How to “Eat Real Food”
4 principles for what this means in practice, and which real foods support your brain health and cognition
"Eat real food!"
Ever wondered what this really means?
Here's a rundown of four overarching principles to help you make choices to support your brain health and cognition
Principle 1: Avoid hyper-palatable, sugary processed foods.
These alter your brain function and impair how you think.
You’ll know what these are because they'll either come in a bag or a box.
Or, if what you're eating didn't exist in your great-grandparents' generation, there's a high chance it's highly processed.
Avoid these.
Eating whole foods keeps your blood sugar stable. Not only do you avoid crashes in your concentration, but frequent blood sugar swings are a risk factor for cognitive impairment.
Principle 2: Adopt a “whole foods” framework for what you can eat liberally, eat in moderation and what's best to avoid
Eating whole foods within a sensible framework (eat liberally nutrient-dense foods, moderate foods that might cause some inflammation, and avoid highly inflammatory foods - take a look here to find out more about this framework.
Principle 3: Certain nutrients support your cognitive performance, but obtain them from real food first rather than supplements.
This is because they contain nutrients that are important for brain health, like:
B vitamins
Choline
Iron
Zinc
Copper
Phosphorous
Potassium
Vitamin D
DHA
Folate
Tocotrienols (a form of Vitamin E)
Before you go out and buy lots of supplements containing these nutrients, I'd suggest taking a different approach - one that I share if I am asked:
1. Test first
It's important to test your nutrient status before deciding to supplement. Some vitamins, like Vitamin D, have a Goldilocks range - there is a sweet spot where the amount is just right, and having too much or too little can cause problems. It's not a case of "more is better". It also helps if you have someone trained to interpret your results, like a Functional Nutritional Therapist (let me know if need a recommendation), as results showing deficiencies or overloads of your vitamin and nutrient status might not simply be resolved by adding/subtracting what you have too little or too much of.
2. Food-first for obtaining nutrients.
Our bodies know what to do when we eat real, whole food. It's difficult to overdose on vitamins and nutrients in this way because, unlike supplements, the nutrients exist in a matrix.
A carrot doesn't just contain beta-carotene (the building block for creating Vitamin A but it comes with other things, like fibre, which is also good for your beneficial gut bacteria.
It's impossible to overdose on beta-carotene because you just can't eat that many carrots!
But you can overdose on beta-carotene supplements, as one of my university friends did when she started to turn orange from taking too many beta-carotene tablets.
Take a look at Principle 4 for food that can support your brain health with the nutrients listed above.
Principle 4: Introduce foods that your brain will thank you for
Mushrooms - rich in zinc, copper, iron, phosphorous and potassium - are all critical for brain health and cognitive function.
Organ meats - the most nutrient-dense food humans can eat (eg liver, heart and kidney). Liver, for example, is 20x more nutrient-dense than beef, eggs and milk.
Fibre - Fibre not only feeds you but feeds your gut bacteria, too. Prebiotic fibres, like those found in alliums (onions, leeks, garlic), asparagus, bananas, chicory root, artichokes, oats) are great for your beneficial gut bacteria, which in turn helps brain cognition by regulating blood sugar levels and elevating neurotrophic factors, like BDNF.
Green leafy vegetables - they contain nutrients that protect against cognitive impairment by reducing oxidative stress and neuroinflammation. 1
Tocotrienols - this is one type of Vitamin E that is a potent antioxidant for the brain, and can protect against oxidative damage that drives brain disorders. Barrie Tan is one of the leading researchers into Tocotrienols. Here are some of the benefits he's identified.
Did you know that most Vitamin E supplements contain the most common form of Vitamin E, alpha-tocopherols (as opposed to tocotrienols)? Barrie has shown they may increase the risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer, dementia and Alzheimer's Disease.
Dark Chocolate - aim for >70% cocoa content, and you'll benefit from the cocoa flavonoids that enhance human cognition by increasing BDNF, blood flow in the brain and blood glucose regulation2.
Eggs - a great source of choline and DHA.