5 Non-Negotiables For Better Brain Function
Better brain function, the thing that I see clients wanting the most in clinic.
As I’ve mentioned countless times, I’m a huge believer in 80/20. Doing the best that you can, 80% of the time, leaving the 20% for fun and spontaneity (and things that feed our soul). This means, by being consistent, rather than perfect, we achieve a more optimal result. What I’ve learned over my journey in health is that having time for those ‘soul-feeding’ behaviours is almost as equally important as doing the best by your body - for our mental health especially. By allowing ourself this flexibility it promotes a healthy relationship with food and exercise and higher level of well-being overall. This is a tried and tested method that I employ for myself - but, there a few things that I do absolutely everyday, without fail to help me be the best version of myself.
THESE ARE THE 5 THINGS THAT I DO EACH DAY TO SUPPORT MY MENTAL HEALTH, IMPROVE MY MOOD AND KEEP MY IMMUNE SYSTEM STRONG. THESE ARE MY NON-NEGOTIABLES!
Morning Light Exposure - If you’ve seen me in practice or just had a casual chat to me, you’ll know that I am a HUGE advocate for light exposure in the morning. That’s because it’s reported to have profound effects on our neurotransmitter production and regulation, as well as our circadian rhythm. Our body is a creature of habit; it loves to be in the same routine and on time. This little trick will help your body to do just this. Getting adequate light on our bodies within the first 30minutes of waking helps to spike our cortisol (this is when we want it to spike, and then gradually decrease over the course of the day), and commence serotonin production (our happy and alert hormone). This serotonin will then start to turn into melatonin in the evening, once the sun has gone down - Allowing for a restorative and restful sleep.
Cold Water Exposure - This is something I adopted after 1. talking to friends who swore by this and 2. listening to podcast after podcast that suggested this for many ailments, such as; inflammation, immunity and mental health. As it’s a free and relatively simple intervention, I began to use myself as a test dummy - When I tell you that I haven’t even had a NIGGLE of a sore throat (which I usually get as soon as I’m run down), since beginning this intervention - I bloody mean it. Not to mention the stabilisation in mood and energy throughout the day is truly just astonishing. Andrew Huberman (aka god) suggests that all we need is 1-5 minutes of uncomfortably cold-water exposure per day to start feeling the benefits of long-lasting rises in neurotransmitters such as dopamine and adrenaline. These neurotransmitters have a direct impact on our alertness and mood throughout the day.
Movement - Just 30 Minutes A Day. Whether this be training, walking, dancing, yoga or even gardening. Try to get 30 minutes of movement in daily. This helps with blood sugar regulation & insulin response, which helps to stabilise our energy levels. It also helps improve cardiovascular function, reducing the risk of cardiovascular diseases. Last but not least, movement/exercise has a direct impact on our mood through our adrenaline and dopamine channels - which also help with memory and cognitive function. Many therapists even use exercise therapy in conjunction with talk therapy to help with symptoms of depression and anxiety.
Hydration. This one is IMPORTANT. More often than not, the people I see in clinic are struggling to drink water… Do you want to know the first thing they say to me when they start making a habit of drinking 1-2L per day?? “Oh my goodness, I feel so good. I can’t believe all it took was increasing the amount of water I drink”. As a Naturopath, this baffles me. It’s something so simple and something we all need to survive but majority of us aren’t drinking enough. Our brain is actually 80% water. It’s scary to read but dehydration, even just by a small percent is associated with brain shrinkage (also, known as brain atrophy). So when we deprive ourselves of water it has negative impacts on our moods, energy levels and our ability to concentrate. And this brain shrinkage means we lose valuable neurons and connections in our brain that allow us to perform basic, everyday tasks.
Adequate Nutrition. Last but definitely not least on this non-negotiable list is ensuring we eat PROPERLY!! I love to use the car analogy - our bodies run like cars, if we don’t put fuel in them, they stop working. If we put the wrong fuel in them, they stop working (think diesel in a petrol engine). We can’t expect our body to work at it’s absolute best if all we are doing is putting $5 of fuel in at a time - or as mentioned above start putting diesel (processed foods) in our petrol engine. Again, I’ll mention the 80/20 rule - if we are doing the best we can 80% of the time then we give ourselves ‘wiggle room’ for that remaining 20%. This is what I like to tell my clients is our ‘soul food portion’. Food that may not be the best nutritionally, but foods that we love and food that brings us together with friends and loved ones (if I was to make a #6 on this list, it would be meaningful connections - so this is a 2 bird, 1 stone kind of deal). Without the right foods, its not rocket science, we can become nutrient deficient… So, why does that matter to our brain health? Neurotransmitters are made in our body (a lot of them in our guts) and need specific nutrients to actually completely synthesise. I’m talking; Zinc, B6, Protein, Omega 3’s, Magnesium, Vitamin C - the list goes on. Without these micro & macronutrients we can’t make these neurotransmitters, which results in low mood, low motivation, poor sleep quality, higher levels on inflammation in the brain… you get it, it’s a lot. Making sure we eat a variety of food groups (pesticide-free where we can) is the remedy to making sure we get a diverse range of nutrients. If we only eat low nutrient, processed foods not only are we depriving ourselves of nutrients (as mentioned above) but we are also contributing to increasing our toxic accumulation in our body (which our liver has to try to detox), increasing fat storage around our organs (which puts them under stress and makes them work harder than they should have to), and denying our gut bacteria the food they need to thrive. This is important because as I mentioned, a number of our neurotransmitters are actually synthesised in the gut BY this bacteria. Unhealthy bacteria = Unhealthy brain.
If you are looking for a way to optimise your brain function, improve your moods and increase your energy levels - look no further. Book in with me for an individualised treatment plan to get you feeling like the best version of yourself.