With more than 6.5 million American children being diagnosed with ADHD, and close to 70% of them being medicated, it sure makes sense that we should consider how lifestyle factors, including diet, may affect a child’s ability to pay attention in school.
Certainly, DHA is important, as research has demonstrated significant improvement in focus in children with higher levels of this omega-3 fat. Continue reading
It seems like at this stage we’ve all come to an agreement that it’s essential to have a diet that’s rich in anti-inflammatory omega-3s. The problem is, when it comes to supplementation, there seems to be much confusion on which form is best. Among those people consider: krill, algae, and fish. In today’s video, I’ll explain why I suggest fish oil as the optimal choice.
According to the World Health Organization, chronic degenerative conditions now represent the number one health threat globally. That means that, likely for the first time in history, more humans are losing their lives to chronic, and largely preventable, conditions than to trauma, infectious diseases, and even war.
Yet, chronic degenerative conditions are largely preventable as they are powerfully linked to lifestyle choices. Diets higher in sugar and carbohydrates coupled with lack of physical activity are strongly related to increased risk for some of the most common degenerative conditions, like type 2 diabetes, obesity, coronary artery disease. Alzheimer’s, and even cancer. Continue reading
Today’s interview on The Empowering Neurologist is with Dr. Michael Lewis.
Dr. Lewis explains the profoundly protective and restorative effects of omega-3 fatty acids in brain trauma, an all too common experience. He is a renowned expert on brain health, particularly the use of omega-3 fatty acids for the prevention, management, and rehabilitation of concussions and traumatic brain injury. He founded the Brain Health Education and Research Institute in late 2011 after he retired as a U.S. Army Colonel with a distinguished 31-year career. His pioneering work has helped countless thousands of people around the world and has been recognized by the American College of Nutrition with their prestigious 2015 Humanitarian Award. Dr. Lewis’ work has been featured on Dr. Sanjay Gupta’s CNN program, and he regularly appears in the media. He is a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, and Tulane University School of Medicine in New Orleans. He completed post-graduate training at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Johns Hopkins University, and Walter Reed Army Institute of Research. He is board-certified and a Fellow of the American College of Preventive Medicine and the American College of Nutrition. He is currently in private practice in the Washington, D.C. area, and the author of the book, When Brains Collide.
Sleep disorders in the pediatric population are common, occurring in as much as 30-40% of children. When children don’t sleep well, it sets the stage for a variety of other problems including poor general health, fatigue, declining school performance, depression, behavioral issues and weight gain.
A new study reveals an intriguing finding that explains not only what causes some children to struggle with sleep, but more importantly, what might well provide a safe remedy for the problem.
British researchers publishing in the Journal of Sleep Research evaluated the sleep patterns of 395 children aged 7-9 years. In addition, they performed a blood analysis on these children to measure their levels of DHA, an omega-3 fatty acid. Continue reading
What if I told you that your gut bacteria have a large role to play in levels of BDNF, or brain-derived neurotrophic factor, which acts like growth hormone for the brain? In this video we look at probiotic supplementation and other ways to stimulate this brain protective hormone.
Yes, it’s true! Simply by engaging in basic lifestyle adjustments like regular exercise and smart dietary adjustments, you can increase production of brain-derived neurotrophic factor, or BDNF, in your body, which stimulates the healthful development and production of your brain.
ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) is a diagnosis that has now been “given” to more than 6.5 million American children. And if that statistic is not compelling enough, please understand that about two thirds of these children are actually receiving mind altering medications to “treat” the disorder. But there are certainly other considerations that parents should make prior to engaging these potentially health threatening medications.
In the well-respected, peer reviewed medical Journal Pediatrics, doctors J. Gordon Millichap and Michelle M. Yee, published a report entitled “The Diet Factor in Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder.” In this comprehensive review, the authors reviewed a variety of dietary issues including omega-3 fatty acids, dietary sugar, allergic considerations, iron, and zinc, and produced a very provocative report indicating, at the end of the day, that we are probably significantly missing the boat in terms of what is being done to American children with the mistaken notion that treating them with aggressive pharmaceuticals is going to help them perform and reach academic goals.
By: Austin Perlmutter, MD, Medical Student, Miller School of Medicine
Lets talk nuts. From macadamias to pistachios, nuts are nature’s energy packets. For their taste, they’re a classic cocktail party snack, and for their calorie and fat content, they’re villainized. But curent research supports the idea that calorie quality matters at least as much as quantity, and despite prior misgivings about our tasty snacks, nuts may in fact be quite healthful after all.
First, lets look at the most recent data, a meta-analysis in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition relating to nuts and their interaction with ischemic heart disease, diabetes and all cause mortality, which found nut consumption inversely related to risk of heart disease and death from any cause. Suggestions for these findings usually center around the healthful fats found in nuts, as well as their anti-inflammatory effects and high mineral contents.
When heart disease tops the list of death causes in the US, it’s worthwhile to look closely at anything lowering our risk for developing this deadly condition. Some data even suggests that the same healthy omega-3 fatty acids found in nuts act as antiarrhythmics, stabilizing our heartbeat patterns. This may help to explain the fact that nut consumption was shown in the same study to correlate with a lower risk of sudden cardiac death. Continue reading
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive, and almost universally fatal neurological condition. Recently, I, like many of you, participated in the Ice Bucket Challenge to help raise not only awareness of ALS, but also to raise money for clinical research with the hope of finding a cure for this devastating condition.
While the actual cause of ALS remains elusive, new research is revealing that lifestyle factors, especially food choices, may play a significant role in determining risk for this condition.
In this month’s issue of JAMA Neurology, Harvard researchers published results based on an analysis of more than 1 million participants in terms of diet and risk for this disease. In this large group of adults, a total of 995 ALS cases were documented to have occurred during the course of the study.
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