Ok, here is some good news along with a recipe at the end.
Coconut Oil?
You may have seen articles touting the benefits of coconut oil for Alzheimer’s Disease. It has even been considered as beneficial to other conditions such as Parkinson’s Disease, multiple sclerosis, and Lou Gehrig’s disease. But how and why?
In Traditional Chinese Medicine, there is a saying that the brain eats the body. What this means is the brain uses a lot of chi and can rob energy from the rest of your body. In western medicine, it is known that the brain uses a lot of resources and requires good blood flow to deliver the necessary glucose to brain cells.
If a person is diabetic it means that they have become insulin resistant and the blood sugar is not properly regulated and levels go dangerously high or low. This means there are times when needed nutrition for the brain is missing. A common side effect of diabetes can be dementia. Alzheimer’s has even been called a type III diabetes.
Coconut oil is a rich form of MCT oils or medium-chain triglycerides. These rapidly break down into energy for the brain. Rather than going through the digestive system, they go right to the liver where ketones are produced. Unlike regular fatty acids, ketones can go directly from the blood into the brain. If you were to eat a low carbohydrate, high-fat diet, you would regularly have ketones in your system. This can train the body to burn fat for fuel. If you don’t eat that way, consuming MCT oil or coconut oil can create a state of hyperketonemia, increasing the ketone bodies in the bloodstream.
And so, your brain can be quickly fed and more functional.
Scientific backing:
MCT Supplementation on Mild Cognitive Impairment https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26675661
Plasticity Related Changes in Aged Rats https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27517611
More back up information on low carb and ketogenic diets https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2129159/
How to use it: Coconut oil tastes good! I have a recipe below for a treat that uses it. You can also purchase MCT oil made from coconut oil, but it doesn’t have the coconut taste. My personal favorite is blending MCT oil into my coffee in the morning for an added brain boost!
What about Chocolate?
Studies show that dark chocolate improves memory function.
Regular intake of dark chocolate enhances cognitive function and neuro nerve growth factors
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31744119
Theobromine found in chocolate improves working memory. It helped the ability to learn in these poor rats whose brains were removed after the study.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31010016
There is a flavonoid in chocolate, epicatechin, that has been proven to increase long term memory deficits as well as improve learning abilities
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26823103
RECIPE for a Healthy Brain Treat
Mix:
approx. 1/4 coconut oil (melted)
2-3 T raw cacao or any kind of unsweetened chocolate powder
1-2 scoops tasty low carb (under 8 grams) protein powder. Only stir in enough so that the mixture can still be poured. Taste it. If you want it sweeter, add just 2-5 drops of liquid stevia. Careful, not too much! You can also add erythritol instead, maybe 2-3 tablespoons to taste.
Pour the chocolate into paper or silicone cupcake holders, just enough to cover the bottom. Or just pour onto wax paper in a pan and put it in the freezer. After fifteen minutes you can break off pieces and eat. If you had the silicone cupcake holders you will have nicely formed round chocolates.
I like to experiment with flavors. I like cayenne, healthy salt, and cinnamon in mine.
You can purchase MCT oil or raw Cacao powder here:
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