Tag Archives: health

The Diet for “Fast” Physical and Mental Health Benefits: Intermittent Fasting

You may have heard of the typical low carb or low fat diet, but have you heard of intermittent fasting? Intermittent fasting (IF) is a relatively new diet that has been recently growing in popularity because of its powerful, life-changing benefits for the body and the brain.

There are many diets out there that are complex and intimidating to follow; however, IF keeps it simple.

What is intermittent fasting and how does it work?

IF is an eating pattern where an individual cycles between periods of eating and non-eating. There are many variations of IF that contain different fasting and non-fasting timeframes. Which variation an individual should use is based on their personal preference and their lifestyle/goals. Compared to other diets that require you to limit your calories, IF requires you to cut out the entire meal itself. With IF’s unconventional dieting approach, this makes IF easy to follow for the average person. This has contributed to the diet’s rise in popularity as well as its benefits in body composition and the brain.

Why should I try this diet? What are its benefits?

There are many benefits with intermittent fasting. Below are some of the most important ones that separate this diet apart from others.

Source: The Renegade Pharmacist

 IF alters the function of cells, genes and hormones

When the body is in a fasted state, the body undergoes physiological changes such as changes in hormone levels. This allows the body to use stored fat as its main source of energy. Furthermore, insulin blood levels decrease which helps with fat burning. The human growth hormone (HGH) also gets elevated during fasting. Elevated levels of HGH further increase fat burning, muscle gain and other health benefits. As a result of decreased insulin levels and increased HGH, our cells undergo cellular repair processes and removes toxic waste from cells. This in turn can help prevent cancer. 

IF benefits the brain

Previous studies have shown that IF improves certain metabolic features that are important for mental health. This involves lowering of blood sugar levels and insulin resistance which is important in fighting against certain diseases. Fasting up-regulates the secretion of brain-derived neurotrophic factors (BDNF), a protein that is involved in cognitive functions, memory and overall brain health. A study that experimented with rats showed that IF can elevate the production of new nerve cells which positively impacts the brain. Secretion of BDNF also contributes to lower chances of mental disorders such as depression and other brain conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease. Furthermore, a study involving animals has shown that IF prevents brain damage caused by strokes.

IF can lower the risk of Type 2 Diabetes

As mentioned earlier, fasting reduces insulin. The reduction of insulin levels ultimately lowers type 2 diabetes, a lifelong disease that increases the production of insulin beyond healthy levels. A study comparing IF to calorie restriction diets showed that IF has a stronger impact on lowering insulin levels and lowering blood sugar levels in the body. Collectively, studies have shown that IF can serve as an efficient protection mechanism for people at risk of type 2 diabetes.

IF can improve heart health

Today, heart disease is the leading cause of death in both men and women. It is still not well known whether IF can improve heart health due to the limited amount of studies out there. Emerging studies on the effectiveness of IF and heart disease are slowly on the rise.

Below is a video from the Intermountain Research & Medical Foundation discussing their findings on heart disease and IF.

Source: IntermtnMedCtr/Youtube

 

Intermittent fasting comes with physical and many mental health benefits that sets this apart from other diets. Why diet focussing only on physical health when you can also improve mental health and focus on bettering your longevity?

Make a change where your future self will thank you.

– Aron Ha

Negative effects on the brain caused by recreational marijuana

Marijuana is one of the three main forms of cannabis (a kind of drug affecting mental activity, behaviour, or perception). It is made from the cannabis plants’ leaves and dried flowers.

cannabis / image from Quick GuideUnderstanding Medical Marijuana

 In all the products of cannabis, marijuana is the least powerful. It is always smoked or even made into eatable products such as marijuana ice cream.

marijuana ice cream /image from Dr Greenlove

Therefore, some teenagers think that the marijuana can not hurt them and some of them even think that using marijuana allows them to be relaxed and settle down and improve their concentration. However, the fact is that recreational marijuana-use by youth can cause negative effects on the brain and daily performance.

 

 

 

The Risky Chemical in Marijuana

The delta-9-tetrahydro-cannabinol (THC), a main chemical in marijuana, is risky for biological systems in the brain.

The chemical formula of THC/ image from Evidence for God from Science

THC affects the cerebellum and the basal ganglia. The cerebellum is the area of the brain which controls balance and coordination. The basal ganglia are the parts of the brain which are helpful for controlling movement. These effects impact performance in some activities, such as sports and driving.

THC and the brain/ image from Collegiate Times

So the THC in marijuana can influences on the cerebellum and the basal ganglia in the brain. Even though THC can affect our brain, the bad thing is that THC percentage in marijuana experienced a dramatical increase from early 1990’s to 2013, which is from 3.73% t0 10%.

 

The Influence on Memory

In teens, the part of the brain for emotion is developed well, while the part of the brain for judgment still not mature. Smith with other researches found in 2001 that in people who use marijuana everyday for about three years, the hippocampus (a region in brain, is related to long-term memory) looked strange.

image from SlidePlayer

The greater differences in shape of the hippocampus, the poorer performance on memory assessment. In a  long-term memory test,  young adults who have never used marijuana scored 18% better compared to heavy marijuana-use youths. So if young people use marijuana, their memory would be affected negatively because of the brain chemistry and brain structure impairment.

In conclusion, recreational marijuana is harmful to the brain if youth uses it, especially when marijuana-use is high potency and long-term.

image from Depositphotos

Jogging Your Memory: Aerobic Exercise and Its Positive Implications on Memory Retention (REVISED)

Own an old pair of runners that sit around and collect dust? Science suggests – you may want to put them to use again.

Emerging studies shown that aerobic exercise can slow down the aging of the brain. It was also found that aerobic exercise can have positive effects on cognitive abilities such as memory retention. Several studies shown that individuals who regularly exercise occupy larger volumes of the brain involved in memory compared to individuals that do not exercise.

What exactly is it about physical exercise that has such an impact you might ask?
Upon light to intense levels of aerobic exercise, the body produces a spectrum of signalling chemicals. One of the chemicals that gets released yields the production of a very important protein called brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), which gets secreted in the brain and muscles. When produced in the body, BDNF maintains existing brain cells, promotes the growth of new blood vessels in the brain and encourages growth of the hippocampus, a region of the brain that is associated with memory.

Figure 1. Anatomy of brain. Source: Anatomy & Physiology, Connexions Web site


Why this should concern you.

The size of the hippocampus decreases with age which often leads to memory decline and decrease in mental efficiency. In many older adults, cognitive deficits are commonly associated with old age. Researchers estimate that by 2050, there will be more than 115 million people that will suffer dementia globally. However, evidence shows that with regular exercise, memory decline and aging of the hippocampus can be reduced and ultimately lower the chances of dementia.

Source: Harvard Health Publications/YouTube


Is one form of exercise more beneficial than the other?

As of now, researchers have not yet found an answer. The reason being is that most of the studies conducted only experimented with walking and/or running. However, it is suggested from the studies available that any type of exercise that would be able to elevate the heart rate to a certain level would produce these cognitive benefits.

As someone who enjoys being physically active and mainly weight trains, I was astonished about the benefits of aerobic exercise – all of this was new information to me. Ever since I learned further about these benefits of aerobic exercise, I have incorporated running to achieve a healthier, more cognitively efficient brain.

Figure 2. Man running. Source: Kyle Cassidy

If you are physically able to exercise and do not currently do so, I hope this post encourages you to reach for your pair of runners, go out, and “jog your memory”.

 

It is never too late to start exercising.

– Aron Ha

Video