There is this show on TV that I have grown to love and look forward to…car SOS. It is a car rescue show much like ‘pimp my ride’ but on steroids; it is almost like beautiful poetry how they build up the internal mechanics and the external skeleton of an old beat down car and restore it back to its former glory. Plus its cute to see grown men cry over their machines.
Watching how things work up close, and the human creativity and ingenuity involved is fascinating. But even more mind blowing. No pun intended – is the machine that sits within your skull a few inches from your eyes, running the operating system of man from the time we were in vitro to the moment we breath our last. Forged many millions and millions of years ago. The brain is a hyper connected neural network powering incredibly complex and invisible symphonies of neurological processes. It is like a conductor and an orchestra.
Scientists and neurologists even in this age of information and technological advancements are yet to fully map it out. Nothing man ever made (not even the renowned artificial intelligence) could come close to this elegantly built, seamless and blisteringly fast machine.Through it we think, see, hear and distinguish the ugly from the beautiful, the bad from the good, the unpleasant from the pleasant. It makes us mad or delirious, inspires us with fear, brings sleeplessness and aimless anxieties…. In these ways I hold that the brain is the most powerful organ in the human body.
What causes Brain Disease
No man is an island and the brain is not either. More connected than tenderpreneurs, its vast networks have it influencing almost all other organs not only as the command center. But it is connected to the functions of some of these organs. The most notable relationships are those with the heart and the gut. (FYI the gut isn’t an organ, but it’s made up of a bunch of them). The brain needs some TLC and good fuel to perform optimally.
However, somewhere along the way we focused on everything else but the brain and the consequences are evident in the rising number of mental diseases and conditions. What we Africans once upon a time referred to as white mans’ diseases are now prevalent in our populations with words like dementia and Alzheimer’s not too far from our tongues. Especially when we near our sunset years. ADHD, chemical imbalances resulting in bi polar disorder and epilepsy need no introduction for they have made a name for themselves. If brain health is not a crisis worth a place at the table, why then a steady increase over the years in the use and over dependence on anti-depressants, sleep aids, stimulants and drugs of abuse?
I will not have done my job right if after reading this, you are not inspired to want to do something to fine tune your own ‘machine’.
Other than the Shakespearean effect my new found love has on me, Car SOS teaches me that if a machine is left unchecked for a long period of time, while it might still be mobile, its efficacy is compromised. It becomes a smoke combustor, consumes fuel less efficiently, moves slower, and slowly turns into a rust bucket.
You Are What You Eat
Just as gasoline/ oil is to a machine, so is food to that gooey mass of gray matter that is your thought factory and every other organ in your body. Your brain is the fattiest organ in your body with DHA (a type of omega 3 fatty acid). Making up to 35% of the brain’s dry content hence an essential component of brain cells. Omega 3 is only found in food sources. What if I told you that your brain is one of the starved organs in your body, would you believe me? Well, it is. The following are some of what I like to call‘happy hour’ foods for the brain.
Avocado
Here is all avocado lovers can celebrate… having been on the right track all along. They have one of the highest fat capacity of any fruit or vegetable (FAT is good for you…the good kind of fat.). It boasts of a cocktail of different types of vitamin E, which is more than any supplement can provide carotenoids which are antioxidants. It is also rich in potassium (twice the amounts found in bananas) which is linked with vascular dementia and stroke.
Tip: Aim for a 1/2 to a 1 avocado daily in a salad, or as a spread on your toast, or in your fruit juice/ smoothie. Or maybe mix it up with an egg yolk and some black pepper for an interesting deviled egg (why it is called deviled, I do not know).
Berries
These have among the highest antioxidant capacity of most fruits due to an abundance of flavonoids. Even more remarkable is their ability to cross the blood to brain barrier a factor that helps enhance the brain’s memory center and mood.
Tip: Experiment with salads, or smoothies or snack on your berries either way berries, berries, berries. Black berries, raspberries, strawberries or blueberries. Opt for organic, but even dried ones will suffice.
Dark chocolate:
In addition to being one of the richest sources of magnesium, dark chocolate’s cocoa flavonoids have the ability to reverse signs of cognitive aging. Another added benefit of this bitter dark is that it improves insulin sensitivity as well as vascular function. Hence blood flow to the brain.
Tip: This is not the milky and sugar filled chocolate products in the market, look for chocolate with cacao content above 80%, and one that isn’t processed with alkali aka dutch processing and one with minimal sugar content (lower than the cacao content). The nutrition information should be indicated on the packaging.
Dark Leafy Greens
The only dark side of life you should dare to revel in. Leafy greens are rich in nitrite, a compound that is linked with the dilation of blood vessels and in the expansion of arteries while improving blood flow hence an uninterrupted fuel supply to your brain. Foods like terere (amaranth), managu, beet greens (beet root leaves), spinach, broccoli, and swiss chards.
Tip – sauté in some olive oil and add garlic, or steam and add some butter and season. You can add to your smoothies for your source of fiber.
Eggs
Did you know that eggs contain a little of nearly every vitamin and mineral required in the body? Vitamin A, B12, E, selenium and even zinc just to name a few. Most notable though is choline; a component of a neurotransmitter responsible for learning and memory. They also have carotenoids that boost the brains processing speeds.
Tip – Scramble, poach, fry or boil. Do it how you like itAnd for a twist, how about an egg curry?
Fats
Rewind back to the point where I mention fats and the brain
Now that we have all these information, what next? Well, mine is to shine a light on the ignorance and yours is to decide what to do with your new found knowledge, so here is my two cents: Take care of yours; pregnant mothers, double the care for you and your baby’s brains. You have only got one with no spares.
Written By,
AbabachTamiru
Nutritionist/ Dietician
