Did you know that 95% of seniors, as well as most women of childbearing age, are not getting the right amount of folate, a type of B vitamin that is essential to the brain. Another B vitamin, Vitamin B12, is also critical to brain health. Without enough Vitamin B, our brains cannot make the chemicals we need for mood, brain function, and healthy sleep. It's one of the many dopamine and serotonin co-factors: vitamins your brain needs to convert the amino acids in your diet into feel good neurochemicals. By not getting the right amount of Vitamin B in your diet, or folate, or Vitamin D, or EPA, or DHA, or Tryptophan, or tyrosine, you are basically guaranteeing that your brain chemistry will be imbalanced and that you will feel anxious, stressed out, uninspired, and depressed, probably with sleep problems as well.
Your brain also needs exercise, sleep at appropriate intervals, both downtime and stimulation, the chance to continually learn and grow, and sources of meaning and inspiration. Take away any one of these vital factors and your brain chemistry goes out of whack. You will think badly and feel worse, all without knowing why. The cells in our brains require twice as much energy as the cells in the rest of our body. So make sure that your are feeding your brain well with whole foods and a well balanced diet. And make sure to get those B Vitamins in there. Thanks for reading and I will see you soon.
