Do Vegetarians Lack Key Brain Nutrients?

Looking into the food groups that feed our brains, I have noticed that animal sources of certain fats and proteins are vital to our brain health. Our bodies absorb animal sources of Vitamin D better than plant sources.

Vitamin D is essential for immune function, and when researching the essential nutrients for brain function, I noticed we absorb many of these essential nutrients from animal sources.

Many of the nutrients are also from plant sources too, but it got me thinking whether vegetarians are lacking some key brain nutrients?

Life is movement. Many of us spend hours a week, some of us even hours a day exercising our bodies, our muscles, but what about the most important organ in the body? Do we exercise it? Do we extend it and increase the flexibility? Do we stretch it?

The greatest organ that has the greatest power to change our life and circumstance is between our ears and does not comprise muscle, but fatty tissue, nerve cells, other non-neuronal cells, and blood vessels.

Without a healthy brain and mind, we are all but lost. Lifestyle diseases are escalating in our society and we see increasing incidences of Alzheimer's and other brain and mental health issues.

If we are to live a happy and productive life and influence the world for the better, we need to protect the most vital organ in our body, the control centre of everything, our brain.

Variety is the key to a healthy brain. ‘You are what you eat’ was written back in 1826 by French Author, Anthelme Brillat-Savarin.

Real natural food sources provide real brain food nutrition

“If it came from a plant, eat it; if it was made in a plant, don’t.”-Michael Pollan.

Different food groups, including vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and healthy fats, like olive oil, as well as plant proteins and fish, all have a role to play in optimal brain nutrition. Food sources known to protect the blood and arteries, as well as your eyesight, appear to be the foods that we should focus on, if you would excuse the pun.

There is no one particular food that is a magic silver bullet for brain and cognitive health as we age. One thing that rings true is that I have never read a nutrition article for overall body and brain health that did not contain green leafy vegetables.

Leafy green vegetables prevent cancer and also fuel cognition.

Leafy greens contain phytonutrients, powerful compounds which make them indispensable to assisting our brains by slowing cognitive decline. These foods contain high levels of antioxidants and have an anti-inflammatory effect on the body. We should seriously consider any nutrient that supplies an anti-inflammatory effect because inflammation causes most diseases. Pain and inflammation are bed buddies.

There is another powerful partnership, the power pair of nutrients, namely folate and iron, which are key nutrients in leafy greens. Folate is important for DNA repair and duplication, which assists with fighting and preventing cancer. Cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, kale, bok choy, and cabbage are being studied for their cancer protection properties.

Iron has very important functions, energy production, transporting oxygen in the blood, and cellular health. Iron serves as an important transporter of oxygen from the lungs to the cells of the body. Iron influences several body processes and is crucial for collagen and hormones and neurotransmitters, as well as the synthesizing of amino acids. We absorb iron from animal sources, like beef and poultry, sardines, and oysters, better and iron from animal sources is more bioavailable than plant sources of iron.

Once again, animal sources of iron found in meat and seafood and poultry are better absorbed than plant sources of iron.

Fatty fish, avocados, and walnuts supply healthy fats to fight Alzheimer's.

Are all proteins good? We often refer to proteins as the building blocks of life, but can they also be the building blocks of brain decline? The answer is yes. There is a certain part of a protein called ‘beta-amyloid plaques’ that break off from a larger protein and these beta-amyloid protein plaques are a key cause of Alzheimer's disease.

Healthy fats can decrease the levels of these proteins in the blood. Who would have thought that we would choose fat over protein in some circumstances? Let's always remember though that not all proteins and fats are healthy.

Healthy fats, like omega-3 fats, found in fatty fish, are important for cognitive maintenance and repair. We can decrease the levels of unhealthy proteins in our blood by eating sources of protein that are excellent sources of omega-3 fats, like fatty fish. Canned tuna and salmon, cod and sardines, mackerel, and herring are all wonderful sources of omega-3 fats.

Walnuts actually look like little brains, so there is the first clue. They contain protein and healthy fats. Walnuts contain an omega-3 fatty acid called ALA (alpha-linolenic acid.) This fatty acid helps reduce inflammation and fights that old foe those amyloid-beta proteins that cause Alzheimer's. Walnuts may also decrease the risk of Parkinson’s’ disease, stroke, depression, and cardiovascular disease. Walnuts even have a positive effect in preventing type 2 diabetes. With so many health benefits, walnuts are a wonderful superfood.

Berries for brains and memory

Living life in full color. Berries have power in their colors. The pigments that give them their color are flavonoids. Flavonoids help improve memory. Flavonoids assist in blood flow to the brain and gene expression related to synaptic (nerve action) plasticity. Flavonoids also protect vulnerable neurons and enhance existing nerve structures.

Don’t forget to have a cuppa

Both tea and coffee contain caffeine, as well as other antioxidants. Both beverages have several studies that link them to warding off cognitive decline. The effects of coffee and tea seem to be short-term, but more and more research is pointing towards the longer-term benefits of coffee and tea for the brain.

So, in summary, what should we eat consistently to fuel our brains?

Meats like beef and chicken

Fatty fish like sardines and canned tuna and salmon, oysters, herring, and mackerel and cod.

Berries, the more vibrant colors and variety, the better

Leafy greens and cruciferous vegetables like broccoli and spinach, kale.

Nuts, particularly walnuts, for mental health and brain health.

Drink water, as most of our brain 73% comprises water, but studies have also shown coffee and tea slow cognitive decline.