Feed Your Brain

 

Feed Your Brain explores the link between diet and mental health, and how food influences brain function. How what you eat — or don’t eat — can change the way you feel, and even affect your ability to learn new things, remember past events and sharpen your focus.

Feed Your Brain 

How Collagen Can Help Protect You From Alzheimer’s

MariaC , , , , ,

There are more than 20 different types of collagen. Connective tissue contains mainly types I, II and III. Hair and skin contain mainly type 1 collagen, and this is the type used in cosmetic products. Types IV and V are found in internal organs. Type VI is the one that plays a special role in the brain.
Collagen VI, it turns out, is a crucial part of the brain’s defence system. It is found abundantly in, and gives structure to, the blood-brain barrier. This barrier is the membrane that controls the substances that pass from general circulation into the brain, in the same way that the gut barrier controls what passes from gut to circulation. Collagen also has an antioxidant, protective effect against free radicals generated by oxidative stress. Free radicals are unstable molecules that can cause extensive damage to tissues if not kept in check by antioxidants.

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Feed Your Brain 

Why You Crave Carbohydrates

MariaC , , ,

I recently went to a local Christmas craft fair. It was delightful, in a tinsel-tat sort of way. The food stall was the main attraction, for me, so I quickly made my way over, hoping to discover something new and special. Alas no, it was the usual cake fest. Don’t get me wrong: there’s no denying the artistry of the craft. But there’s also no denying the artistry of how sugar creates cravings that lead to overeating, however pretty the presentation.

The one, non-sugary offering was artisanal bread. I rarely eat bread, or indeed any starchy carbohydrate, but it did look very good, in a homespun way. I wasn’t alone in my thinking. Mr Cross suggested we buy a loaf and keep it in the freezer, “for guests”. I know a cunning ruse when I hear one, but on this occasion I willingly played along.

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Feed Your Brain 

This Is What Happens To Your Brain When You Cut Out Carbohydrates

MariaC , , , ,

Treatment for mental health conditions is not always effective. Sometimes the meds work, sometimes they don’t. When they don’t, science has to look beyond the usual parameters for the solutions needed.

That’s why, between 2019 and 2020, French psychiatrists carried out an experiment on adults with “severe, persistent mental illness”. These various illnesses included major depressive disorder, bipolar disorder, and schizoaffective disorder. Their symptoms had responded poorly to intensive drug treatment.

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Feed Your Brain 

How to Combat Depression… With Fat

MariaC , , , ,

The human brain is often likened to a computer. I don’t know why; it’s nothing like a computer. Break open a head and you will see that the organ within is just a lump of wobbly fat. Yet it took millions of years of human evolutionary biology to fine tune that lardy lump. It runs entirely on what you feed it.
The dry weight of the brain is 60% fat. The rest of it is cholesterol (also very important) and protein (ditto). No other organ contains so much fat or needs it so much. Without it, the brain simply cannot function.

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Feed Your Brain 

BDNF: The Brain Protein That Protects From Depression

MariaC , , , ,

This protein is involved in the process of creating new neurons and is crucial for their protection and survival. It is involved in brain plasticity and regulates inhibitory and excitatory neurotransmitters.

BDNF is very much involved in maintaining mood.

Without sufficient BDNF, you are at risk of, among others, major depressive disorder (MDD) and bipolar disorder. The lower the BDNF level, the more severe the symptoms.

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