The glands we’ve looked at in the past few posts are all linked to hormones. In order to make good hormones fat is needed—the same requirement the brain has.
Little known facts about the brain:
- It is the fattiest organ in our body, made up of 60% fat
- There are approximately 100,000 miles of blood vessels in our brains
- There are 100 billion neurons and each neuron has between 1,000 and 10,000 synapses
- While computers and the brain are not like comparing apples to apples, it took the world’s 4th fastest computer 40 minutes to compute what the brain does in 1 second.
- Your brain uses up to 25% of your daily calorie intake.
- Your myelin sheath is 70% fat. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-508236/Eat-way-cleverness---foods-dramatically-affect-brainpower.html
What does the brain do?
The brain operates with electrical and chemical pathways. Switching between the two with grace and ease.
The nerve impulse travels down the neuron until it reaches the synapse, then it converts to a chemical message to cross the space between the neuron and either the next neuron or the end muscle or gland cells.
Your brain controls virtually every part of your body and your body systems.
There is a growing body of evidence that the heart may have some influence over the brain; however that is a different class...
What does the brain need to be happy and healthy?
Healthy Fats
Have you ever heard the old saying about “Greasing the wheels in your brain”?
Much of the research that suggests a non-red meat, non-dairy diet is highly flawed. Though well intentioned, many medical professionals recommended people eat diets of trans-fat margarine and cooking oils while removing whole fat dairy and natural fats from meats. Current heart disease and other research shows how bad for your body trans-fats really are.
Nourishing Traditions, by Sally Fallon is a great resource for lots of references to the research that supports adding healthy red meat, natural fats, and dairy back into a balanced diet.
DHA and Omega fatty acids seem to be hot button buzz words lately. But what do these substances do?
They grease the cogs and help those wheels keep spinning. Remember the myelin sheath? It is 70% fat…. You have to feed your brain! There is a growing body of evidence that if provided the proper nutrition your brain can heal. But, what is the first thing that happens if someone is admitted to the hospital with a stroke? LOW FAT diet!!!!!!!!! HMMMMMMMMMMMMMM
DO NOT HEAR ME SAY eat unlimited fried food!!! In fact, fried food is not even on my list of healthy fats.
Wild caught salmon, avocados, raw grass fed dairy, grass fed red meat (yes the fat is different in grass fed vs stockyard beef), nuts, seeds, whole pastured eggs, raw organic olive oil, and coconut oil are some great places to start with adding healthy fats into your diet.
Studies have shown that diets rich in healthy fats have lower incidence of depression, greater success with weight loss, and lower incidence of heart disease. High rates of cardiovascular disease is a relatively new phenomenon. In fact when the man who invented the EKG machine presented it to his colleagues at Harvard, they told him to not waste his time with something that wouldn’t ever make money.
Another thing that is very important to a healthy brain is high levels of antioxidants. Free Radicals can do damage to the neurons and myelin sheath of the brain and nervous system. Free radicals have been implicated in many studies linking them to memory loss, cancer, tissue damage in stroke victims and many other health related issues.
So where does Young Living fit into this picture?
YL provides a number of supplements that can help to feed your brain and hormones.
- NingXia Red: high in amino acids which are important building blocks to all things cellular- including neurotransmitters and cell walls. It also has the highest S-ORAC score (anti-oxidant measurement) of any product compared in a recent study—30 times higher than the next leading brand in fact!
- Mind Wise: great source of Omega Fatty acids. Tastes great and kids will take willingly
- Omegagize: pill form
A small step for change.
Consider these suggestions and determine to make one small step forward on your health journey. Incorporate a healthy fat into your diet each day:
- Do a Ningxia Red challenge—try it as suggested for 30 days.
- Try YL’s Omegagize.
- Add a Tablespoon of organic flaxseed oil to your breakfast cereal, oatmeal, pancakes, etc.
- Go in with a group of friends or food co-op to get a grass fed beef half or whole from a local farmer. You’d be surprised at the cost savings if you can buy and store 6 months or more of what you need at a time. You also get a healthier product and stimulate your local economy.
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Find a local farmer that sells grass fed raw milk and patronize them. http://www.realmilk.com/real-milk-finder/
- Make your own salad dressings with organic olive or coconut oils (essential oils are great for infusing salad dressings.
- Buy nuts in bulk. Look at what’s local for you. Around us walnut and pecan season is just around the corner.
- Think about getting some backyard chickens. It doesn’t take many to feed a family great fat, and you know exactly what they’re eating.
- Go to the Pacific Northwest on vacation and bring back Salmon. Fishing is a great example of productive exercise that is good for the body and soul.
Please feel free to contact me with any suggestions on topics, projects, or whatever! If you have a specific question about your health journey please contact me. I’ll do my best to answer, and may add it to the discussion here (keeping anonymity of course)—chances are someone else has the same concern. We also welcome other suggestions on local healthy fats.
Thankful today for health, freedom, and purpose.
To your health-
Clint and Joy
