A few weeks back, we had a situation with my abuelita. It was 2 in the afternoon. She was completely unresponsive, no motor control and, while I was not there, my family tells me her blood sugar was a major culprit. We have a long history of diabetes in our family. She has since recovered, however we have been working with her diet and have noticed a remarkable improvement in her from every angle. She’s eating a lot – yaaay!!! Gaining weight…and actually smiling, happy and excited to get out in the sunshine and walking and getting busy. Don’t even get me started on the stories that are on automatic repeat right now – lol!
She also has an element of dimentia/alzheimer’s that we are trying to work on. So, then I came across the article (link below) about one man’s experience with certain brain foods to help with memory retention.
His name is Mark Hatzer, and he started using certain foods that are known to nourish the brain. As a result, his mom had amazing results by switching things up with foods like broccoli, blueberries and walnuts. As a side note, you will see graphics like the one below with tidbits about some of the foods mentioned in the article…
(I use links on this page – however I do not receive any compensation for these. This is all based on my own research, and I would be remiss if I didn’t try and share these gems)
Anyhow – I digress. At the same time, I recalled a podcast I had recently heard where the beautiful Melissa Ambrosini interviewed Jim Kwik. Here’s a link for ya:
Jim was otherwise known as the boy with the broken brain. From a young age, he struggled with learning, and after spending enough time frustrated, he finally said enough was enough, and started researching anything he could to hack the brain. Now he is a world renowned coach helping A-List clients hack their brain. You should check him out at www.jimkwik.com. Ironically, the same foods he lists are strikingly similar to the foods that Mark Hatzer and his mom started adding to her diet. Anyhow, Jim is an amazing person and if you ever get a chance to check him out – he has so many cool tips to improve learning. Since he also works as a coach helping people to improve their memory, he has devised a memory aid to help remember which foods are on the healthy memory list. Here is a link to a blog post where he outlines them…
…and an infographic that I made up to help me remember them as well…and of course I had to make it pretty…
Now, have you ever heard of Dr. Mark Hyman? He was featured on the Women’s Alzheimer’s Movement in the blog post below, and has also been interviewed by Melissa Ambrosini.
If you have family with Alzheimer’s or Dementia – this article is a must read. It’s becoming more and more widely known that Alzheimer’s is closely linked to diabetes, has quite a lot to do with inflammation (ironically so do autoimmune disorders), as well as heavy metals in the brain. In fact, Alzheimer’s is now being referred to Type-3 Diabetes and is so closely related to the way our bodies process sugars. Additionally, there appears to be a deficiency in B-Vitamins, along with folate, or folic acid.
Side note: Did you know – that sugar affects the brain the same way that crack and cocaine do? Studies show the same brain activity after eating sugar that drug addicts have after taking drugs. Ever wonder why drug addicts seem addicted to other things like sugar and alcohol? There is a definite connection to the impact on the brain and our gut. Think…candida.
That is why DARK chocolate is so important. It has lower sugar content, and less milk. No – there are not DARK cocoa nib trees, and MILK Cocoa Nib Trees. The difference between dark chocolate and milk chocolate is the amount of dairy and sugar. However, there IS a WHITE chocolate tree in South America somewhere – although, unless you are paying massive amounts of money for said white chocolate, you are probably getting glorified palm oil. Having said that, my understanding is that the true white chocolate does not have the same properties that pure, brown cocoa nibs do. Which, if you can get cocoa nibs, and skip out on the sugar and dairy altogether, even better. I sprinkle them on my yogurt in the morning. Takes some getting used to – but now I totally crave them!
Back to the sugar…Did you know – that when you see tired, cranky kids out and about, and they do that tired eye rub with little red faces because they can’t calm down, 9 times out of 10, there is an issue with sugar management going on in their little bodies? There is a very specific look to a baby experiencing this. The book, Food and Behavior was pivotal in opening my eyes to this. It’s about a corrections officer who worked on rehabilitating inmates with an improved diet. Here’s a snippet of the book cover – I believe it’s less than $10 to purchase on the different sites I found it at.
Something tells me, that reaction we see in our littles when they have had too much sugar is biologically very similar to what’s happening in an Alzheimer’s brain. Even if it is not ‘exactly’ spot on, all this research points to ONE thing – WE can fix it. Now…before we get old…and before we get these diseases that wreak havoc on our precious babies, families and grandparents. So if there are simple things like salmon, walnuts and blueberries that can prevent insulin shots in later life…well, genius is simple. Just saying.
I hope these resources serve you and my hope is that you feel empowered to take your health back – with diet, exercise and natural resources BEFORE it’s time to see the white coats and pay for costly prescriptions. WE can fix our bodies naturally. That alone makes me feel so empowered!
If you’d like to hear my favorite resource for detoxing, managing inflammation and boosting your memory with healthy, vegan, full spectrum omegas, check out my Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/berriesandbrawn/…and for anyone that drops a like on my page – you get my complimentary 7 day wellness course via messenger or email.
As always, I hope you have a beautiful and happy day, and end it stronger than you woke up!
Sending squishes~
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