For a great in-depth review of the effects of food on the brain you can check out Fernando Gomez-Pinilla’s recent article in Nature Reviews Neuroscience (reference below). Here is an overview of the state off the research.

Several components of diet seem to have a positive effect on brain function.

Omega-3 fatty acids

These acids are normal constituents of cell membranes and are essential for normal brain function. Omega-3 fatty acids can be found in fish (salmon), kiwi, and walnuts. Docosahexaenoic acid, or DHA, is the most abundant omega-3 fatty acid in cell membranes in the brain. The human body produces DHA but not enough. So we are dependent on the DHA that we get from what we eat.

A randomized double-blind controlled trial (which means seriously conducted scientific study) is currently looking at the effect of taking omega-3 fatty acids on children’s performance at school in England. Preliminary results (Portwood, 2006) suggest that the group of children who received omega-3 fatty acids showed some level of improvement in school performance compared to the group of children who received a placebo. More research is needed to confirm these results but they look promising.

Fatty acids are also regarded as a promising but untested treatment as mood stabilizer. Hibbeln (1998) showed a negative correlation between fish consumption (i.e., omega-3 fatty acid intake) and major depression in many countries including the United States, Canada, Germany and France. A negative correlation means that as consumption of omega-3 decreases, the prevalence of major depression increases. Note that a correlation does not imply causation: we cannot conclude that low omega-3 consumption causes major depression.

Folic acid (or folate)

Folate is generated by the liver, after the intestine has absorbed vitamin B. It is found in spinach, orange juice and yeast. Adequate levels of folate are essential for brain function.

Corrada and colleagues (2005) have shown that people who take more folate than others have less risks of developing Alzheimer’s disease. Note again that this is a correlation so more research is needed to determine whether folate is indeed responsible for the risk reduction.

Flavonoids

These are found in cocoa, green tea, Ginko biloba tree, citrus fruits, wine and dark chocolate. The antioxidant effects of flavonols have been shown in vitro (in the test tube) but more research is needed to establish the effects of flavonols in vivo (in a living organism). So far, Ginko biloba extracts have been shown to reduce memory impairment in mice…with mixed effects in humans, at best.

Antioxidant foods

The brain is highly susceptible to oxidative damage. This is why antioxidant food has become popular for their positive effects on brain function.

Antioxidants are found in a variety of food: Alpha lipoic is found in spinach, broccoli and potatoes; Vitamin E is found in vegetable oils, nuts, green leafy vegetables; Curcumin is found in the curry spice; Vitamin C is found in citrus fruit and several plants and vegetables. Berries are well known for their antioxidant capacity but it is not clear which of their many components has an effect on cognition.

Guts and the brain

We have seen that what we eat can affect brain function. Interestingly, it has also been shown that guts hormones themselves can directly influence brain function. Indeed, several gut hormones such as leptin (which sends signals to the brain to reduce appetite), ghrelin (which acts as an appetite stimulant) or insulin (which is secreted by the anticipation of meals and during digestion) have been found to enhance memory formation through their action on the hippocampus. As you know, the hippocampus is one of the brain structures crucial for spatial learning and memory formation. These gut hormones have an effect on the plasticity (the ability to change) of the connections between neurons in the hippocampus. For instance ghrelin promotes the formation of new synapse during learning. Insulin can enter the brain and interact directly with cells in the hippocampus.

Final note of caution

Please note that most of the studies showing positive effects of all these nutrients on the brain have been conducted in mice. A few human studies are now published but more research is clearly needed to establish and understand the effects of specific foods on brain function.

References

- Corrada, M., Kawas, C., Hallfrisch, J., Muller, D., & Brookmeyer, R. (2005). Reduced risk of Alzheimer’s disease with high folate intake: The Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging. Alzheimers & Dementia, 1, A4.

- Hibbeln, J. R. (1998). Fish consumption and major depression. Lancet, 351, 1213.

- Gómez-Pinilla, F. (2008). Brain foods: the effects of nutrients on brain function. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 9, 568-578.

- Portwood, M. M. (2006). The role of dietary fatty acids in children’s behavior and learning. Nutr. Health, 18, 233-247.

— This article was written by Pascale Michelon, Ph. D., for SharpBrains. Dr. Michelon, Copyright 2008. Dr. Michelon has a Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology and has worked as a Research Scientist at Washington University in Saint Louis, in the Psychology Department. She conducted several research projects to understand how the brain makes use of visual information and memorizes facts. She is now an Adjunct Faculty at Washington University, and teaches Memory Workshops in numerous retirement communities in the St Louis area.

More articles on the topic:

- A Multi-Pronged Approach to Brain Health

- Overview of Nutritional Supplements and Brain Fitness

I mention this because we are really impressed by the just-published 24-page special issue on Preventing Memory Loss by Congressional Quarterly Researcher, one of the main publications in Capitol Hill.

The publication is not free, but worth the price for anyone active professionally in the healthcare sector, or interested in learning about latest research and policy trends, from academics to students. You can buy Buy the Electronic PDF ($4.95) or Buy the Printed Copy ($15 – $5 discount using promotion code “L8BRAIN” = $10).

Description

As the nation’s baby boomers age, they are increasingly worried that their memories will deteriorate — and with good reason. An estimated 10 million boomers will develop Alzheimer’s disease or another memory-destroying neurodegenerative condition in the coming years. Policy makers and health officials worry that the resulting bulge in the number of sufferers will burden the nation’s already strained health-care system. In the wake of these concerns, a vibrant brain-fitness industry is offering a variety of ways to help people keep their brains healthy, including the use of cognition-enhancing drugs and exercise. But many experts say much of what the public is being told is of limited value, at best. Intensified brain research begun years ago at the National Institutes of Health is just now beginning to produce data that scientists hope will advance efforts to prevent memory loss, but they worry that flat federal funding since 2003 may compromise the drive for solutions.

The writer

Marcia Clemmitt is a veteran social-policy reporter who joined CQ Researcher after serving as editor in chief of Medicine and Health, a Washington-based industry newsletter, and staff writer for The Scientist. She has also been a high school math and physics teacher. She holds a bachelor’s degree in arts and sciences from St. Johns College, Annapolis, and a masters degree in English from Georgetown University.

Table of Contents  

The Issues

291 • Do we know how to retard memory loss?
• Is memory loss a bigger problem today than in earlier generations?
• Are we on the way to curing Alzheimer’s disease?
• Should the use of memory-enhancing drugs be encouraged for people with normal memories?

Background

298 Multiple Memories
The brain has several different memory processes.
301 The Connection Machine
One brain cell can affect 10,000 others.
302 Slipping Memories
Decline begins by age 20.
303 Mental Strengths
All-important “gist” memory doesn’t fade with age.
304 Brain Disease
Alzheimer’s is the most common condition. 

Current Situation

304 Public Funding
Memory-research funding has remained flat since 2003.
306 Research Advances
New discoveries about memory have been made.
 

Outlook
307 Fitter Brains?
Entrepreneurs are developing “brain fitness” products.
 

Sidebars and Graphics

292 Alzheimer’s More Common Among Older Women
About one-in-six women 55 and older have or will develop Alzheimer’s.
293 Alzheimer’s Deaths Rise as Others Decline
Deaths from Alzheimer’s have increased 45 percent.
294 Alzheimer’s Risk Increases With Age
Nearly half of those over 85 have the disease.
296 Marketing ‘Brain Fitness’
The U.S. market grew to $225 million in 2007.
297 Unlocking the Mystery of Memory
High-tech tools reveal the brain in action.
299 Chronology
Key events since 1885.
300 Tips on Holding onto Your Memory
Good nutrition, exercise and stress reduction can help.
303 Spending on Research Has Been Flat
No major increases since 2004.
305 At Issue

Should we encourage use of scientific techniques to enhance memory and other cognitive functions?

For Further Research

309 For More Information
Organizations to contact.
310 Bibliography
Selected sources used.
311 The Next Step
Additional articles.
311 Citing CQ Researcher
Sample bibliography formats. 

Reprinted with permission from CQ Press, Preventing Memory Loss, CQ Researcher.

Exercise on the Brain extols the virtue of physical exercise for brain health at the expense of other important pillars such as good nutrition, stress management and mental exercise.

We have sent a Letter to the Editor to clarify the subject and put their main recommendation (go out and walk, or join the gym) in better context.

Let’s quickly review the four essential pillars to help maintain a healthy brain, and suggest some tips. Those pillars are:

• Physical Exercise
• Mental Exercise
• Good Nutrition
• Stress Management

1. 1. Physical Exercise
• - Start by talking to your doctor, especially if you are not currently physically active, have special health concerns, or are making significant changes to your current program.
• - Set a goal that you can achieve. Do something you enjoy for even just 15 minutes a day. You can always add more time and activities later.
• - Schedule exercise into your daily routine. It will be become a habit faster if you do.
• - If you can only do one thing, do something cardiovascular, meaning something that gets your heart beating faster. This includes walking, running, skiing, swimming, biking, hiking, tennis, basketball, playing tag, ultimate Frisbee, and other similar sports/activities.
2. 2. Mental Exercise
• - Be curious! Get to know your local library and community college, look for local organizations or churches that offer classes or workshops
• - Do a variety of things, including things you aren’t good at (if you like to sing, try painting too)
• - Work puzzles like crosswords and sudoku or play games like chess and bridge
• - Try a computerized brain fitness program for a customized workout
• - If you can only do one thing, learn something new every day
3. Good Nutrition
• - Eat a variety of foods of different colors without a lot of added ingredients or processes
• - Plan your meals around your vegetables, and then add fruit, protein, dairy, and/or grains
• - Add some cold-water fish to your diet (tuna, salmon, mackerel, halibut, sardines, and herring) which contain omega-3 fatty acids
• - Learn what a portion-size is, so you don’t overeat
• - Try to eat more foods low on the Glycemic Index
• - If you can only do one thing, eat more vegetables, particularly leafy green ones
4. Stress Management
• - Get regular cardiovascular exercise
• - Try to get enough sleep each night
• - Keep connected with your friends and family
• - Practice meditation, yoga, or some other calming activity as way to take a relaxing time-out (maybe a bath)
• - Try training with a heart rate variability biofeedback sensor 
• - If you can only do one thing, set aside 5-10 minutes to just breathe deeply and recharge

1. Why is it so important to exercise our brains?

Our brains are composed of different areas and functions, and we can strengthen them through mental exercise- or they get atrophied for lack of practice. The benefits are both short-term (improved concentration and memory, sustained mental clarity under stressful situations…), and long-term (creation of a “brain reserve” that help protect us against potential problems such as Alzheimer’s).

2. What are 1 or 2 things that are guaranteed “brain drains”?

- high-levels of anxiety and stress, that are guaranteed to distract us from our main goals and waste our limited mental energies.

- a very repetitive and routine-driven life, lacking in novelty and stimulation. We have brains to be able to learn and to adapt to new environments

The trick therefore, is to take on new challenges that are not way too difficult/ impossible, and learn how to manage stress to prevent anxiety from kicking-in.

3. What are three easy and quick mental exercises that everyone should be doing daily?

- For stress management: a 5-minute visualization, combining deep and regular breathings with seeing in our mind’s eye beautiful landscapes and/ or remembering times in our past when we have been successful at a tough task

- For short-term memory: try a series subtracting 7 from 200 (200 193 186 179…), or a series involving multiplication (2,3 4,6 6,9 8,12…) or exponential series (2 4 8 16 32 64…) the goal is not to be a math genius, simply to train and improve our short-term memory. Another way is to try and remember our friends telephone numbers.

- In general: try something different every day, no matter how little. Take a different route to work. Talk to a different colleague. Ask an unexpected question. Approach every day as a living experiment, a learning opportunity.

4. Are crossword puzzles and sudoku really as great for exercising our brain as they are reported to be? Why? And what about activities like knitting?

“Use it or lose it” may be misleading if we think that “It” is just one thing. The brain is composed of many different areas that focus on different things. Doing a crossword puzzle only activates a small part of the brain. The 3 key principles for good brain exercises are: novelty, variety and constant challenge. Not that different from cross-training our bodies.

The first time we do a crossword, or sudoku or knitting, that is great, because it forces us to learn. But when doing it is completely routine, the marginal benefit is very limited. Nowadays neuropsychologists do not recommend paper-based activities but computer-based brain exercise software programs, since they can provide a variety of new activities all the time, always tailored with a proper increasing level of challenge.

5. Any foods that increase our brain fitness?

The main principle is that foods that are good for our body are also good for our brain. omega-3 fatty acids, found in cold-water fish such as mackerel, herring, salmon, and tuna, also have shown some benefits. There is contradictory data on Ginkgo biloba. The best “brain food” is, literally, mental stimulation.

6. Does physical exercise also exercise our brains?

In summary, physical exercise is important because it influences the rate of creation of new neurons in our brains. Mental exercise is important because it helps determine how those new neurons are used-and how long they survive. Stress can reduce both the creation of new neurons and their lifetime, so stress management is important too.

7. Maria writes in her comment below “I read with great interest this post on brain-stimulating activities. I was surprised that software with a changing challege level was considered the best stimulation, since it’s a sedentary activity. Isn’t active learning, that combines physical and mental exercise, the best way to stimulate the brain? Thanks, and love your site!”

Answer: Great comment. We are talking about 2 different things here:

- Habits for long-term good brain health: we usually mention the 4 pillars of nutrition, physical exercise, stress management and mental stimulation. Yes, constant active learning provides great mental stimulation.
- Short-term Training and improvement of one specific area (memory,…): you need something more direct and well-targeted training experience such as that provided by a computer-based program, that assesses where you are today and “stretches” that specific capacity.

Both aspects are very important, in the same way that both walking often and going to the gym to do targeted workouts are complementary for physical fitness.

Hope that helps-let us know any other question!

———-

Note: How can anyone take care of his or her brain when every week brings a new barrage of articles and studies which seem to contradict each other?

Do supplements improve memory? Do you need both physical and mental exercise –or is one of them enough? Why is managing stress so important to attention and memory? Which brain training approach, if any, is worth one’s time and money?

If you have these questions, check out this new book, The SharpBrains Guide to Brain Fitness:

“Kudos for an excellent resource! This SharpBrains Guide is full of top notch information, provides practical tips and helps separate hype from hope in the brain health arena.”
—Elizabeth Edgerly, Ph.D., Chief Program Officer, Alzheimer’s Association

Order Book at Amazon.com
	Click Here to order at Amazon.com. Print Edition, $24.95

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Research shows that adults can and should take care of their brains, both for short-term and long-term benefits. Through brain exercise we can improve our overall cognitive function right now—making quick decisions, staying calm and focused under pressure, and multitasking effectively. Over time, we may not reduce our brain age, but we can build up a cognitive reserve to buffer against age-related cognitive decline or other progressive diseases. Short term and long term, we all want to lead productive, successful lives.

Any good brain fitness program must provide you a variety of new challenges over time. While recreational activities like bridge, sudoku, and crossword puzzles can work our brain, only a comprehensive tool based in scientific research, like MindFit, can work your mental muscles systematically through a completely individualized training regimen for your precise cognitive level. MindFit focuses on life abilities such as: working memory, visual and auditory short term memory, planning (want to train your neocortex?), location memory, naming, time estimation, divided attention, and hand-eye coordination. MindFit Corporate is the same edition of MindFit which can be used by companies (please contact us if interested in learning more). 

Now, If the overarching goal of a brain fitness program is to increase neurogenesis, the creation of new neurons in your brain, then stress management is essential, as prolonged stress kills the very cells you are trying to grow. A biofeedback program, like Freeze-Framer, provides immediate feedback on how you’re doing at lowering your stress and maintaining your peak performance zone. The included sensor shows your heart rate variability in real time as you practice calming and focusing techniques. It’s easy to use and you can see the results immediately. After a few 10-minute sessions per week, you should be able to carry the skills you have learned into your office, home, gym, or athletic competition.

Problem		Solution
Concern for maintaining and improving existing cognitive functions, as well as slowing any age-related cognitive decline		Our MindFit Brain Workout tests 14 different cognitive skills based on a personalized training regimen.
Work stress, family pressure, and anxiety over responsibilities in life		Freeze-Framer teaches you to achieve physiological balance, mental clarity, and emotional stability.

Further Reading

• Emotional self-regulation and biofeedback
• Finding Time for What’s Important
• Physical and Mental Exercise
• Lifelong Learning and Brain Training
• How can I improve my short term memory?
• Neurogenesis and How Learning Saves Your Neurons

(You can join our monthly newsletter by subscribing at the top of this page).

Brain Games will give adults all the challenge they can handle

Baltimore Sun, MD. Mar 22, 2007.The reporter provides a great survey of products. The only parts I find missing are:

1) what specific cognitive skill/s is/are being trained by each product? if we understand that the brain has a variety of structural and functional areas, it becomes evident that different programs may be training different “mental muscles”.

2) How does each program enable the user measure progress in an objective way? I’d say this is the main difference between “games” and brain fitness programs. If you have a wildly different brain age everytime you try…that so-called brain age is not very credible.

Does brain exercise fight dementia?
Minneapolis Star Tribune (subscription), MN. Mar 18, 2007.As the article mentions, no program can claim to “prevent Alzheimer’s”. And I haven’t seen Posit Science (or us) claim such a thing, or imply it. But what can be claimed is meaningful:

First, targeted mental exercise can help us improve our short-term quality of life. When many of our clients do regular brain exercise, they most often are interested in improving memory and other mental functions for the here and now; what may or may not happen in 30 years is not the only reason to learn more about brain fitness.

Second, regular brain exercise can slow the appearance of disease related symptoms. Studies have shown that particularly in the early stages of these diseases, the brain is still able to learn and change.

Learning is neuroprotective by increasing neuronal connections between neurons, increasing cellular metabolism, and increasing the production of nerve growth factor, a substance produced by your body to help maintain and repair neurons.

Unfortunately, nothing available today can fully prevent these diseases from occurring. However, regular training with a cognitive fitness program can postpone the appearance of the cognitive symptoms and build up your cognitive reserve.

Other articles:

Learning Slows Physical Progression of Alzheimer’s Disease

I don’t want to ever retire. What can I do to remain sharp?

Cognitive Reserve and Lifestyle

 

Question:
Can a brain fitness program help me become more creative?

Key Points:

• Creativity can be trained, like other mental muscles.
• Set up structured time, places, or routines that provide a framework for creativity to happen.
• Reducing your stress helps to keep your brain more flexible.
• Using many parts of the brain as well as trying new things will stimulate the areas of your brain involved in creativity.

Answer:
Yes. As with all forms of brain exercise, creativity takes consistent effort, organization, and commitment. It is hard to be creative if you work without any structure. This structure can take many forms: daily routines, limited distractions, or a record of the steps you took to get from the beginning to the end of a project or idea.

Idea generation and creative drive originate in interactions between the frontal lobes, other parts of the neocortex, and the limbic system. Positron-emission tomography (PET) scans of people’s brains during creative tasks suggests that creativity arises largely from the “association cortex” — parts of the frontal, parietal and temporal lobes that integrate sensory and other information. Frontal lobe damage usually decreases idea generation, in part because of mental rigidity.

The frontal lobes and other parts of the neocortex can be exercised by a variety of activities and shut down with stress. Try making close observations of a specific item or imagine being someone else — try to experience life in those shoes. Do less of the passive things in life, like watching television and do more activities that challenge you to be original. Try new things.

Further Reading

• Cruzan Morton, Carol. Brain Regions May Sap or Spur Creativity. Focus: News from Harvard Medical, Dental, & Public Health Schools. December 12, 2003.
• De Bono, Edward. Lateral Thinking: Creativity Step by Step. (Harper Paperbacks; 1973). ISBN 0060903252.
• McConathy DA. Theories of creativity. J Biocommun. 1990;17:11-5.
• Schwartz, Jeffrey and Begley, Sharon. The Mind and the Brain: Neuroplasticity and the Power of Mental Force. (Regan Books; 2003). ISBN 0060988479.
• Tharp, Twyla. The Creative Habit: Learn it and Use it for Life. (Simon & Schuster; 2003). ISBN 0743235266.
• Zull, James. The Art of Changing the Brain: Enriching the Practice of Teaching by Exploring the Biology of Learning. (Stylus Publishing; 2002). ISBN 1579220541.

Some quotes:

- “The notion of brain fitness has even invaded popular culture. In April, Nintendo released Brain Age, a Japanese-inspired, handheld video game to help users’ minds stay active. While the game is marketed for all ages, the buyers — now numbering more than 655,000 in the U.S. — have mainly been older people, Nintendo of America spokeswoman Amber McCollom writes in an email.”

- “Players take a nonscientific test that calculates a “brain age” for the purposes of the game. Through a series of puzzles and other challenges, they try to shave years or even decades off their brain age score. A catchy gimmick, but people shouldn’t take it seriously. “The notion that there’s a brain age isn’t well accepted,” says Timothy Salthouse, PhD, a University of Virginia psychology professor who is an expert on cognitive aging.”

- ”…people shouldn’t consider brain training as a magic cure to stop brain aging, experts say. While it may be possible to improve memory and learning, Posit Science is careful not to claim that it can delay or prevent a decline in mental function, Mahncke (Posit’s Research Head) says.”

- “We can’t coerce seniors to do what’s good for them,” Michel (Dakim’s founder) says. “We believe that Mary Poppins was correct when she said that a spoonful of sugar makes the medicine go down.” “You are seeing the birth of this industry,” he says.

- “In the future, as media stories have begun hinting, will this country also see more mental athletes “pumping neurons” and doing “neurobics” well into their twilight years?”

No quick or easy fixes. But training “mental muscles”/ cognitive skills will one day be as commonplace as working on those abdominals (and we hope more fun!)