Getting the Maximum Out of Resveratrol – InVite Health Podcast, Episode 479
Resveratrol is commonly known for its anti-aging properties, but this nutrient actually packs a punch for the health of your brain, heart and more.
Tag: memory
Focus and Attention Support – InVite Health Podcast, Episode 460
Are you having a hard time maintaining focus or attention throughout the day? This may be brought on by stress. Turn to powerful nutrients that have been shown to support the body’s ability to fight stress and promote brain function.
Resveratrol and Brain Protection – InVite Health Podcast, Episode 445
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InViteⓇ Health Podcast, Episode hosted by Jerry Hickey, Ph.
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To protect our brain from the outside world in case we get conked on the head with something, we have a very hard skull. But what protects our brain from things that are inside of us that do not belong in our brain? We have a powerful shield called the blood-brain barrier and it’s pretty complex. The issue is that as we age, it can become a little bit porous. It can get a little bit leaky and things can get into our brain that don’t belong in there.†
The Importance of the Blood-Brain Barrier
So what exactly would our blood-brain barrier be protecting us from? We have viruses and bacteria in the body, but there’s also waste products, such as byproducts from energy utilization and muscle functions, toxins and our own immune system. These need to be kept out of our brain and that’s what the blood-brain barrier does.†
We have cells called astrocytes that look like stars that help to feed the brain and work as the brain’s immune system. Astrocytes that are located close to the blood-brain barrier have the ability to repair this shield. This, to a degree, is dependent on a gene called sirtuin 1. Sometimes, there’s an imbalance and the blood-brain barrier that shields our brain becomes leaky. Resveratrol can help correct this.†
With age, sirtuin 1 levels in the brain decline. This affects the brain in many ways. When this occurs, you’re not preparing the blood-brain barrier as efficiently and effectively as you used to and it starts to get leaky and porous. If this is severe enough, it can be involved with diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease.†
Resveratrol and Brain Health
A number of studies have found that inflammation in the body can inflame and damage the blood-brain barrier. This also inflames the brain and creates swelling. When the brain swells, it’s no longer capable of detoxifying. You get the buildup of a protein called beta-amyloid that can potentially become toxic. This protein creates chains called oligomers that poison your brain cells and kill your nerve tissue. This can lead to Alzheimer’s.†
In some of these studies, researchers showed that giving Alzheimer’s patients resveratrol was helping them to function better and even remember a little bit better. When the researchers really dug down deep into the data, they saw that the resveratrol was helping to heal the blood-brain barrier, so the bad things could no longer penetrate into the brain. Inflammation of the brain went down and so did swelling. The brain was able to restart the detoxification mechanisms and breakdown and remove some of the plaques.†
Resveratrol is triggering the repair of the blood-brain barrier. What it seems to be doing is restoring sirtuin 1 activity in the brain, which allows for the reactivation of astrocytes to repair the blood-brain barrier. This makes having a really high-quality resveratrol supplement very worthwhile in your 50s.†
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There is another important function of resveratrol for the brain. It also helps to restore circulation to the brain. Resveratrol is probably the most vaso-active supplement you can take. In other words, it helps to restore circulation throughout the body. This is especially important for the aging brain. The brain uses about 20% of the energy from each meal and to get all of that energy to the brain, you need a really good circulatory system. With age, the lining of your blood vessels stiffen and thicken, making it difficult for this energy to flow throughout the body and to the brain. Research has shown that resveratrol helps to restore circulation to the aging brain and is also very good for memory and cognitive functions.†
In this episode, Jerry Hickey, Ph. explains the important function of the blood brain barrier. He discusses how this shield helps protect the brain and delves into the ways resveratrol can help to keep it strong throughout the aging process.†
Key Topics:
- What is sirtuin 1?
- The dangers of getting toxins in the brain
- Research on resveratrol and brain health
Thank you for tuning in to the InViteⓇ Health Podcast. You can find all of our episodes for free wherever you listen to podcasts or by visiting www.invitehealth.com/podcast. Make sure you subscribe and leave us a review! Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at InViteⓇ Health today. We’ll see you next time on another episode of the InViteⓇ Health Podcast.
What to Know About Whey Protein – InVite Health Podcast, Episode 410
Whey protein may be known for supporting muscle mass, but did you know it also has benefits for cognition and metabolism? Learn more about why this blend of amino acids is important for aging people from Amanda Williams, MPH.
How to Improve Acetylcholine for Memory – InVite Health Podcast, Episode 396
Acetylcholine is a neurotransmitter that is important for memory and learning, but levels of this nutrient naturally decrease as you age. Turn to powerful supplements that can help you rebuild levels of this neurotransmitter and support brain health.
Vitamin K2: The Memory Vitamin – InVite Health Podcast, Episode 392
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InViteⓇ Health Podcast, Episode hosted by Amanda Williams, MPH
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When thinking about Vitamin K, we oftentimes think about our green, leafy vegetables. This is a good place to start because we know this is where a majority of our Vitamin K1 is sourced from. But did you know that there is another type of Vitamin K? It is called Vitamin K2.†
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What are the benefits of Vitamin K2?
Vitamin K2 is found in things like egg yolks, certain cheeses and certain meats. We know that it does some really unique things in the body that are slightly different from the way that Vitamin K1 works. Today, we’re going to look at the role of Vitamin K2 in the circulatory system and brain health.†
The way that Vitamin K2 works in the body is really impressive. The way it works in the bones, for example, is that it goes through and finds calcium to help drive it into the bone. It does this by activating a specific protein known as osteocalcin. When osteocalcin is activated by Vitamin K2, it’s binding that calcium tightly to the bone minerals, thus helping to create stronger bones.†
We also know that it does something else that is really quite unique, which is that it activates a protein called Matrix Gla. When Matrix Gla is activated from Vitamin K2, this actually prevents calcium from being deposited into arteries. By activating these two proteins, Vitamin K2 makes sure that calcium is delivered into the bones and not lingering in the bloodstream.†
How this impacts the brain
I want to talk about how both Vitamin K1 and Vitamin K2 have both been shown to be very beneficial to cognition.†
A study done by researchers at the University of Montreal looked at an association of Vitamin K levels in the blood and better memory in older adults. This is a really interesting way to understand how Vitamin K is actually working. They had a group of over 300 people between the ages of 70 and 85 years old. The researchers assessed cognitive function, but they were also looking at all these different things in the blood. One of the things they found was that there was a strong correlation between higher levels of Vitamin K in the blood and better scores on different measures they were doing to test cognitive ability, including the ability to learn new things and remember.†
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I think that this shows how Vitamin K plays such a critical role when it comes to the aging of our brain. We can think about how this helps to support proper blood flow, correct usage of calcium within the body and more.†
In this episode, Amanda Williams, MPH explains the important role that Vitamin K2 plays in the body. She discusses how it functions and shares a study that details how important this nutrient can be.†
Key Topics:
- The differences between the different types of Vitamin K
- Why Amanda calls this vitamin a “taxi driver”
- How Vitamin K2 functions within the body
Thank you for tuning in to the InViteⓇ Health Podcast. You can find all of our episodes for free wherever you listen to podcasts or by visiting www.invitehealth.com/podcast. Make sure you subscribe and leave us a review! Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at InViteⓇ Health today. We’ll see you next time on another episode of the InViteⓇ Health Podcast.
