B Positive

Do you want to improve your mood? Many individuals report that negative emotions like sadness or irritability interfere with their interpersonal relationships and inhibit them from being productive at work. If this sounds like you, try monitoring your intake of B vitamins. B vitamins including: B₁  (thiamine), B₂ (riboflavin), B₃ (niacin or niacinamide), B₅ (pantothenic acid), B₆ (pyridoxine, pyridoxal, or pyridoxamine, or pyridoxine hydrochloride), B₇ (biotin), B₉ (folic acid), and B₁₂ (various cobalamins; commonly cyanocobalamin in supplements) are important in many bodily and mental functions. They help with the functioning of our nervous system, increase energy levels, support cognitive functioning, increase mental acuity, help with the creation of neurotransmitters associated with mood, and help with the regulation of our emotions. In fact, many individuals with a B_6, B₉ or B₁₂ deficiencies experience depressive symptoms and increased anxiety.  This suggests the vital role these vitamins provide in maintaining positive emotions. Simple changes in our life, like monitoring our food intake can make a significant change in our attitude and mood. If you are looking to increase any of these vitamins in your diet, reach for a handful of peanuts, bananas, spinach, or scrambled eggs.

Your Brain is a Gas Guzzling SUV

Your brain is constantly in action and exerting energy. Your brain weighs about three pounds; yet, it consumes about 20-30% of your total calories burned in a day.  Just like our cars need gas, our brains also need fuel to operate. To get that fuel, our bodies break down the foods we eat into glucose. Glucose is the fuel used by our brains when our neurons fire and when our neurotransmitters are released. We get our glucose from carbohydrates. In fact, 40% of our carbohydrate intake is devoted to fueling our brains. It is better for our bodies to ingest glucose from complex carbohydrates, fruits, and vegetables. Even though glucose is a type of sugar, if we feed our brains simple carbohydrates like white sugar (sucrose) or white flour, we are actually only giving our brains a short supply of energy that will then cause us to crash. I am sure you are familiar with a sugar crash.  Our brains do it, too.  Sucrose (white sugar) may temporarily raise certain neurotransmitter levels, like serotonin. For many people when they crave sugar they are actually low in serotonin. Serotonin is associated with moods and most antidepressant medications work by stimulating serotonin levels. However, when we give our bodies sugar, it will temporarily increase serotonin, but cause a crash, too. This is why when people are sad, they might turn to chocolate cake, yet, after about a half hour feel worse and more depressed than they did prior to consuming the cake. In order to improve your mood and fuel your brain, give your brain a consistent source of energy like complex carbohydrates. Avoid simple carbohydrates because they will only make you feel worse in the long run.

Hey Fathead!

Did you know your brain is 60% fat? This fat helps to protect your brain and helps your neurons in your brain send messages to one another quickly. Your brain needs DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) omega three fatty acids. The kind of fat found in fish and algae. Your brain also prefers any of the omega three fatty acids including EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and ALA (α-linolenic acid). But, often, your body has to convert the EPA and ALA fats to DHA because your body needs a lot of the DHA fat. You might be wondering why you want this type of fat. The omega three fatty acids are malleable and flexible, whereas, saturated fats and trans fats are more rigid. The type of fat in your brain is dependent upon your diet. When your diet is high in trans fats and saturated fats, like from what is often found in animal products or processed foods, these stiff fats will be prominent in your brain.  You know what happens when these types of fats are more prominent in your brain? You might not think as clearly, you might have more difficulty recalling information, and you might suffer from mental illness. Deficiency in omega three fatty acids has been associated with dementia, depression, schizophrenia, anxiety disorders, ADHD, and bipolar disorder. In fact, in many clinical studies, individuals suffering with these mental disorders experienced significant symptom improvements by taking DHA omega three fatty acids pills.  If you are concerned about your fat intake, your physician can run a test to determine if you have enough DHA fat in your diet.