.  And you don’t want a build- up of beta amyloid in the brain.  Unfortunately, a build-up of beta amyloid in the brain in susceptible people first targets the part of the brain that regulates sleep, resulting in a vicious cycle!

So if good sleep hygiene is not a part of your lifestyle, make sleep a priority today to save your brain.  I have written a lot on the importance of sleep: our entire body regenerates while we sleep and important hormones like growth hormone are secreted while we sleep.  And now we know that our brain detoxifies while we sleep too!   Wow!!

Breaking Up Is Hard To Do. Are You Addicted to Your Smartphone?

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Is this addiction leading to lack of focus and depression?

A few months ago while driving to a meeting I heard Catherine Price, author of “How to Break up with your Phone” interviewed on NPR radio. I was intrigued with the interview and immediately put her book on my wish list.  Then a couple of weeks ago I saw her book mentioned again on a newsfeed I follow. Okay, I thought, time to buy the book!  I have been interested in how our smart phones and other wireless mobile devices are affecting our brains and happiness levels for some time now. In a blog post from a few years ago, I wrote about this topic after I attended a forum with journalist Nicholas Carr, author of “The Shallows: what the internet is doing to our brains”. 

Life has drastically changed with the introduction of smartphones.  I love that I can easily check the weather in the morning, track my steps for the day, get directions to wherever I need to go, and research a good lunch place with my iPhone.  But there are also a lot of downsides, like people just don’t interact with each other much anymore. Does anyone remember when the airport used to be a great place to people watch?  Now it is so uneventful, everyone is looking down at their phones.  We used to talk to the people around us on the airplane – at least sometimes!  And no one looks out the window anymore when flying.  All windows are shut to reduce glare on tablets.  But there is so much to see when looking out the window of an airplane!  And so much to contemplate…like I can’t believe I am flying at this altitude…how crazy is this!  What a perfect time to let ideas go wild and get the creative juices flowing.

According to Catherine Price’s new book, Americans check their phones about 47 times per day and the average is 82 for people between 18 and 24 years. She also cites that we are spending more than 4 hours a day on our phones and 80 percent of us check our phones within a half hour of waking up. How do you relate to these statistics?  I thought I didn’t fit into these statistics…after all, I was aware of all this stuff…I didn’t have a problem. Well, after starting Catherine Price’s 30 day break up plan, I realized that I do have an addiction to my smartphone.  I often reach for it mindlessly, without purpose, and check my email far too often.  It has had a huge impact on my brain.  My ability to focus has declined; I am easily distracted.  It has become harder to complete projects on time. I have developed OCD over the number of steps I take each day. My addiction to my wireless mobile devices has started to erode my creativity and rob me of my clarity.

I remember when neurologist and researcher Dr. Dale Bredesen said during one of his trainings that adult ADD or ADHD can be a first sign of Mild Cognitive Impairment and Alzheimer’s Disease. Wow, I was surprised. But it makes sense. If we are not using the areas of our brain responsible for concentration, then those neural circuits will weaken over time and we end up constantly distracted and forgetting things. And when we use our smartphones, we typically are not in deep thought, concentrating really hard, or memorizing anything. We are skimming! Repetition and practice are what strengthen neural circuits. So what happens when we are skimming through information for minutes at a time on our phones all day long?  We are weakening our neural circuits for memory and concentration and strengthening our circuits that encourage distraction and forgetfulness.

In Dan Buettner’s The Blue Zones of Happiness You Tube video, he says that a commonality among the happiest cultures in the world is that they socially interact face to face 6 hours per day. How much time are we spending on social media and NOT interacting in person with family, friends, colleagues, or even strangers?  No wonder all these studies and reports are coming out that Americans are more isolated and depressed than ever…especially teenagers who are growing up with smartphones wired to them at all times, even when they sleep.

If you find that you don’t do the things that really nourish you and bring you joy as often as you used to, this is the time to assess your relationship with your smartphone or other wireless devices. I discovered that I don’t read as many novels as I used to or explore new music and recipes as much, and I certainly don’t talk on the phone with friends like I used to!

If you own a wireless mobile device, which is highly likely, unless you are reading this blog at a public library on a shared desktop, then I highly recommend reading Catherine Price’s book How to Break up with Your Phone. It is one of the best books that you will read this year. The intent of the book is not to throw your phone out, it is to help you have a healthy relationship with it, so it becomes a tool to help you create the life you desire, NOT the life that smart engineers, marketers, and social media giants want for you!

 

Insulin Resistance in your brain: Why you don’t want this and how to test for it

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When you hear insulin resistance, you probably think of diabetes or blood sugar issues.  When you have insulin resistance, your cells are not responding very well to insulin’s message to take up the circulating glucose or sugar in your bloodstream for energy and suddenly you are on the path to Type 2 Diabetes. Your blood sugar remains high and your cells do not get the energy they need to perform optimally.  And you feel crappy.

Did you know that insulin resistance also happens in the brain? Your neurons end up not getting the energy they need from glucose to produce energy and communicate with each other and your brain health suffers.  A slow down in energy metabolism caused by insulin resistance leads to oxidative stress, DNA damage, and mitochondrial dysfunction which then ultimately leads to inflammation.  A not so pretty cascade of events.

Dr. Dale Bredesen, author of  The End of Alzheimer’s  lists insulin resistance as one of the major underlying causes of Mild Cognitive Impairment and Alzheimer’s Disease.  This has also been called Diabetes of the Brain.

Maintaining optimal blood sugar levels is imperative to your brain health and the health of your whole body.  In fact, keeping your blood sugar levels in a healthy range is crucial to aging gracefully!  And the good news is that simple changes in diet and lifestyle can make your cells more receptive to insulin and bring down your glucose levels. You can be proactive about protecting your brain from insulin resistance!

Step 1: Get tested! Especially if you have not been to your primary care physician in awhile!  When you check in with your primary care physician each year, make sure that he or she is testing for fasting glucose. This means that you need to make your appointment in the morning!  Optimal fasting glucose levels are between 75 and 85 mg/dL.  Please note that optimal does not correspond with typical lab reference ranges.  If you start to see your blood glucose levels inch up every year, you most likely have the beginning stages of insulin resistance. Warning bells should be ringing when you start to see fasting glucose numbers in the mid 90’s and alarm bells should be going off when you see numbers in the high 90’s and 100’s.

Ask your doctor to test for Hemoglobin A1c as well.  This lab value gives you a better picture of how you are managing your blood sugar levels long term – approximately a three month time period.  This is also a great test to do when you are assessing how your diet and lifestyle changes are impacting your blood glucose levels! Optimally, Hemoglobin A1c should be below 5.6%.

Knowing your numbers helps you determine how assertive you need to be with dietary and lifestyle changes and if supplements are needed to support lowering of blood glucose levels and to combat insulin resistance. It is never too early or too late to start testing and make changes!

If you need help figuring out what to do when you get your test results back, please set up a complementary strategy session with me here.

Three Heavy Metals That You Need to Know About to Protect Your Brain

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Unfortunately, our water, food, and environment are filled with toxins like heavy metals and chemicals that can severely affect our brain/body health.


The GOOD news is that we can identify these toxins that are harming our brain, reduce exposure to them, and support the elimination of them from our bodies. Your brain will thank you!

Let’s just look at three heavy metals that pose the most significant potential threat to human health and our brains and how we can take the most important step: REDUCE EXPOSURE.

 

Lead: You have probably heard as a result of the Flint, Michigan lead water crisis that children are very vulnerable to lead and even low levels of lead can increase neuro-developmental risk, including IQ loss and learning disabilities. But lead toxicity does not just apply to children. Adults with exposure to lead can also experience cognitive decline and a host of other health issues as well.

Women need to be especially aware as lead is stored in bones. If lead is present in the bones, then bone loss during menopause will leach any lead into the blood.  Tip:  If you are menopausal and your blood pressure shoots up, make sure to test for whole blood lead as excess lead in the blood leads to hypertension!

Where is lead found?  The biggest sources are drinking water contamination, leaded cans, home remodeling (lead paint dust), older lead pigment paints, many herbal products from India, China, Southeast Asia, toys and other products from China, glazes on ceramic dishware from China and Mexico, wine, and lipstick and makeup.

Avoid lead by choosing a water purification system that filters out lead (see my recent blog on water), wear lead-free makeup, buy lead-free dishware, and be cognizant of how much wine you drink!

Mercury is another heavy metal player that at low levels can lead to difficulty concentrating, memory loss, fatigue, mood swings, sleep disturbance, tremors, and brain fog. And this is just a partial list.

Sources of mercury include fish, high fructose corn syrup, amalgam fillings (vapor outgassing from amalgam fillings), broken fluorescent light bulbs, broken thermometers, cement plants, and coal-powered electric generating plants.

To lower your exposure to mercury avoid eating larger ocean fish which accumulate more mercury (esp. tuna, swordfish, halibut, sea bass), avoid foods containing high fructose corn syrup, and consider amalgam filling removal. However, amalgam filling removal must be done safely by certified biologic dentists!

Arsenic is a known carcinogen and chronic exposure can also lead to Type II diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and decreased cognition! Arsenic slows down your body’s ability to produce ATP, your energy currency. Data from almost 50,000 utilities showed that arsenic contaminates more than 7,230 water supplies serving 70 million people and that mercury contaminates more than 280 water supplies serving 2.5 million people. EWG Know Your Environment. Protect Your Health.

Where is arsenic found? In drinking water, seaweed and shellfish, chicken, rice, and soil.

To avoid or lower your exposure to arsenic, invest in a good water system that filters out arsenic, eat only organic chicken, and reduce consumption of rice and shellfish.

In summary, one of the best ways to avoid these top heavy metal players is to invest in a water system that filters them out!!  Again, please refer to my recent blog on water!  If you just do this one thing, it will make a significant impact on your health and brain!

Testing for metals in your body is a bit more complicated as different heavy metals are stored in different areas of the body. Testing the blood usually only indicates acute or recent exposure to heavy metals.  If you would like to assess whether or not heavy metal toxicity is contributing to your fatigue, mood swings, high blood pressure, blood sugar issues, or decreased cognition, please set up a complementary strategy session with me.