Keeping Your Brain Young

The human body, including the brain, is made up of cells, each of which has a covering made up of various substances. Forming the basic structure is a layer of fatty acid. If every cell in an average size person was opened up and laid end to end, we'd look like an oil slick in the ocean the size of a football field!(Schmidt, Smart Fats).

This oil is made up of all the fats you've eaten in the last two weeks or so. Some of the fats contribute to a cell membrane of high integrity, and some don't. What you put in your mouth builds the actual stones of your house, which is your body. But beyond their role in actually building the structure of the nerves, and by extension, the brain, the fatty acids have another role-as messengers.

The integrity of your cells affects every part of your body, even your sense of smell. The nerves in our olfactory system can identify smells with great precision. They have the shortest route to the brain's core, and are exposed to the outside world. When we use vision, we have to first make sense of what we're seeing, but the olfactory system is directly hooked up to our emotional center. When you lose your sense of smell, your ability to make sense of your environment is more limited. People who have lost their sense of smell have also shown changes in their behavior.

The olfactory center, and your vision, all made of cells, are messengers to the body. These messengers let the immune system know whether it's time to go to work; whether the blood vessels should narrow or widen; whether the blood platelets should stick together or separate. They regulate inflammation, which is a healing response. These messengers are made from omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids.

There is an article in the recent issue of Scientific American about drugs that enhance cognitive abilities. Basically, they are drugs that are sold through prescription only, and there are people who would like them made more readily available. These drugs are taken alike by older people trying to compete in a job market full of recent college graduates, and students under pressure to accomplish and remember tons of material. The drugs most cited as being used for cognitive enhancement were Ritalin, Adderall, Provigil. The need for improved concentration was the reason most used for the ingestion of these substances. There are always riks associated with drug use; negative side-effects, addiction, backlash, etc. There is no risk attached to ingesting the natural things that belong in our bodies.

With the right balance of fatty acids, omega-6 and omega-3s, and supplementation where necessary, your mind should stay as sharp as it was when you were fifteen(providing you were a sober and healthy fifteen). And did anyone think of doing that morning workout most days of the week? Exercise is necessary to a sharp, youthful mind.

Back to fatty acids as messengers: They become messengers when a call to action is sent out. That call could be caused by bacteria, a virus, a trauma, or a heavy metal or toxin. Once they get the 'call' they are released from the membrane of the cells and become highly active hormone-like substances.

In 'Smart Fats', the author talks about prostaglandins. These were originally discovered in the prostate gland, but subsequently were discovered all through the body. The ones Michael Schmidt discusses in the book are called PGE1, PGE2, and PGE3. PGE1 is formed from dietary linoleic acid. It is found in corn oil, sunflower oil, sesame oil, safflower oil.

PGE1 affects the release of compounds from nerve cells that transmit nerve impulses. It has anti-inflammatory properties and enhances the immune system. The pathway for PGE1 has been manipulated by some doctors to improve mood disorders.

PGE2 is rarely found in plants, and is most commonly found in animal fats. It is a highly inflammatory substance. It can cause swelling, increased pain sensitivity and increased blood viscosity. Some of the compounds associated with PGE2 can cause an overactive immune system, making immune cells attack their host. Elevated levels of the prostaglandin have been found in a number of problems affecting mood disorders. The family of PGE2 is sometimes seen as a 'bad guy', but we need it for a variety of functions. It becomes a problem when the system is out of balance. If something happens that requires an inflammatory response using the PGE2 pathway, then that fatty acid can take care of it. However, once the crisis has passed, and if the system does not have enough of the other fatty acids present to calm the system down, that creates a problem. Messengers in this pathway can alter brain activity if they are present in excess.

David Perlmutter, a neurologist from Naples, Florida has been using essential fatty acids to modify the messengers and thus help alleviate some mood disorders. He uses GLA, ALA, DHA, and reduces saturated fat to build brain membranes. He uses this approach with his patients with multiple sclerosis.

Dietary factors influence all aspects of the body, and the brain is no exception. Blood supply must stay strong and healthy with the proper balance of fatty acids present, in order for our brains to remain healthy throughout our lifetime. Without the right balance, the blood vessels can begin to narrow, even in young children. The dietary fats have a profound influence on the vessels that supply oxygen and nutrients to the brain.

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