6 Foods to Promote Brain Health & Circulation
There are no shortage of products on the market that claim to make you smarter, but what if what if you could just incorporate a few simple things into your life that would benefit both your body and mind. Following are seven easy-to-incorporate (literally) tips to improve digestion, fight inflammation, improve circulation, and support brain health.1
1. Eat blueberries. (frozen organic), 2-3 oz daily. Great source of anthocyanins (the flavonoid that makes blueberries blue) that support circulation to the heart and body. Bonus.
Add 1-2 Tbsp over the top of blueberries for a healthy alternative after-dinner snack.
2. Increase fruit & vegetable consumption. This is about fiber and vitamin consumption. Eat whole fruits (juices miss the fiber), and vegetables at least twice at day.
Green veggies at dinner is probably not enough to sufficient protect your colon and cut inflammation. Cruciferous veggies like cauliflower, broccoli, Brussels sprouts. Also kale, which I hide in my smoothie (spinach, kale, coconut water, pineapple, banana, OJ).
3. Eat Chocolate! 85% cacao content. 1-2 oz daily. This is good for you!
Start at 70% and work your way up. As you get healthier, your taste buds will adjust. You can also take it as a powder or nibs. Add to your smoothie or to yogurt.
Try sheep milk yogurt with cacao nibs and State Street Honey from Los Altos.
4. Garlic. ½-1 clove daily or 6-18mg of alliin per day as a supplement. Reduces LDL, lowers blood pressure, antioxidant (aka protects cells from oxidative damage, including in the brain).
5. Drink 1-7 cups green tea daily. 3-4 cups being the goal. Or 170-250mg of catechins/day. Diuretic, antioxidant, anti-cancer, antibacterial, antiviral.
6. Eats foods that double as medicines. Like rosemary, turmeric, and ginger. Improve circulation to periphery, reduce headaches, reduce inflammation at a cellular level!
BONUS: Exercise. Mildly stressful exercise promotes hormesis or that ideal state that generates positive change without causing damage. I.e. weight lifting breaks down muscle and rebuilds it stronger. Exercise also of course improves mood, circulation, and metabolism.
References:
- 2019, Lee Carroll, BSc, BHSc (whm), Medical Herbalist, MNHAA. Functional Herbal Therapy, Module 3, “Nrf2 In The Clinic.”
