Can some foods make you smarter?
You may think it's nuts, but research shows that nuts and seeds just might boost your brainpower and balance your moods. That’s right, everything from the most common nuts — such as walnuts, hazelnuts, cashews and almonds — to the more exotic seeds and nuts can clear up that “brain fog” and enable you to think clearer and be happier than you ever imagined. Both figuratively and literally speaking, walnuts are “brain food.” As Rebecca Wood points out in her “New Foods Encyclopedia” the walnut looks remarkably like the human brain. “The thin, outer green husk, which is removed before the walnuts are marketed, is likened to the scalp. The walnut’s hard shell is like a skull. The thin envelope inside, with its paper-like partitions between the two halves of the nut, is like the membrane. The convoluted nut itself represents the human brain’s two hemispheres.” Now, you might not like to remember this resemblance while you’re eating a handful of them, but you will want to remember that walnuts are made up of 15 to 20 percent protein and contain linoleic (omega-6 fatty acids) and alpha-linoleic acids (omega-3 fatty acids), vitamin E and vitamin B6, making them an excellent source of nourishment for your nervous system.
A healthy nervous system means both clearer and happier thinking, according to research. In fact, according to Readers Digest’s “Fight Back with Food” under-consumption of omega-3-rich foods may actually lead to depression. The same walnuts that you can find in the baking aisle of just about any grocery store, may be able to boost your mood in a way similar to the famous antidepressant drug Prozac. Back in November 2004, NewsTarget covered the amazing antidepressant effects of omega-3 fatty acids. As is the case with Prozac, walnuts’ potential antidepressant effect pertains to serotonin, the important brain chemical that controls both your moods and your appetite. Like Prozac and other selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor drugs (SSRIs), walnuts may influence the human brain’s serotonin levels, according to Professor James Duke’s book “Anti-Aging Prescriptions.” That means that you may be able to relieve the disorders commonly treated with antidepressant drugs — insomnia, depression, overeating and other compulsive behavior — without the dangerous side effects.
Walnuts aren’t the only nut with mood-boosting omega-3s, either. Gandhi praised flax seeds as a wonder food, and many nutritionists and health food fans everywhere agree. In fact, at a recent visit to the Canyon Ranch Health Resort, flax seeds were all the rage. Guests just couldn’t get enough flaxseed bread and whole flax seeds as a garnish, and with good reason. Flax seeds are an excellent source for omega-3s, making them a viable source for those who don’t like to eat fish, the most common source of omega-3s. Like walnuts, flax seeds may offer an alternative to antidepressant pharmaceuticals, which are often loaded with side effects. However, as the editors of Bottom Line Health point out in their “Uncommon Cures for Everyday Ailments,” the effectiveness of walnuts or any other emotion-boosting seeds and nuts depends on the severity of your mental disorder. Furthermore, boosting your moods with nutrition should not be used as a substitute for the care of a medical specialist. Many varieties of seeds and nuts contain tryptophan, an important amino acid that the brain converts to serotonin. Roasted pumpkin seeds and dry sunflower seeds are an excellent source of tryptophan, making them a safe, natural way to relive mild depression and insomnia. Additionally, sunflower seeds are high in thiamine, an important B vitamin for memory and cognitive function.
While you’re in the nut aisle shopping for walnuts, pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds, be sure to pick up some cashews, almonds, pecans and peanuts too. Each can improve your mental health in its own way. Cashews are high in magnesium, which can “open up” the blood vessels in your body, including those in your brain. When more oxygen-rich blood nourishes your brain, like any organ, it operates better. By providing your body with phenylalanine, adding almonds to your diet can do wonders for your mental and neurological health. According to “Off the Shelf Natural Health: How to Use Herbs and Nutrients to Stay Well” author Mark Mayell, phenylalanine has the rare ability to cross the blood-brain barrier, where it then stimulates your brain to produce “the natural pain-killing and mood-boosting neurotransmitters dopamine, adrenaline and noradrenaline.” Accordingly, phenylalanine-rich almonds can drastically reduce the symptoms of Parkinson’s Disease, a neurological disorder that is always debilitating and often eventually deadly. Additionally, almonds are high in riboflavin, which may boost your memory.
Peanuts and pecans provide another important nutrient for optimal brain function, choline. When you look at our history as a species, the knowledge that some seeds and nuts may enhance brainpower and moods makes perfect sense. As “Origin Diet” author Elizabeth Somer writes, seeds and nuts were an essential part of our ancestors’ diets: “Up to 65 percent of our original diets were fresh fruits and vegetables, nuts, seeds, and other plants. Our ancient ancestors ate pounds of produce every day. The other 35 percent came from wild game, low in saturated fats and rich in polyunsaturated fats called the omega-3 fatty acids. Hundreds of studies spanning decades of research show that diets based on these foods are also the ones that lower disease risk, prevent obesity, boost energy and mood, improve mental function, and slow aging.” Seeds and nuts are essential to a healthy, well-functioning brain and, if they’re high in omega-3, essential to the brain development of an unborn fetus and growing child. It is worth your efforts to make them part of your diet, and that of your family.
The experts speak on seeds, nuts and your mental health: “Walnuts are both figuratively and literally ‘brain food'” According to the Doctrine of Signature, since the walnut looks like the human brain, it is used for brain injuries and mental illness in traditional, plant-based medical systems. Another of the great nuts, walnuts are a real brain food (they even look like little brains). The fatty acids and the 15-20 percent protein level nourish the nervous system, and the walnut when shelled looks remarkedly like the human cerebral cortex. The walnut is about 65 percent fat. It can be eaten raw or used in baking, and the pressed walnut oil can be used in cooking or even for oiling wood. It should be used fresh, though, as it is not very resistant to spoilage. Loaded with unsaturated fat, vitamin E, and ellagic acid, walnuts can lower cholesterol, fight cancer, and boost your brainpower. Use walnuts for baking or cooking, throw them in a salad for some crunch, or just munch on them for a tasty snack.
Another study showed that people free of Parkinson’s said as young adults they ate more seeds, nuts and salad oils, rich in vitamin E. Thus, researchers speculate that too little vitamin E foods earlier in life might somehow leave the brain vulnerable to the onset of Parkinson’s years later. There’s even preliminary evidence that massive doses of vitamin E (800 to 3,000 units daily) may slow progression of the disease. More extensive tests of vitamin E therapy for Parkinson’s are ongoing. Eating lots of fruits, vegetables, seeds, nuts, and grains helps open the door to your storehouse of memories. These foods contain powerful antioxidants, like vitamin C, vitamin E, beta carotene, and selenium. Research shows as the level of antioxidant nutrients in your blood rises, so does your mental function. “Other common nuts and seeds with powerful brain-boosting abilities” As for seeds, many varieties are rich in the amino acid tryptophan, a precursor to the brain chemical (neurotransmitter) serotonin. Serotonin is an antidepressant. Since people tend to overeat when they’re depressed or anxious, eating seeds may help lift their spirits and prevent weight gain. Nuts also contain pyrazine, which triggers the pleasure center of the brain. The mere smell of a freshly opened can of mixed nuts or a jar of peanut butter provides a strong whiff of pyrazine and a hefty dose of pleasure chemicals. Many of my clients binge-eat nuts due to their unfulfilled desires for pure fun and enjoyment. Fruits and nuts are brain food? Yes, according to recent experiments by research psychologist James Penland, Ph.D., at the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Grand Forks Human Nutrition Research Center.