Things I’m Remembering to Do for My Memory
After years of listening and learning, trying things for myself, and sorting through the conflicting information, these are the six things I’ve decided make the most sense for protecting my memory.
I was standing in the grocery store some years ago and an acquaintance came up to me to say hello. I completely blanked on her name. It wasn’t a short delay while I took a second to remember her name. It was a noticeably delayed blank stare, while she stood there smiling at me and I smiled back trying to buy myself time. I actually couldn’t remember her name until hours later. I could see she didn’t look well and I worried for a long time that she thought my blank stare was about how unwell she looked, when it was me simply struggling to remember her name.
I had another experience while working. I was climbing the stairs to attend a meeting and I blanked out. I felt fatigued, my brain seemed to have shut off, and I wondered how long I could keep going before someone realized my brain and my memory were not keeping up the way they should be.
That was it. Deep down, I knew my brain was fully functioning, but there had been times lately when it felt like my brain was trying to see through a thick fog. I had to do something.
We might misplace our keys, forget a name, walk into a room and forget why we’re there. People nickname them ‘senior moments’ or ‘menopause brain’. I use to agree until I started to realize that not everyone deals with this.
We’ve been told for years that this is just what happens. You hit your late 40s, 50s, and your brain gets a little softer around the edges, and everyone nods like that’s just what happens when get older. There are tons of jokes about getting older and ‘losing our minds’.
But I have so much more I want to accomplish. I’m also pretty independent and am trying to not find myself having to be ‘taken care of’ down the road. I truly feel for those dealing with cognitive decline and even more so the families that have to watch the decline of their loved one (doing that myself now too).
So using my nutrition background, the many wellness seminars I had attended, my hands-on experience with several supplements over several years and learning who the people were I could trust in the industry to lead me to helpful information, I started looking into what’s actually connected to memory and cognitive decline. Sure enough, it turns out a lot of it has nothing to do with age itself.
We have all heard about doing mental exercises for neuroplasticity, getting exercise to keep the circulation moving, eating healthy foods, etc. For me, I have narrowed down six additional things I feel are important for me in trying to prevent cognitive decline as I age:
Vitamin B12
Everyone thinks of B12 as purely a vitamin for energy and healthy red blood cells, but it’s just as importantly tied to nerve function, balance and especially cognitive health.
B12 is one of the nutrients I now pay a little more attention to as I get older. Our actual B12 requirement doesn’t necessarily increase with age, but our ability to absorb B12 from our food can decrease. Why? Because stomach acid plays an important role in pulling the B12 from food, and lower stomach acid becomes more common as we age or when we are under a lot of stress, etc. Certain medications and digestive issues can also interfere with absorption. Getting enough B12 isn’t something I want to leave to chance.
Someone near and dear to me is suffering from severe memory loss and I will always believe that their situation relates to a Vitamin B12 deficiency the individual knew about but left untreated for decades. As the experts warn, once you have run out of Vitamin B12, the side effects such as memory loss begin, and it’s pretty much impossible to reverse a severe, long term Vitamin B12 deficiency.
For me the best form of Vitamin B12 is actually in the form of a lozenge that dissolves under the tongue. Dissolving the lozenge under the tongue means that it doesn’t require my digestion and/or sufficient stomach acid (which most of us don’t have) to absorb it; by dissolving it under the tongue, the vitamin is able to head more directly to my bloodstream.
One other thing I find interesting is that a B12 blood test isn’t always the whole picture. If someone has symptoms that suggest B12 deficiency but their B12 result doesn’t seem to suggest a deficiency, there are additional markers a healthcare provider can look at. I think that’s worth knowing rather than assuming that one number automatically gives you the complete answer. Dr. Ben Lynch talks about it more here.
2. Phosphatidylcholine
Choline is usually talked about for its role in liver health and helping the body transport and process fats, but what got my attention is that it is also important for the brain and nervous system.
As it turns out, our bodies can make some choline, but not enough to meet all of our needs, so we also have to get it from our diet. And as we age we may get less choline from our diet without realizing it.
Interestingly, estrogen plays a role in the body’s ability to make choline, so as my estrogen levels started to decline through menopause, the need to ensure I was getting enough choline became important1.
I’m not suggesting that taking phosphatidylcholine is going to prevent memory loss. But for me personally, I actually notice a difference in my focus and sharpness if I don’t take it regularly.
Lion’s Mane Mushroom
Lion’s Mane is another one I started paying attention to because of its potential benefits for the brain.
Paul Stamets, a well-known mycologist and mushroom researcher has spent decades studying mushrooms like Lion’s Mane and their potential effects on body and the nervous system. (You can find a lot of information and research on Lion’s Mane online.)
Research has found that compounds in Lion’s Mane mushrooms help to protect the myelin sheath and may support the growth and development of neurons (a type of brain cell), which is particularly interesting when you’re thinking about maintaining brain function as you get older.
Some people enjoy eating cooked fresh Lion’s Mane mushrooms. I prefer to incorporate Lion’s Mane mushroom powder regularly in my ‘special coffee’ (Here’s a link to a previous article about my daily ‘special coffee’ that incorporates 2 types of health supporting mushroom powders and I think tastes delicious.)
For me, it’s a simple addition, and considering what we know so far about the potential of Lion’s Mane mushrooms to support the brain and nervous system, it’s one I’m continuing to enjoy.
Lowering Fats
This is probably the one that goes against almost everything we’ve been told about healthy eating over the past several years.
Avocado toast. A spoonful of nut butter. MCT oil or butter in your coffee. Cooking with olive oil or avocado oil. High amounts of fats including the saturated fat found in meats such as pork and prime rib. We’ve been encouraged to add healthy fats to just about everything, often with the idea that we’re doing something particularly good for our brain.
I used to eat considerably more fat for exactly that reason. But the more I learned about how the brain gets its energy (hint – it needs glucose) and what happens when there is too much fat circulating in the body, the more I started questioning whether I really needed to be adding lots of fat to every meal.
I also came across research looking at fat accumulation and the brain. While the brain naturally contains fat and needs it to function, researchers have found that having too much fat stored in the wrong places is associated with changes in brain structure and cognitive function2.
I now try to follow the advice Medical Medium offers and keep my mornings fat free and I’ve cut the overall amount of fats and oils I eat by about half compared to what I used to consume.
I’m not saying we don’t need fat. But we just don’t need the huge amounts we are consuming. Most people are adding higher amounts of fats and oils than is really needed to almost every meal. It’s surprisingly easy to add a lot without realizing it.
(Did you know that with most weight loss programs, the amount of fats and oils is heavily restricted and kept to around 2-3 tablespoons max per day. Eating less fats and oil can help with weight loss too.)
I’m still eating fat. I’m just no longer buying into the concept that more healthy fat automatically means better brain health.
And of course, limiting the oxidized oils and fats (like deep fried foods, or old oil that has sat too long or been improperly stored) is equally important to help protect the brain.
Avoiding heavy metals
Mercury and aluminum keep showing up strongly in research connected to dementia and Alzheimer’s, and that alone is enough for me to take it seriously. I’ve don’t store food in aluminum containers, I only drink from glass containers or ceramic coated travel mugs (not stainless steel lined travel mugs or drinks sold in cans – can anyone else taste metal when they drink out of metals cans?). I use parchment paper instead of foil, and I’m paying more attention to the fish I eat and how often. I also don’t use a fork or metal spoon to stir my food when I’m cooking.
Not because I think I’m going to avoid all toxic heavy metals out there by doing these things. We are already dealing with toxic heavy metals in many cosmetics, hair colour products, skin and body care products; it’s in the pesticides sprayed on our food, in our skies and in our ocean water and there’s just no way to completely avoid them. So I’m choosing to take control of what I can and I believe these choices can make a significant enough difference for me.
I also make a point of including parsley, cilantro and apples in my diet because of their role in helping the body process toxic heavy metals. They’re simple whole foods that I can easily incorporate.
6. Avoiding gluten
I know, gluten is the culprit behind everything these days and it’s exhausting and sad at the same time. Like they say ‘Of all the things I’ve lost, I really miss gluten!’ But for a lot of people, myself included, it shows up as brain fog before it ever shows up as anything digestive. (It also shows up as pain around my joint tissue exactly 2 days later.)
Sometimes people don’t make the association between the bread they ate yesterday and the brain fog they feel today. I didn’t believe it until I cut it out and noticed the difference in how much clearer my head felt within days. Not weeks. Days. That one surprised me.
I didn’t overhaul my whole life overnight and I’m not telling you to either. It’s six things, out of probably a dozen or more I could list, that I’ve learned along the way. It’s important that we do what we can to take care of our bodies and especially our brains.
I’m not expecting to prevent every change that comes with getting older. But I’m doing what I can now to give my brain the best support I can. Maybe there’s something here that makes sense for you too.
Talk soon,
Debbie
I write from my own experience, research, and years of paying attention to the connection between nutrition, lifestyle, and how we feel. My hope is that it helps you ask better questions, think more critically about the information you’re given, and find an approach that makes sense for you.
This is not medical advice and is not intended to diagnose or medically manage any health condition. Bring what resonates into conversations with a healthcare professional or practitioner you trust, and make decisions that make sense for you based on your own circumstances.
Dietary choline requirements of women: effects of estrogen and genetic variation. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20861172/
Impact of ectopic fat on brain structure and cognitive function: A systematic review and meta-analysis from observational studies. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0091302223000304?via%3Dihub