iQuest Healthcare & Fitness Centre

Marshall Melnychuk: Top 5 foods and supplements for your brain- Part 2

March 15th, 2010 in Article, Blog, News, by: kayla

Part 2 – Supplements

When you stop to think about the part of your body that gives you the ability to think, you will find it quite amazing. Consider this 3 pound mass of flesh, made up of 100 billion brain cells, called neurons, each of which in turn contain thousands of dendrites, (tiny finger-like branches) that reach out towards other brain cells to pass along chemical messages which eventually, and with lightning speed, allow you to analyze and respond to the world around you. It is the only organ in the body that can analyze itself, or anything else.

Our awareness of ourselves and the world occurs in the brain. It is the filter, the funnel for all stimuli to enter and all where all thoughts, perceptions and actions begin. The experience of life resides in our brains. It is not a wonder that the fear of losing one’s memories and mental faculties is greater for most people than the fear of death.

In part one of this article we looked at five important foods to protect and enhance brain function. This week we look at the top five supplements. Supplements are way more fun than food. They hold such promise; the power of the most potent part of a food in a pill. Most supplements really are just food, in a very concentrated form. It’s like having a huge mixed salad with everything you could put in it and then just pulling out the croutons and condensing them down into a capsule. Amino acids are a good example. You take a whole protein such as soybeans and put them into a big pot with some special food-friendly chemicals and reduce it down to its component parts which are then packed together in a much higher concentration than you would find naturally in any food.

The entire spectrum of macro and micro nutrients are needed for good brain health so I am going to assume that everyone is taking a good quality multivitamin and antioxidant each and every day. That is my ‘goes-without-saying’ number one, so if you’re not doing that you won’t have a good foundation for the other supplements to build on. And, if you’re one of the few 1970-mindset holdovers that still believes you can get all the nutrients you need for optimal health from your food then you may want to stop reading here, the rest of this and many future articles will only make you mad.

1. EFA’s, especially Wild Salmon Oil
In part one of this article you will undoubtedly remember, since you were likely following the advice, that the number one food to eat for brain health is cold water fatty fish. So since you can’t realistically eat enough fish to optimize brain health, it is no surprise that you need to supplement with EFA’s or Essential Fatty Acids which are the concentrated oils from those fatty fish and other sources.
I talked with Dr. Don M McLeod, author of several books on antioxidants, hormones and an upcoming book on brain health and he took this to the next step and recommended Wild Pacific Salmon oil. It has been well studied like many sources of omega 3 oils and has the benefit of being low in mercury and other heavy metal toxins and local for us British Columbians so if you find a trusted source it will be fresh. Freshness is important because as with any fish oil the longer it sits after processing the greater the likelihood of it going rancid which not only eliminates the good health benefits but introduces nasty ones.
If in a liquid form, take one teaspoon, twice a day with your meals

2. Phosphatidylserine (PS)

PS is Dr McLeod’s number two recommendation as well and he knows much better than I do. Phosphatidylserine is predominant in brain cells especially in the membranes that are the skin of each neuron. PS is critical for neurotransmitter release and synaptic activity, which is how the brain communicates. Conditions of dementia are all associated with that synaptic communication. Clinical studies strongly suggest PS has the ability to improve brain functions such as mental concentration and memory which typically begin to decline with age. Studies show benefits with as little as 100 mg per day. Best taken with food.

3. Acetyl-L-Carnitine (ALCAR)
Studies involving Acetyl-L-Carnitine or ALCAR show promise in a lot of areas including brain health, athletic performance and weight loss. Acetyl-L-Carnitine is special because it not only protects cell tissue but has been shown to help to regenerate new nerve growth. The long held scientific view that the number of brain cells you are born with is all you get is changing. As it turns out the brain is somewhat ‘plastic’ and can remould and regenerate itself.
ALCAR is an amino acid (molecular shape of a protein) and for any protein to cross the blood-brain-barrier you need to ensure it doesn’t have much competition so ALCAR should be taken on an empty stomach on its own.
Take a minimum of 1000 mg on an empty stomach (at least ½ hour before other food or two hours after) and is best taken early in the day.

4. CoEnzyme Q10 (CoQ10)
CoQ 10 is an enzyme that is found in every cell in the body and aids in metabolizing nutrients, especially in the mitochondria of the cell which is where energy is produced. It acts as a powerful antioxidant and has been shown to significantly increase the potency of other antioxidants. Extensive research has been done on supplementing with CoEnzyme Q10 and how it affects the aging brain. Like ALCAR and ALA (below) it not only prevents brain cell deterioration but can improve brain function.
CoQ 10 is one of the more expensive supplements and the studies show that you need to take a minimum of 200 mg per day to get results but no negative effects have been seen with dosages ten times that amount. Unlike ALCAR, CoQ10 is best taken with food to aid in absorption.

5. Alpha Lipoic Acid (ALA)
Alpha-lipoic acid is a unique antioxidant that is made by the body (we don’t get it in our food) and is found in every cell, where it helps turn glucose into energy. Alpha-lipoic acid can pass easily into the brain and it has protective effects on brain and nerve tissue.
Scientists are investigating it as a potential treatment for stroke and other brain disorders involving free radical damage. Animals treated with alpha-lipoic acid, for example, suffered less brain damage and had a four times greater survival rate after a stroke than animals who did not receive this supplement.
Supplementing with ALA has become popular due to the many studies showing promise in elevating age-related decline, that is, it will actually improve brain function as well as protect.

There are at least ten other supplements that are worthy of adding to this list but I’m sold on this top five. There is room for debate and I welcome any and all of it. I do not claim to be the world’s leading nutrition expert but years of reading, discussing and experimenting lead me to feel confident in sharing my thoughts. I do my best to pass on the truth as I see it; I could be wrong, let me know if you think so.

Consistent consumption of the five foods and supplements that will help to keep your mind healthy will go a long way to feeding high priority nutrients to the rest of your body as well. It takes the ‘healthy body, healthy mind’ idea and turns it around – healthy mind, healthy body. Part of maintaining a lifestyle that will serve the greater purpose. Which is, take care of your body, it’s all you truly own.

Marshall Melnychuk is a manager and partner at iQuest Healthcare.

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Marshall Melnychuk: The best 5 foods and supplements for your brain

February 24th, 2010 in Article, Blog, News, by: kayla

Part 1 – Foods

I’m not traumatized by the idea of getting old but what does scare me, and many others it seems, is the potential of losing my mental faculties as I age – my memories, my ability to problem solve or recognize people. Statistics show a rapidly climbing numbers of seniors (as well as people under 65) with some form of age-related dementia. If trends continue in the next 30 years the cost of dementia to Canadian society will exceed $100 billion, and over one and a quarter million Canadians will be affected.

If you pause to personalize those statistics and how becoming a number would affect your life it may motivate you enough to take action to prevent such a future. I believe prevention is the key.

On the flip side you may be looking to improve your mental powers in order to give yourself a competitive edge. Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to recall all the details of an article you read two months ago, and to maintain the ability to focus on one problem for hours on end the way you used to in university? In either case volumes of scientific literature now suggests there are ways to delay or avoid the loss of cognitive function that may await you as you age, and even increase your current mental powers.

Top 5 or top 10 lists are always fun so here are my top five foods and supplements that have been scientifically linked to helping your brain (and mind) work the way it should. Part 1 is foods; to keep the editor happy I had to break it into 2, so next week is the supplement side.

First on the list Exercise! Ok, I know it is neither a food nor a supplement but the evidence is clear exercise not only protects your brain but can stimulate your brain to create new cells. A hormone called BDNF (Brain-derived neurotrophic factor) is increased by both aerobic and resistance exercise and it in turn stimulates other brain growth factors which build and protect brain cells – healthy body, healthy mind.

In a recent podcast interview with Dr. Alana Berg, Naturopathic physician she stressed the idea of first doing what you can to protect your brain. Brain tissue is much slower to regenerate than other tissues in the body so you have to protect what you’ve got.

Health protection doesn’t occur with once in a while behaviours. You have to be consistent, which means consuming the foods below if not daily, then at least several times per week.

1. Fatty cold-water fish. Your brain is 60 percent fat so the next time your boss calls you a fat-head you should thank him and remind yourself to continue eating cold water fatty fish like herring, lake trout, mackerel, sardines and of course the favourite salmon – especially wild salmon. These fish are high in omega-3 fats which are precisely the fats that make up the majority of your brain. Omega-3 fats have been the focus of a great deal of study and the science is clear here that not only will these foods protect your brain, and other body tissue, but they are essential for brain cell regeneration. Dr. Berg does caution against eating too much of the ‘big’ fish due to the accumulation of heavy metals in the tissues of these fish. She suggests no more than two servings of the large fish per week, and topping it up with servings of the smaller fish or see #1 on the list of supplements.

2. Low GI Foods. Glycemic Index or GI is quite common now but really hit the tipping point in the public consciousness due to the Zone Diet book about a decade ago. Basically the index rates how quickly carbohydrates are turned into sugar in the blood. The brain has a love-hate relationship with sugar in that it needs a steady stream of sugar to function well, but too much not only leads to energy swings but creates nasty molecules that can destroy brain cells. In a citation in the January,  2007 issue of the journal Diabetes, a strong link was found between Type II Diabetes and dementia. High GI foods are destructive to all parts of the body so it is not surprising to find the connection to the brain. There is so much data regarding the negative effects of sugar that I had difficulty not putting it at number 1 on this list.

3. Berries. All foods with high levels of antioxidants are good for the body, and berries, especially Vaccinium angustifolium, better known as low bush blueberries have some unique polyphenols not found in all other berries that do a particularly good job at protecting the brain from deterioration. A Google Scholar search on ‘blueberry and brain health’ returns over 9000 results on the topic dating back to the 1960s so there is no question of the research supporting the claims. It is difficult to find fresh blueberries year round so if you can’t get them try frozen or juice extract.

4. Green Tea. Dr. Berg stated, “in general any good organic source of green tea, steeped for about 3 minutes will help”. Green tea contains EGCG, Epigallocatechin gallate (I don’t even try to pronounce it, just go with EGCG) which is an antioxidant found in many plants and in high amounts in green tea. This antioxidant has been shown to be a powerful protector of all cells in the body including brain cells where it not only protects from cellular damage but helps to remove toxins. The most hailed green tea is Matcha tea. Several studies on Matcha green tea have shown it to have many times the antioxidant content of any other green tea. To get the benefits you should be drinking two or more cups a day, most every day.

5. Now for the good news, a tie for fifth – coffee and chocolate! There is definitely some controversy here but the science is clear that coffee really does enhance alertness, and unique antioxidants in dark chocolate (it has to be very pure dark chocolate) protect the brain as well as stimulating the ‘feel good’ brain hormones. Most commercial chocolate contains refined sugar so there is a give and take here. But a little pure dark chocolate (over 85%) will do the brain good.

Next week the supplement side of brain health which is more exciting because rather than just protect the brain, some supplements can help the brain rebuild and maybe even make you smarter. Until then eat well and take care of your body; it’s all you truly own.

Marshall Melnychuk is a manager and partner at iQuest Healthcare.

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Marshall Melnychuk: The curse of the yo-yo dieter

February 12th, 2010 in Article, Blog, News, by: Marshall

By Marshall Melnychuk

There’s an old saying, everyone knows it, ‘if at first you don’t succeed, try, and try again’. Good advice unless the task at hand happens to be going on a diet. When it comes to diets it should read, “Don’t try, don’t try again”. Now don’t get me wrong, if you’re overweight and intent on improving your health I’m not advocating giving up. What I’m saying is most fad diets will eventually do you more harm than good. Fear not, there is a solution.

The diet industry is largely about marketing. Psych you up, and give you a meal plan that drops your caloric intake by 50% or more and hope you see enough results in the first few months to keep you coming back for more. You will lose some weight, but maintaining the diet is usually not a reality, and a year later you will find yourself back to where you were, or even heavier. And the really bad news, now you have tricked your body to the point of impairing your own metabolism.

A lot of it has to do with your RMR (Resting Metabolic Rate) or BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) and how calorie restriction affects it. Basically your RMR is the rate at which your body burns energy when you are not doing anything strenuous and accounts for a major portion of the calories you burn off each day. It is affected by a few things including your body composition – the percentage of muscle and fat that makes up your body. A recent study from the Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Louisiana seems to confirm what has been suspected for a long time, that is, when you go on a sharply calorie restricted diet your BMR is affected long after you cease the diet.

Here’s the curse, the balance of calories in and calories out is the basic equation which determines whether you gain, lose or maintain your weight. Your BMR is a critical factor in that equation and the higher it is the easier it is to control your weight. When you significantly restrict your intake for extended periods of time your BMR drops because (it is theorized) your body thinks a famine is coming and goes into starvation mode. Then when you resume eating your pre-diet portions the equation is skewed and the amount of food you ate before which allowed you to maintain your weight will now cause you to gain weight.

Now let’s say, as the term “yo-yo” suggests, that a year or two later you try it again. Cut the calories hard for a month or three, lose some weight (not as much this time) then ultimately slip back into your pre-diet routine. Your BMR will have dropped even more and your body gets even more efficient at storing fat.

So is there a solution? Well yes there is, but if you have been through the scenario above the truth is it’s not easy. In fact it may be damned hard but it can be done and is being done regularly.

Here is my prescription for weight loss success. First, get a comprehensive medical assessment that will look at your physical status. BMR is an important factor but there could be other chemical or hormonal imbalances that when treated will make a big difference. Second, get back to basics, and third, focus on the reasons ‘why’ (more on these below).

Everyone has advice or tips to offer on nutrition. It is almost guaranteed that in any social gathering someone will expound on the latest cleanse that will suck the evil right out of your cells (I truly had a lady at a spa tell me that once), or a new found herb from deep in the Amazon jungle that will cure whatever ails you. Everybody seems to have a theory on this food or that spice but how many people know the basics and follow them?

Few, if any dietitians that do private consulting will ever mention the Canada Food guide. Why? Because they know it is almost certain the client will tune them out. People don’t want to hear about the Canada Food guide because they consider it “archaic”, and “out-dated”. No, don’t tell me about that, tell me about best food to help my body burn away the fat, or relieve my headaches…, on and on. People want the quick fix and the magic bullet. The problem is 99 out of 100 of them don’t do the basics.

What are the basics? I asked Lisa Koski RD to enlighten me and I doubt any of this will come as a revelation but here it is; eat your fruits and vegetables, know your calorie requirements and stay within it, and ensure the carbohydrates in your meals are have a low Glycemic Index score.

That’s it. We’ve all heard that before but do you follow it? Obviously most of us don’t.

The tough question is why?

I’ve been to motivational seminars where they tried to pump me up so I could go out and make a million dollars and one of the phrases that was cast about was, “if you have enough reasons why, the how doesn’t matter’. Once again when it comes to improving your health one part of that saying is very true; you need a strong reason ‘why’.

Knowledge is not the answer when it comes to changing behaviour. There are enough books on food and nutrition in print to fill every Burger King in the land, and as I’ve said before everyone seems to have some ideas on nutrition – they may not be the most sound of ideas, but information on health is everywhere.

There is no question that learning more about food and nutrition is helpful but most people know they should be eating 8 servings of fruits and vegetables per day. The information does not translate into behaviour change. Change occurs when we are deeply emotionally tied to a reason we need to change. Unfortunately for most people that level of motivation does not occur until they have had a scare related to their health that threatens their mortality, but it doesn’t have to be that way. And increasingly I see people taking action before their doctor tells them they must “change or die”.

Here is my recommendation and a simple strategy that to maintain your focus on practicing new behaviours. First get a better understanding of how you relate to food. You can do this by seeing a good dietitian or a counselor that will not only focus on the calories-in/calories-out information but on helping you become aware of the cues that influence your eating. There is a great program now being offered in Kelowna called, ‘Emotional Eating’ which does just that. Next write down the push/pull reasons for change. Five bad things that will happen if I don’t change (the Push), and five beneficial things that I will experience when I do change (the Pull). Write them down and put them somewhere you will see them, and read them every day.

Some of the most powerful reasons that I have heard people leverage are things like, “I want to be able to dance with my daughter at her graduation”, and “I couldn’t carry my baby up the stairs to her bedroom anymore”. You can visualize those statements, and they get you where you live. There is something very powerful, almost magical in finding the intrinsic motivation to make a major change in your life. It’s the type of magic that can remove a curse.

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Canadians’ fitness levels plummet

January 25th, 2010 in Article, by: kayla

Bad news: a new Statistics Canada survey concludes Canadians are fatter and weaker than ever before.

“Canadians are officially flabby and unfit. Statistics Canada released the Canadian Health Measures Survey on Wednesday, a comprehensive fitness survey that actually directly measured Canadians of all ages, rather than relying on less reliable self-reports on data such as weight.”

Read the article here.

What do you think?

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Taste vs Fullness, the food choice battle

November 11th, 2009 in Article, Medical Weightloss, Surgical Weightloss, by: Marshall

Dr. Arya Sharma, one of the world’s leading authorities on obesity recently discussed a study on his blog regarding how we choose food. The debate is around whether people choose a food for the taste reward, or for how well it will fill them up. Common wisdom is the ‘reward’ or taste is the more important factor but a recent study is challenging that. To read Dr. Sharma’s blog, click here.

I’m not so sure I completely agree with the conclusions of this article. I do agree that if a person is quite hungry before they start a meal then the choice of which food and how much it will take to feel satisfied affects the decision. But, in my mind, (and experience) taste plays a huge role in the food choice and the level of fullness is at times a distant second to the brains desire for more of that taste. If someone is not really hungry and the temptation of an addictive food is offered, say two large chocolate-chip cookies versus an orange I know the choice is too often the wrong one.

What do you think?

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