This post is a continuation of part 1 of the Better Brain Toolbox blog post. If you haven’t read that one, make sure you check it out. As a quick review, I have been researching the various lifestyle choices and changes we can make to have a better brain. Our mission (and yes we’ve chosen to accept it) is to create a Better Brain Toolbox with all of our resources.
Disclaimer: I am not a medical doctor and the information here is not intended as a replacement for care from the appropriate healthcare professional. Please also see the respective disclaimers in each resource referenced.
In Part 1, I identified the list of resources I had uncovered, and I provided a few nuggets of information from the first two books on the list.
Disclosure: I get commissions for purchases made through affiliate links (marked with asterisks) in this post.
Resource List
Here’s the full list of resources without the overview:
- *Keep Sharp: Build a Better Brain at Any Age by Sanjay Gupta, MD
- *Essential Oils to Boost the Brain & Heal the Body by Jodi Cohen
- *Eat to Beat Depression and Anxiety: Nourish Your Way to Better Mental Health in Six Weeks by Drew Ramsey, MD
- *The Better Brain: Overcome Anxiety, Combat Depression, and Reduce ADHD and Stress with Nutrition by Bonnie J. Kaplan, PhD and Julia J. Rucklidge, PhD
- *Eat to Beat Disease by William Li, MD
Just as there are studies identifying the impact of what we eat on our physical health, there are also those that highlight the impact of what we eat on our mental health. In this post, the nuggets will continue with #3 on the list. NOTE: Please note that the information in these resources promote using foods and nutrition to prevent or complement (and not replace) professional care.
Eat to Beat Depression Nugget
Dr. Ramsey was first mentioned in the Immune System Support – Herbs & Supplements post when we referenced one of his other books *Eat Complete: The 21 Nutrients That Fuel Brainpower, Boost Weight Loss and Transform Your Health. Turns out he’s been very consistent with his messaging about the power of the foods we eat. Check out this free video from 2015. BTW, if anyone else is curious – I was – here’s a recipe for the sukuma wiki that he mentions. 😉
BDNF
One of the things he talks about in both the video and his latest book *Eat to Beat Depression and Anxiety is a molecule called BDNF (Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor). This is basically growth factor for your brain and helps it to create new synaptic connections between brain cells. BDNF also helps to protect the brain from toxins – whether they result from some of the foods we eat, or the hormones produced in response to episodes of chronic stress. Dr. Ramsey identifies various foods (nuts, seafood, berries, and dark chocolate) that help increase BDNF production. In this short video, Dr. John Ratey – a neuropsychiatrist who has described BDNF as Miracle-Gro for the brain – mentions exercise as another way to increase BDNF production. It’s definitely worth a look!
Dark Chocolate
Based on my love of dark chocolate, I was excited to see it referenced here yet again in a couple of studies. One study of 13,626 adults found that those who ate higher amounts of dark chocolate had a 70% reduced risk of “clinically relevant depression symptoms.” Another study conducted by Dr. Scott A. Small, found that “drinking a dark chocolate beverage high in cocoa flavanol could improve memory function in older adults.” But what does memory have to do with depression and anxiety?
Problems with thinking, poor concentration, and challenges with memory can be a symptom of depression and anxiety too. Some hypothesize that flavanols like epicatechin work by suppressing inflammation — something we know also has benefits for mood.
*Eat to Beat Depression and Anxiety Drew Ramsey, MD
You can find more details about the dark chocolate beverage study in this Science Daily article. Naturally there is a lot more helpful information about how we can use food to maintain and improve our mental health. Get your copy of *Eat to Beat Depression and Anxiety and find additional items to add to your Better Brain Toolbox.
The Better Brain Nugget
While this book does discuss using broad spectrum nutrients to help with mental health issues, I like that they emphasize eating real food first. They also pose the question: What comes first? Depression & anxiety, and then a poor diet? Or is it the other way around? According to the authors:
Thanks to several studies published in the last decade, we now know that poor diet seems to precede poor mental health. A whole food diet, on the other hand, is protective.
*The Better Brain: Overcome Anxiety, Combat Depression, and Reduce ADHD and Stress with Nutrition by Bonnie J. Kaplan, PhD and Julia J. Rucklidge, PhD
Role of Nutrition in Mental Health
Take a look at Julia Rucklidge’s powerful free video from 2014 regarding the role of nutrition in mental health. While this video was filmed in New Zealand 7 years ago, I strongly feel the message is universal, timeless, and even more important today. Their new book is an updated extension of this information.
Antidepressant Foods
Interestingly, this book also refers to an article by Dr. Laura LaChance and Dr. Drew Ramsey (Eat to Beat Anxiety – see above) from 2018 that identified foods containing important nutrients for reducing depression and assigned them a score. They called it the Antidepressant Food Scale (AFS). Feel free to take a look at the breakdown in the linked article, but the highest scores went to shellfish, and a wide variety of plant foods including watercress, spinach, swiss chard, fresh herbs (i.e. cilantro, basil or parsley) and more.
Mediterranean Style
All of the antidepressant foods happen to be an integral part of a Mediterranean style of eating. One thing I found echoed in several of the resources, was a need to move closer to this style of eating. For more information that complements the pyramid diagram linked to above, please do check out this free short video by Dr. Lisa Oldson.
These are just a few nuggets of the information included in this book. For example, did you know that there are certain times when our brains need even more nutrients than usual? Find out this and more information to stock your Better Brain Toolbox by getting your own copy of *The Better Brain: Overcome Anxiety, Combat Depression, and Reduce ADHD and Stress with Nutrition.
Eat to Beat Disease
I have mentioned Dr. William W. Li’s *Eat to Beat Disease book in a few of my blog posts now. Throughout the book, he highlights over 200 foods that benefit the body’s 5 Health Defense Systems. Specific to this topic, the curcumin in turmeric is hailed as being helpful for the brain, and according to Dr. Li “can do triple duty: protect against cancer, reduce blood vessel inflammation, and help grow neurons.”
Further, he states that it may be even more important to eat foods that improve the body’s health defenses as we age in order to fight against neurodegenerative diseases (i.e. Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases). For more details on how eating fish can contribute to long life, take a look at his blog post regarding fish, omega-3 fatty acids, and longevity.
Get your own copy of *Eat to Beat Disease to find out which of the 200 foods identified are already your favorites, and belong in your Better Brain Toolbox.
That’s it for now. Have a healthy and happy holiday season!
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