Happy February Everyone! We hope you are all staying happy and healthy. We would like to help educate you this month about Brain Nutrition. And yes it can include chocolate!!! Perfect timing for Valentine’s day and if you are a daily consumer of chocolate. As we all know many diseases and symptoms can happen with the Brain and this newsletter will provide you with some ways to prevent and assist your brain with healing. This can be done by simply adding specific foods into your diet and making healthier choices.

Nutrients for your brain in SE Calgary

I recently took a course by a neuroscientist who specializes in nutrition for all her clients. Some of the key pointers I took home are:

• Blood Sugar Fluctuations: hypo and hyper glycemia can affect the vessels in the brain the same way diabetes impacts the vessels in the body. Hyperglycemia (high blood sugar) has been found to be linked with a higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s. Hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) can cause brain fuel deprivation, resulting in brain failure, seizures, memory loss, and trouble thinking. Over time diabetes damages small arteries in the brain leading to mini-strokes and brain tissue death which means a gradual loss of mental function.
• Inflammation: plays a role not only in the body, but in the brain as well. Chronic Inflammation in the brain has many symptoms like depression, anxiety, ADHD, MS, Autism, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s, to name a few.
• Foods and Supplements: that you can add to your diet that assist your body with reducing inflammation and stabilizing blood sugars, even treats like properly made chocolate!
• Toxins: and especially heavy metal toxins can damage the brain. By choosing chemical free cleaning products, eliminating toxic perfume/cologne, chemicals in beauty/body products you can lesson the amount of toxins entering the body. Aluminum foil can leach aluminum into your food. Antiperspirant for example also has aluminum, which can go through skin into your lymphatic/blood system. Your skin actually absorbs a portion of most everything it touches and those chemicals have to be filtered through your organs and tissues.

Brain Nutrient-Rich Foods

• Fruits and Vegetables
• Plant Fats: avocado, coconut oil, cacao butter, paste and raw powder, olive oil, nuts, seeds, coconut whip cream, nut and see butters.
• Animal Fats: Butter, Ghee, Clarified Butter.
• Low Glycemic Sweeteners: coconut palm sugar (low), stevia (low), monk fruit, maple syrup (mod), raw unpasteurized honey (mod). Maple syrup and honey are extremely nutrient dense for the brain and digest differently than white sugar. No sugar crash.
• Vitamins & Supplements: Vitamin B Complex 100mg tabs, Omega 3 fatty acids, Alpha Linoleic Acid (ALA), Vitamin E, LIONS MANE (stimulates nerve growth factor). All medicinal mushrooms are supportive of overall health and we take them all daily. Turkey Tail, Chaga, Reishi, Cordyceps etc are all super-food style mushrooms.

There is so much more we can tell you about with Brain health and are planning a Health Talk at our local YMCA in March. We will be sending out details soon! Please find a yummy Brain Healthy Brownie recipe here.

All of us at Mckenzie Lake Chiropractic and Massage want to give you a heart felt thank you for the continued support of our family practice. We love to witness and experience your miraculous transformations!!!

Happy Heart Day and Family Long Weekend!!!

Sincerely,

Treena and The Team at Mckenzie Lake Chiro & Massage!