Nutrients to Promote Brain Health
Keep your brain healthy and optimized at peak levels throughout your whole life by focusing on the A’s, B’s and D’s – three key vitamins identified in healthy brain functioning. The human brain is the most important organ that requires many nutrients to work properly. The brain only weighs about three pounds and consumes 25% of the blood pumped with every heart beat and 20% of the body’s energy.
Vitamin D
Reuter’s Health has linked low vitamin D levels to depression. In their landmark study researching 531 women and 423 men over the ages of 65, they discovered that almost 75% of the depressed group were vitamin D deficient.
Another study involving 3000 men between 40-79 years of age found that those with higher vitamin D levels were better performers at memory and processing tests. Researchers believe that vitamin D can protect the brain’s signal pathways.
You can find vitamin D from the sun’s rays, many type of fish and fortified in milk products.
Folic Acid
Folic acid AKA folate is vitamin B9 that can slow cognitive decline and preserve memory in the elderly. In a study conducted by Nurse’s Health, participants who supplemented their diets with folic acid had the memory capabilities of nurses that were 5 1/2 years younger and cognition that was 2 years younger. Folic acid deficiency has also been linked to depression.
Folic acid can be found in beans, spinach, asparagus and fortified foods such as breads and cereals.
Vitamin A
Vitamin A is a nutrient that helps with our ability to learn and can assist with the development of the nervous system in embryos. A study from the Salk Institute for Biological Studies shows that vitamin A can improve the brain cells that are associated with memory and learning.
Vitamin A-rich foods include carrots, liver, spinach, eggs and fortified dairy products.
In addition to these nutrients, make sure to fuel your brain with complex carbohydrates as well as Omega-3 fatty acids that protect brain cells. If you’re not getting enough of these essential nutrients for the brain, then supplement it with a daily multi-vitamin/mineral to ensure optimal brain performance.