I came across this interesting article today – and thought it was great advice for most of us healthy smoothie enthusiasts. And probably very relevant brain boosters for those of us who, like myself, are getting older than we like to admit!
Its from Claire Georgiou, Reboot Naturopath, B.HSc ND, who lists 10 things to enhance brain health. Most are directly relevant to smoothie making…
I’ll let Claire explain why it matters so much…
As we age so unfortunately does our body and our brain.
The brain is highly susceptible to oxidative stress, which increases during aging and is considered to be a major contributor to neurodegeneration, dementia, brain aging, poor cognition and poor memory.
It’s really important that we can arm ourselves with valuable tools to reduce the incidence of brain degeneration to improve our mental health and stay sharp. Dementia and other more serious conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease can have devastating effects on people’s lives and those around them.
I’ve listed my favorites smoothie brain food comments on the Next Page below…
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Claire’s Smoothie Brain Food Comments (My Top 4 Favorites):
Binge on Brainberries
Yep that’s right, eat up those blueberries for their powerful antioxidant benefits for the brain. The phytochemicals in blueberries have been linked to improvements in learning, thought and memory, along with reductions in neurodegenerative oxidative stress. A study showed that an extract of blueberries eaten every day led to a reversal of nerve cell damage in rats. After eating their daily dose of berries, the rodents learned faster, had a better short-term memory and had improved balance and coordination. Learn more about the power this little berry has on your health.
Spice it with Turmeric
Curcumin has even been shown to boost memory and stimulate the production of new brain cells. Turmeric may also help to reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimer’s disease is characterised by the build-up of amyloid protein (plaques) within the brain, blocking connections between nerve cells in the brain affecting memory. Curcumin has been shown to reduce the accumulation of these plaques.
Keep it Dark
Dark green leafy vegetables contain vitamin K, folate and vitamin E. One study showed that adults who ate plenty of leafy greens had a younger brain by up to 11 years than those that didn’t. Folate has been shown to decrease an amino acid called homocysteine which has been shown to accelerate brain cell destruction and oxidation, it has also been associated with cardiovascular disease and stroke. Folate naturally reduces the level of homocysteine in the blood and the brain so go the greens.
And Even Darker
It’s dark chocolate we are talking about and only the good stuff! Cacao has been shown to improve verbal fluency and cognitive function in elderly people. Daily consumption of flavanol-rich cocoa can increase the cerebral blood flow to the gray matter suggesting that chocolate may reduce vascular impairment, dementia and stroke injury.
To get all 10 of Claires Comments, be sure to go over to: rebootwithjoe.com
Image courtesy of: A Health Blog
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