Nutrition. Vitamins. You.
Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash Written by Allison Menor, BS Emotional eating is a problem that has plagued our country for decades as a result of unhealthy cultural behaviors. The use of unhealthy foods for positive reinforcement has caused millions of Americans to associate …
Photo by Eli DeFaria on Unsplash What is Rhodiola? The word adaptogen in herbal medicine refers to an herb or plant extract that helps the body adapt to stress and fatigue, while promoting or restoring normal physiological (bodily) functioning. Rhodiola is just such an herb. …
Acetyl L-Carnitine (ALCAR) is an absorbable form of the amino acid L-Carnitine, a naturally occurring amino acid that is synthesized in the liver and kidney. Like L-Carnitine, ALCAR produces energy in the mitochondria of the cell. Because it participates in energy metabolism, it can be supportive in healthy brain development, visual memory and overall focus. Simply, your body uses ALCAR to turn fat into energy.
Carnitine is found in high concentrations in certain foods like red meat and milk. But for those who do not consume the healthy 60-180 mg per day of Carnitine, including vegans, dietary supplementation of Carnitine (its active form) may be needed. Many clinical studies have shown benefits in athletes using Carnitine for improved performance. Other benefits have been shown for anti-aging, heart health, blood sugar health, and infertility.
Depression is a mental disorder that causes individuals to experiences a depressed mood, loss of interest or pleasure, feelings of guilt or low self-worth, distrubed sleep or appetite, low energy, and poor concentration. According to Harvard Health, some or all of the triggers and brain changes of depression may impair cognition, or thinking skills, including the ability to pay attention, memory, decision making, information processing, and executive functions (like returning phone calls).
Additional information –
European researchers reviewed a number of studies testing the effects of ALCAR (N-Acetyl-L-Carnitine) on depression. The reason, according to the researchers, is that a deficiency in brain ALCAR activity appears to play a role in the risk of developing depression. In nine randomized control trials, ALCAR was far better than placebo for improving and reducing symptoms of depression.
In three trials where ALCAR was compared to prescription antidepressants, ALCAR had similar effectiveness to the drugs for reducing depressive symptoms; it it much safer than commonly used drugs like antidepressants and has been shown to work faster. ALCAR was most effective in treating depression in older adults.
The study is published in the October 25th. 2017 issue of the journal Psychosomatic Medicine by researchers from the Neuroscience Institute, Aging Branch in Padova, Italy who worked in conjunction with researchers from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Neuroscience at Kings College, London along with a number of additional academic research institutions.
Most people know the difference between “good fat” and “bad fat”. You take the time to be sure you are consuming mostly good fats, like avocados or Omega-3s found in fatty fish. But what if your stress level was completely eradicating the positive benefits you …
Your thyroid is one of the smallest glands in your body, yet it is actually one of the most important. This gland is instrumental in the healthy regulation of functions like proper metabolism, energy levels, burning calories, the creation of body proteins and the reaction …
The saying, “You learn something new every day” is, in fact, true. With each day that passes, your brain acquires new memories – learning how to ride a bike, where you parked your car, the name of your new boss. But how much of this “memory space” does your brain actually have? And can your brain suddenly “run-out” of it?
Nelson Cowan, cognitive psychologist at the University of Missouri explains, “It’s not like each memory takes a cell and then that cell is used up. Over a long period of time, memories are encoded in neural patterns – circuits of connected neurons. And your brain’s ability to knit together new patterns is limitless, so theoretically the number of memories stored in those patterns is limitless as well.”
Many times, your memories combine, creating a kind-of memory interference. A good example of this happens when one tries to learn similar languages at the same time; Spanish and Italian, though they have very similar sounding words and pronunciations, can cause an interference or confusion that researchers are trying to figure out. Cowan assumes, “…two different ideas that are similar have similarities in the patterns of brain activity. Your brain has to settle into the right pattern, and if you are confused, your memory can fail when you settle on the wrong pattern.” This does not mean that your brain has run out of space; It means that it is trying to sort out all of the information that it is quickly taking in. So, according to Cowan, the capability to store information in your brain for the long-term can actually be endless.
How to Power Your Memory and Brain Health by Jerry Hickey, R. Ph
Short-term memory, however, seems to fill to capacity. If you are overworking your brain and trying to juggle too much information at one time, it seems that your short-term memory just can’t handle it. This explains why you can honestly never remember the name of the
person you just met or what you needed to do before you got interrupted by that phone call. Researchers like Cowen say that the number of items that people can actually retain in their short-term memory is very limited. However, by mentally assigning a meaning or group to an item or idea (Think: FBI, CIA, IRS…), short-term memory can actually be turned into long-term memories. Some memories that are forgotten can actually be for good reason. Joe Tsien, a neurologist who runs the Brain Decoding Project at Georgia Regents University, explains, “Our brains aren’t designed to store an infinite amount of information.”
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A study published earlier this year in Nature Neuroscience used neuro-imaging to reveal how learning something new promotes forgetting. They discovered that when two ideas compete with each other, the brain rallies inhibitory mechanisms to help, suppressing the distracting idea. The networks that are trying to hold on to older memories can’t continue to do so, so new memories are created in their place. However, even though older memories are replaced with new ones, Cowen explains, “The memories might still be there because memories depend on context.” This explains how you can still remember the name of the waitress at TGIF Friday’s when you’re sitting in the restaurant or how you can remember the name of the bartender while sitting with some friends at your favorite bar.
Your brain is continuously working to absorb information. Because of this, it is easy to think that eventually your brain will not be able to store any more information. Thanks to science and research, we now know that your brain does the opposite, by forming different methods to remember information – context, grouping items and memories together, forgetting old memories. So don’t feel bad when you can’t remember the name of your new co-worker. Just blame it on your short-term memory!
Source: http://www.msn.com