Brain Enhancers – Supplements, Foods and Drugs that Enhance Cognition

Looking for the best brain enhancers to improve cognitive power. Simple good choices about food, supplementation, and lifestyle can add up to tremendous gains in memory, learning, and relief from common mental disorders.

It all starts with the diet. The human body has evolved over countless millennia to synergistically derive essential mental nutrition from the foods we eat, in order to sustain our bodies.

Common compounds are transformed into the neurochemicals which fuel all essential brain processes. Other lifestyle factors, like exercise and emotional health, can help to manage these chemicals when food sources aren’t enough.

Let’s take a look at how the foods we eat and the thoughts we think are related. Smart supplementation can be the missing ingredient which enhances your brain and takes your cognitive abilities to the next level.

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Brain Enhancers in Your Diet

There is nothing more important for total wellness than a nutritious and balanced diet.

This is just as true for brain health as it is for physical fitness. Brain chemistry has evolved to rely upon food sources for the raw components needed to produce neurochemicals and maintain structural health.

Here are just a few of the key brain enhancers found in the food we eat:

Acetylcholine is the primary neurotransmitter for memory, learning, and healthy neural tissue growth. The body transforms the nutrient choline from food sources into acetylcholine.

While we get small amounts of choline from sources like eggs, low fat dairy, meat liver, cod, and many nuts, further supplementation may be required to balance acetylcholine deficiencies and achieve nootropic effects.

As much as 90% of the population is deficient in this nutrient which makes it one of the most basic ways to improve brain function. This is one reason that choline-rich supplements like Citicoline (CDP Choline) are so popular.

Omega 3s are fatty acids which maintain excellent cellular membrane health. This is important in the brain because it can prevent serious degenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s. Common dietary sources of Omega 3s are fish, nuts, and seeds. One can also use DHA/EPA supplements like Fish Oil or Krill Oil to increase Omega 3 intake.

Amino acids like L-Tyrosine and Tryptophan regulate brain metabolism and spur the production of neurotransmitters. You can find these essential nutrients in foods like turkey, nuts, dairy, and bananas. Aminos are common components of nootropic brain stacks like Alpha Brain.

Herbal plant extracts, traditionally consumed in teas or as folk remedies, are also a prime source of brain nutrients. With thousands of known psycho-active plants, this organic material provides a virtual pharmacy for brain health.

For example, the leaves of the Mucuna Pruriens plant are known to contain L-Dopa, a compound which stimulates the release of dopamine and serotonin, making it a powerful mood lifter. Another herbal extract, Bacopa Monnieri, stimulates healthy nerve cell function in the brain while reducing anxiety. L-Theanine in Green Tea can balance alpha brain waves and improve focus and concentration.

In modern times, most obscure plant extracts can be purchased as a part of nootropic stacks.

Exercise

After diet, exercise is key among other very important brain enhancers. In addition to creating muscle gain and fat loss, the real power of regular physical activity is found at the cellular level.

By firing up metabolism throughout the cells of the body, exercise assists in the healthy function of the brain by keeping cells strong and efficient. Waste is removed and natural decay is delayed or prevented. This decay, left unchecked, is ultimately the source of long term age-related degenerative diseases.

For this reason, many people also take supplements which aid metabolism. For example, Acetyl L-Carnitine is frequently consumed to keep brain metabolism moving at a healthy pace.

Exercise also keeps brain circulation functioning at an optimum levels. Cerebral insufficiency, or the lack of oxygen in the brain, is caused by poor circulation.

A daily exercise regimen keeps a steady flow of oxygen and nutrient rich blood flowing to neural tissue. This action can head off strokes, dementia, and other degenerative neurological disorders.

Vinpocetine is a natural nootropic which is often taken in conjunction with exercise programs in order to specifically promote brain circulation.

Happiness Enhances Brain Function

Emotions are not only the product of life experiences, but they also are directly tied to brain chemistry.

Taking steps to foster healthy mood not only makes life more enjoyable, it can actually improve the health and longevity of your brain itself.

Balanced emotions can help reduce and manage the stress triggers which cause inflammatory, excitatory responses in the brain. Over time, these responses lead to deficiencies in key hormones and over-stimulation of nerve cells. The result is unhappiness, depression, anxiety, and other severe clinical imbalances.

So, any activities which soothe stress and promote peaceful emotional stability are indeed brain enhancers. While different for each person, these activities might include yoga, meditation, or making art. When imbalances already exist, it is often necessary to assist the brain by taking remedies which return neural chemistry to a healthy state.

The current trend is to steer clear of prescription anti-depressants and anti-anxiety meds, and the harsh side effects they produce. Brain chemistry can be dramatically improved with natural compounds which create little or no side effects. B-complex vitamins are wildly successful at managing stress and easing depression.

For anxiety relief, many people have found success with anxiolytics like L-Theanine. This GABA agonist can calm the over-excited nerve firing and associated thoughts associated with anxiety. As with many natural nootropics, these compounds can be found in food sources like lentil beans, but enormous amounts of such foods would have to be consumed to achieve best effects, so supplementation is usually far easier.

Brain Enhancers – A Total Lifestyle

Great brain health, excellent cognitive function, and balanced mood are all the products of total lifestyle choices. While food sources were the original brain enhancers, we now have the power to enhance the power of natural brain chemistry through targeted supplementation.

When combined with strong dietary choices, regular exercise, and activities which promote emotional balance, a thoughtful nootropic supplement regimen can provide enduring cognitive power.

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