Dr. Jonny Bowden

Tag: brain health

  • Green Tea Boosts Memory

    Green Tea Boosts Memory

    The following is a guest article by health reporter Craig Weatherby, brought to you by our friends at Vital Choice.

     

    Green Tea Boosts Memory

    Clinical study sees green tea boosting brain areas associated with working memory; mouse study affirms the effect.

    By Craig Weatherby

    A Swiss scientific team gives us the first look inside the brains of green tea drinkers.

    It’s been pretty well proven that drinking green tea will not prevent Alzheimer’s or dementia.

    But most of us will be happy with any food, drink, or dietary supplement that helps maintain memory function as we reach senior status.

    And the Swiss team’s small fMRI study suggests that green tea antioxidants may benefit a part of the brain associated with “working” memory.

    Working Memory vs. Short-Term Memory

    Working memory is not the same as short term memory, which is the capacity for retaining a small amount of information for up to one minute.

    Instead, the brain’s working memory system holds multiple bits of information needed for reasoning and comprehension for longer periods, and keeps them available for further processing.

    Working memory enables tasks that require directed action toward a goal, despite distracting sensory inputs or mental processes.

    It involves the brain’s “executive” control of short-term memories, and enables integration, processing, disposal, and retrieval of information.

    Our capacity for working memory increases gradually over childhood … and declines as we age.

    Swiss Study Sees Green Tea Boosting Working Memory Regions

    Previous studies have indicated that the antioxidant polyphenols green tea – and, to a lesser extent, the phenols in black tea – might benefit memory.

    Animal studies suggest that green tea works in multiple ways to benefit brain health, including reduction of oxidation and inflammation (Dimpfel W et al. 2007; Mandel SA et al. 2008; Kakuda T 2011; Andrade JP, Assunção M 2012; Biasibetti R et al. 2012; Wu KJ et al. 2012; Lee YJ et al. 2012).

    A double-blind, controlled trial from Switzerland’s University Hospital Basel is one of the few human studies … and the first to use functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans.

    Professor Stefan Borgwardt’s team employed fMRI scans looked for changes in volunteers’ brains following the consumption of green tea extracts (Borgwardt S et al. 2012).

    The Swiss group recruited 12 healthy volunteers to perform a working memory task after consuming 250 or 500ml of a whey-based soft drink. (Whey is milk protein.)

    Half got a drink with added green tea extract, and the others got the same drink without tea extract (Rivella AG, Switzerland).

    The fMRI scans showed no significant overall changes in the whole brain … but consumption of the green tea extract was associated with increased activation in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex or DL-PFC.

    The DL-PFC region is involved in working memory and considered critical to the integration of sensory and mnemonic (memory-triggering) information and the regulation of intellectual functions.

    Significantly, higher doses of green tea extract produced greater activation of the DL-PFC region.

    As the Swiss team concluded, “… green tea extract enhances the engagement of brain regions that mediate working memory processing.” (Borgwardt S et al. 2012)

    Green tea is one of few sources of a polyphenol compound called epigallocatechin-3 gallate (EGCG).

    (Cocoa is another rich source, though it has less EGCG that green tea does, and greater amounts of related catechin compounds.)

    Prior research indicates that EGCG might boost memory and brain functions … and could perhaps even help prevent or ameliorate some neurodegenerative diseases.

    Supporting those ideas, a mouse study from China shows that EGCG from tea boosted the production of brain cells important to memory and “spatial” learning (Wang Y et al. 2012).

    EGCG Improves Learning and Memory in Mice

    They hypothesized that EGCG improves cognitive function by boosting the generation of brain cells – a process known as neurogenesis – in brain areas involved in memory, such as the hippocampus.

    In a test tube study, the Chinese group found that EGCG boosted the production of neural progenitor cells in tissue from the mouse hippocampus. (Like stem cells, progenitor cells can differentiate into various types of cells.)

    Specifically, EGCG promoted the growth of progenitor cells in the hippocampus.

    The researchers then gave mice EGCG from green tea to see whether it would improve the animals’ memory or spatial learning.

    They ran tests on two groups of mice, one which had imbibed EGCG, and a control group.

    First, the mice were trained for three days to find a visible platform in their maze. Then they were trained for seven days to find a hidden platform.

    The mice given EGCG required less time to find the hidden platform – suggesting that the compound enhances learning and memory by improving object recognition and spatial memory.

    As the scientists wrote, “We have shown that the organic chemical EGCG acts directly to increase the production of neural progenitor cells, both in glass tests and in mice.

    This helps us to understand the potential for EGCG, and green tea which contains it, to help combat degenerative diseases and memory loss.” (Wang Y et al. 2012)

    So drink up … if you can remember to do it!

    Sources

    • Andrade JP, Assunção M. Protective effects of chronic green tea consumption on age-related neurodegeneration. Curr Pharm Des. 2012;18(1):4-14. Review.
    • Biasibetti R, Tramontina AC, Costa AP, Dutra MF, Quincozes-Santos A, Nardin P, Bernardi CL, Wartchow KM, Lunardi PS, Gonçalves CA. Green tea (-)epigallocatechin-3-gallate reverses oxidative stress and reduces acetylcholinesterase activity in a streptozotocin-induced model of dementia. Behav Brain Res. 2012 Sep 1. [Epub ahead of print]
    • Borgwardt S, Hammann F, Scheffler K, Kreuter M, Drewe J, Beglinger C. Neural effects of green tea extract on dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2012 Aug 29. doi: 10.1038/ejcn.2012.105. [Epub ahead of print]
    • Dimpfel W, Kler A, Kriesl E, Lehnfeld R, Keplinger-Dimpfel IK. Source density analysis of the human EEG after ingestion of a drink containing decaffeinated extract of green tea enriched with L-theanine and theogallin. Nutr Neurosci. 2007 Jun-Aug;10(3-4):169-80
    • Kakuda T. Neuroprotective effects of theanine and its preventive effects on cognitive dysfunction. Pharmacol Res. 2011 Aug;64(2):162-8. Epub 2011 Apr 6. Review.
    • Lee YJ, Choi DY, Yun YP, Han SB, Oh KW, Hong JT. Epigallocatechin-3-gallate prevents systemic inflammation-induced memory deficiency and amyloidogenesis via its anti-neuroinflammatory properties. J Nutr Biochem. 2012 Sep 5. [Epub ahead of print]
    • Mandel SA, Amit T, Kalfon L, Reznichenko L, Weinreb O, Youdim MB. Cell signaling pathways and iron chelation in the neurorestorative activity of green tea polyphenols: special reference to epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). J Alzheimers Dis. 2008 Oct;15(2):211-22. Review.
    • Wang Y, Li M, Xu X, Song M, Tao H, Bai Y. Green tea epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) promotes neural progenitor cell proliferation and sonic hedgehog pathway activation during adult hippocampal neurogenesis. Mol Nutr Food Res. 2012 Aug;56(8):1292-303. doi: 10.1002/mnfr.201200035. Epub 2012 Jun 13.
    • Wu KJ, Hsieh MT, Wu CR, Wood WG, Chen YF. Green Tea Extract Ameliorates Learning and Memory Deficits in Ischemic Rats via Its Active Component Polyphenol Epigallocatechin-3-gallate by Modulation of Oxidative Stress and Neuroinflammation. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2012;2012:163106. Epub 2012 Aug 2.
  • Computer Use + Exercise = Reduced Memory Loss

    Computer Use + Exercise = Reduced Memory Loss

    A study in Mayo Clinic Proceedings  found that combining computer time with moderate exercise reduces your risk of memory loss compared with either activity alone.

    Researchers interviewed over 900 70 – 93 year olds after they completed a questionnaire about how often they exercised and used a computer.

    Just to clarify, “moderate exercise” included activities like:

    • brisk walking
    • doubles tennis
    • yoga
    • weightlifting.

    Mentally stimulating activities, on the other hand, included:

    • reading
    • social interaction
    • using a computer

    So why did researchers single out computers?

    Because so many people in this study used one on a regular basis.

    “The aging of baby boomers is projected to lead to dramatic increases in the prevalence of dementia,” lead researcher Dr. Yonas E. Geda said. “As frequent computer use has becoming increasingly common among all age groups, it is important to examine how it relates to aging and dementia. Our study further adds to this discussion.”

    Researchers found a combination of mental and physical stimulation reduced risk for mild cognitive impairment, a condition somewhere between age-related memory loss and early dementia.

    More specifically, they found:

    • For participants who neither exercised nor used a computer…
      • 20.1% had normal cognitive function
      • 37.6% showed signs of mild cognitive impairment.
    • For participants who exercised andused a computer…
      • 36% had normal cognitive function
      • 18.3% showed signs of mild cognitive impairment.

    In other words, the synergistic effects of exercise and mental stimulation best protected these participants against cognitive decline.

    51ZLpg8AQpL._SL110_
    If you’ve read any of my books, especially The Most Effective Ways to Live Longer  you know how much I value exercise and learning as critical tools to age better.

    Simply put, people who constantly challenge their minds and bodies live longer and more happily than complacent, sedentary people.

    After all, you probably saw the recent study in The Journal of the American Medical Association that showed people who sit more often have shorter life spans.

    Evolution designed us to use our bodies for physical activity and our minds for learning, and those demands don’t diminish as we age.

    In fact, a study in the journal Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise concluded that “no segment of the population…can benefit more from exercise than the elderly.”

    Those benefits go beyond physical health: a study in that same journal showed that moderate- and high-intensity resistance exercise programs both benefitted cognitive functioning.

    In other words, exercise can boost your mental power. And when your mind remains active and alert, you’re more likely to exercise than if you’re in a mental fog or TV-induced trance.

    No matter what your age, I want to propose two challenges to prevent memory loss and keep your mind and body in prime condition:

    1. Develop and maintain a vigorous exercise program. Brisk walking is good, but I want you to step it up a few notches. Try a new exercise class or sport, for instance, to boost your physical and mental skills. I never get tired of talking about my favorite exercise, burst training, which you can do in your own home and requires just minutes a day. You can devote all that time you save to learning a new language or rereading your favorite novel.
    2. Keep your mind active by always engaging in new activities. It doesn’t need to be anything rigorous: mental stimulation might include reading a new author or seeing a film outside your favorite genre. And as this study showed, online learning provides another way to keep your brain stimulated. Join forums about your favorite topics, for instance, or learn a new program.

    Harvard University made a list of seven activities you can do to keep your brain healthy and active at any age.

    Their number-one strategy is the same as mine: keep learning.

  • Protect Your Brain with… Onions!

    Protect Your Brain with… Onions!

    A new study suggests that compounds in onions may protect the brain from additional damage linked to stroke.


    This is hardly the first good news about onions, which I wrote about in depth in my book, “The 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth”. In a number of impressive published studies, the consumption of onions (and other members of the allium vegetable family) demonstrated protective effects against stomach cancer.

    In one study, eating onions (as well as other members of its family like garlic, scallions, chives, and leeks) significantly lowered the risk for prostate cancer. Onions (and their close relatives have also been shown to have the same effect against esophageal cancer. In the new study, Korean researchers reduced blood flow in the brains of two groups of mice and then fed one of them onion extracts. The results showed that the onion group had significantly reduced brain edema (water in the brain, a common effect of stroke). No such reduction in brain edema was seen in the mice that didn’t get the onions. Other stroke-like damage was also reduced in the group that consumed the onion extracts.

    Onions belong to the allium family, which also includes leeks, garlic, and shallots. They contain a whole pharmacy of compounds with health benefits, including thiosulfinates, sulfides, sulfoxides, and other smelly sulfur compounds. (Sulfur is great for you, but it stinks—think the New Jersey Turnpike!)

    But those same smelly compounds offer a lot of nutrition bang for the relatively small price of a little eye-watering. In a study in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, onions are one of a very select group of foods that in combination was found to reduce mortality from coronary heart disease by an impressive 20 percent (the others included broccoli, tea, and apples).

    Onions contain powerful antioxidants and are anti-inflammatory, antibiotic, and antiviral.

    They are a great source of quercetin, one of my favorite anti-inflammatory compounds and one that is associated with beneficial effects on chronic disease like cancer and heart disease.

    This quercetin + stinging nettles combo is terrific for treating allergies.

    The class of chemicals that quercetin belongs to—flavonoids—have antiallergic properties as well, and quercetin in particular is frequently used by nutritionists as part of their arsenal for treating allergies with natural substances.

    Quercetin can help relieve asthma and hay fever by blocking some of the inflammatory responses in the airways.

    Quercetin is one of the most anti-inflammatory plant compounds on the planet.

    Our bodies absorb quercetin from onions very easily, though you’ll probably need quercetin supplements if your main interest is using it therapeutically as an anti-inflammatory.

    Onions also contain a number of sulfides very similar to those in garlic, which may lower blood lipids and blood pressure.

  • Physical Activity Prevents Cognitive Decline

    Physical Activity Prevents Cognitive Decline

    The next time your partner complains about washing the dishes, remind him or her doing them could help prevent cognitive decline.

    A new study in the journal Neurology found any kind of physical activity, including household chores, could reduce your risk for Alzheimer’s disease and other brain-related deterioration.

    According to lead researcher Dr. Aron S. Buchman, exercise and “other activities such as cooking, washing the dishes, and cleaning are associated with a reduced risk of Alzheimer’s disease.”

    You’re probably thinking, Really, another study that shows exercise works!? After all, you don’t hear about too many studies that show exercise doesn’t work.

    But this one proves significant for two reasons. One, it was the first study to objectively measure physical activity.

    More specifically, researchers asked 716 people with no dementia to wear an actigraph, which measured their activity and non-activity for 10 days.

    The actigraph measured any kind of physical movement, including cooking, playing cards, and even operating a wheelchair. If these participants moved, the actigraph measured it.

    Participants reported their physical and social activity, but they also wore the actigraph to validate those claims, since many people overestimate or misjudge how much exercise they do otherwise.

    Over the three-and-a-half year study, 71 participants developed Alzheimer’s disease.

    The take home: movement counts, but intense movement matters more.

    • People who engaged in the least amount of physical activity were over twice as likely to succumb to Alzheimer’s than those who engaged in more physical activity.
    • People who exercised less intensely were almost three times more likely to get Alzheimer’s than people who did exercise intensely.

    Oh, the other significant detail worth mentioning: the average age of these participants was 82.

    Now, Alzheimer’s is a complex, multi-factorial disease, and experts lack any easy solutions. One thing we know for sure: a major player for any degenerative disease is inflammation.

    And exercise can reduce it. A study in the Journal of Applied Physiology for instance, showed that exercise protects against chronic inflammation and disease.

    I agree with Dr. Buchman’s conclusion that exercise is certainly a modifiable risk factor for neurological decline. You can’t change your genes, but you can certainly step up your physical activity.

    Here’s the deal:

    To be beneficial, exercise should be hard.

    For too many people, hours on elliptical machines and aerobic classes become social hour rather than a workout.

    You might as well take it to a bar and have a cocktail… at least the ambiance will be better!

    I also hear people say they walk 30 minutes a few times each week and call it exercise. Walking is good for a zillion other things, but it’s not strenuous physical activity.

    To really get exercise’s numerous benefits, including burning fat and preventing brain deterioration, you’ve got to step it up. You should push yourself to maximum intensity and be a little breathless when you’re done.

    A study in the journal Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise for instance, found intense exercise for 45 minutes boosted metabolism for 14 hours post-workout and helped participants burn an additional 190 calories after that workout.

    The good news is that you don’t need 45 minutes. After all, you could spend an hour on the treadmill and not get much of a workout.

    I often talk about burst training, my favorite form of exercise that gives you an intense workout in just four minutes a day »

    Combine burst training with weight resistance, and you’ve got the best exercise combo on the planet to burn fat, boost metabolism, build muscle, and prevent disease. In just minutes a day.

    Trust me, if you’re doing it right you will feel the burn and get results that benefit your brain and waistline.

  • Red Meat for Mental Health?

    Red Meat for Mental Health?

    A just-published study from Australia found that women consuming less than the “recommended” amount of red meat were twice as likely to have a diagnosed depressive or anxiety disorder.

    How is this possible? Read on.

    A couple of weeks ago I reported on the now-famous (or infamous) study out of Harvard which was widely reported in the media as “proving” that red meat causes early death.

    The executive summary of that article was this:

    • It was an observational study, not a clinical one.
    • It showed an association, not a causal relationship.
    • The data was based on notoriously unreliable food questionnaires.
    • And the association- which was kind of weak to begin with—could have been due to countless factors– for example, sodium/nitrates in processed meat, high heat cooking (known to create carcinogenic toxins), or extraneous variables (those in the study who reported eating the most meat also smoked more, weighed more and exercised less).

    I also pointed out that there has never been a study- ever– that compared health outcomes of those eating grass-fed meat (a whole different animal, if you’ll pardon the pun) with those eating pink-slime-filled meat of the kind you get at fast food restaurants, or sodium and nitrate-drenched processed meat like you get at deli counters.

    And I maintained that if such a study were ever to be done, it would probably show health benefits for meat eating as opposed to health risks. (Those benefits would probably be even more dramatic for those who make grass-fed meat a part of a wholesome diet that includes plenty of vegetables and fruits, and excluded  sugar, grains, trans fats and processed foods.)

    The new study seems to back up my hypothesis.

    Not surprisingly, you haven’t heard a thing about it in the mainstream media.

    Researchers from Deakin University in Australia studied 1000 Australian women and uncovered the statistically significant link between low consumption of red meat and lamb and higher levels of depression and anxiety.

    “Even when we took into account the overall healthiness of the women’s diets, as well as other factors such as their socioeconomic status, physical activity levels, smoking, weight and age, the relationship between low red meat intake and mental health remained”, said lead researcher Professor Felice Jacka in an interview with England’s The Telegraph.

    Wait—did Dr. Jonny just say “recommended amount of meat”?

    Yes. He did. The Australian government recommends eating 65-100 grams (roughly 2 ½ to 4 ounces) three to four times a week.

    Surprised by the results? Don’t be. In Australia, nearly all beef and lamb is pasture raised (grass-fed). That means the meat is high in omega-3’s, relatively low in inflammatory omega-6’s, and virtually absent of the hormones, antibiotics and steroids routinely given to factory farmed meat in America.

    Meat in Australia is a health food. Meat in America? Not so much.

    “We had originally thought that red meat might not be good for mental health but it turns out that it actually may be quite important”, said Professor Jacka.

    Interestingly, the benefit wasn’t just from eating protein, since there was exactly zero relationship between mental health benefits and chicken, pork, plant-based proteins or even, surprisingly, fish.

    “We know that red meat in Australia is a healthy product as it contains high levels of nutrients, including the Omega-3 fatty acids that are important to mental and physical health”, commented Jacka.

    The “meat-scare” article I wrote about a couple of issues ago is a perfect example of “confirmation bias”—that is, seeing what you expect to see. The general belief in this country- even among researchers—is that meat is “bad”. So when an association like the one found in the Harvard study shows up, no one questions it too closely.

    But that’s exactly what we should be doing.

    In my article on “The Red Meat Scare”, I wrote that until someone shows me a causal relationship between grass-fed meat and any negative health outcome, I’m going to continue the diet that’s kept me strong, healthy and prescription-medicine free for sixty-some years: Wild salmon, grass-fed meat, tons of berries, nuts, coconut, vegetables, fruits and omega-3’s.

    The Australian study confirms my own belief that a diet rich in grass-fed meat is anything but a health risk. And such a diet may well turn out to have substantial health benefits beyond even those unearthed by the Australian study.

    I’m betting my health on it.

    And it’s a bet I plan to win.

  • High Blood Sugar and Memory Loss

    High Blood Sugar and Memory Loss

    High blood sugar puts you at risk for memory loss and cognitive problems, according to a new study out of Japan.

    In this study, 1017 people in Japan, all under the age of 60, were given an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT). In a glucose tolerance test, the person is given a fixed amount of glucose (sugar) and then their blood levels are monitored for several hours so that doctors can track how quickly and efficiently the glucose is “cleared” from their bloodstream. (The test is frequently given as part of a diagnostic workup for diabetes and insulin resistance.)

    Based on their glucose tolerance tests, the researchers were able to classify the subjects as diabetic, pre-diabetic, or non-diabetic.

    What the researchers found was that even after adjusting for variables like age and sex, the incidence of Alzheimer’s Disease, vascular dementia and all-cause dementia were significantly higher in subjects with diabetes. Remember, by definition, diabetics have blood sugar issues and don’t do well on glucose tolerance tests, so this study clearly links blood sugar issues with an increased risk of dementia.

    Diabetics in this study had a whopping 74% increased chance of winding up with dementia from any cause whatsoever (“all-cause dementia”).

    But here’s what’s interesting. Of the 308 people who started the study with pre-diabetes, a very significant 25% of them ultimately developed dementia. The American Diabetes Association estimates that 79 million people are walking around with pre-diabetes, which is defined as the state that occurs when a person’s blood glucose levels are higher than normal but not high enough for a diagnosis of diabetes.

    As many of you may know, cardiologist Steve Sinatra and I are currently at work on a book about heart disease. In reading the copious amount of research on fat, cholesterol, sugar and the heart, it’s become stunningly clear to me that we have been barking up the wrong tree for thirty years by trying to reduce fat in the diet and bring down our cholesterol.

    What we should have been looking at is sugar. (You’ll see why when the book comes out.)

    But sugar isn’t just a culprit in heart disease. Cancer cells feed on sugar. High glycemic (sugar) diets are implicated in heart disease, diabetes, and nearly any condition in which there’s a lot of inflammation.

    This new study adds dementia and cognitive problems to the long and growing list of conditions you don’t want to have that are negatively impacted by a high-sugar diet.