“Feed Your Head”: Keeping Your Brain Healthy in the 21st Century
Your brain, like every other organ in your body, requires specific nutrients in order to function optimally.
Deficiencies of those nutrients can result in mental fatigue…”brain fog”…gradual memory loss…slow thinking…poor retention…slow reaction time and more.
But exactly which nutrients are most needed by the brain for optimal function?
I’ll tell you about three of the most important brain nutrients, directly below, and explain one-by-one how they invigorate brain function…eliminate mental and physical fatigue… improve memory…prevent brain shrinkage as you age…and give you lightning-fast mental recall and clarity of mind.
In the hit song, White Rabbit, by 60’s psychedelic rock band Jefferson Airplane, singer Grace Slick twice repeats the lyrics “Remember what the Dormouse said, ‘Feed your head, feed your head.'”
Most music critics agree that in so doing, she was advocating for the use of psychedelic drugs as a means of attaining cerebral enlightenment.
Of course, we all know how that turned out. The psychedelic era gradually crashed and burned as the drugs it was founded upon turned out to warp as many minds as they supposedly helped enlighten.
Nutrition Fuels the Brain, Not Drugs
That’s because the brain runs on nutrition, not drugs. So the song lyrics are not without merit if you think about them from a nutrient rather than a drug standpoint. Which leads me to my next point:
Medical science now knows that three key nutrients are needed by the brain each and every day for optimal function – and at least two of these nutrients are needed in prodigious quantities. Medical science also now knows that even mild deficiencies of these specific brain nutrients can lead to mental fatigue…”brain fog”…gradual memory loss…slow thinking …poor retention…slow reaction time and much more.
Indeed, as Dr. Joseph Mercola, D.O. has pointed out, nutrient deficiencies in the brain can mimic some of the worst symptoms of dementia. But when the brain is given the nutrients it’s most deficient in, in sufficient quantities, the “dementia” often gradually disappears and the individual recovers.
In other words, many symptoms of nutrient deficiency in the brain imitate the symptoms of dementia or even Alzheimer’s disease – and can be prevented and even reversed when the right nutrients are fed to the brain on a regular basis.
But what exactly are these three specific nutrients needed by the brain every single day of our lives for optimal cerebral function? And why aren’t we getting enough of these crucial “brain nutrients” from the foods we eat?
In just a moment I’ll reveal all three specific nutrients your brain not only needs every single day, but quite literally can’t function without. But first, let’s take a quick look at why the food we eat is no longer providing our brains and bodies with these nutrients…
How Our Brains Became Nutrient Deficient
We all know that junk foods are among the most nutrient-deficient foods on the face of the earth. You’re simply not going to get the nutrients you need for maximum health and well-being by eating junk foods.
What might surprise you, however, is the fact that even supposedly good foods – fruits, vegetables, fresh organic meats and more – no longer carry the nutrients needed to sustain the human body and brain in optimal health.
According to Dr. Al Sears, M.D., in spite of the abundance of foods we enjoy in this nation, with supermarkets filled to the brim seven days a week with fresh meat and produce, nutrient deficiencies are nevertheless now quite commonplace in children, adults and the elderly.
Sears explains that it’s because our modern foods are far less “nutritionally dense” than they used to be. In other words, due to loss of nutrients from the soil itself (which is caused by modern-day chemical farming techniques) our food no longer contains the density of nutrients needed to sustain our bodies in optimal health and well-being. Says Dr. Sears:
“The world we live in is nothing like the environment our ancient ancestors thrived in. In their world, they got all the nutrients they needed from food.
The commercially processed meats we eat are loaded with toxins. Our soil has lost nutrients at a staggering rate. And this decline in soil quality is robbing our food of all nutrition.
Today you have to eat 10 servings of vegetables or more to equal the nutrition of one serving from 50 years ago. Even the FDA admits nutrient levels have fallen by 80% in the last 30 years.”
The scientific community appears to agree. According to the April 27, 2011 issue of Scientific American, soil depletion is indeed one of the two main culprits causing the nutrient depletion of the foods we eat. They write:
“Because of soil depletion, crops grown decades ago were much richer in vitamins and minerals than the varieties most of us get today.
…Modern intensive agricultural methods have stripped increasing amounts of nutrients from the soil in which the food we eat grows.“
Devastating Consequences
The end result of these modern chemical-laden farming practices have been devastating in terms of the nutrient content of foods.
For example, a 2009 report from the University of Texas in Austin demonstrated that the vitamin and mineral content of fruits and vegetables had dropped as much as 40% over the previous 50 years.
Another report demonstrated that in the 22 years between 1975 and 1997, calcium levels in the foods we eat had already dropped 27% from previous levels…iron levels had dropped 37%…vitamin C levels had dropped 30%…and vitamin A levels had dropped 21%.
Is it any wonder nutritional deficiencies in this country are approaching epidemic levels, while food supplies and food availability have never been greater? The USDA later reported a staggering 59% decline in the vitamin A content of eggs, and a mind-blowing 78% decline in the selenium content of corn (selenium being a powerful antioxidant and anti-cancer nutrient).
Finally, according to nutritionist Robb Wolf, writing in a report titled The Illusion of Nutrient-Dense Food, “Most crops utilize an average of 40 elements from the soil. In no case do fertilizers add more than 12 and most commercial fertilizers add a maximum of six elements.”
So modern chemical fertilizers that replaced old-fashioned farming techniques are essentially devoid of the nutrients needed to grow healthy nutrient-dense foods.
With these chemicals, farmers can make the food grow faster, to feed more people. But they can’t make these faster-grown foods absorb enough nutrients to keep people healthy for a lifetime.
Even German chemist Justus von Liebig, who is widely credited with implementing today’s modern, chemical-laden farming practices, realized afterwards that he’d been wrong about his chemically-induced food-growing shortcuts. He later wrote:
“I had sinned against the wisdom of our Creator, and received just punishment for it. I wanted to improve His handiwork, and in my blindness, I believed that in His wonderful chain of laws…there might be a link missing that had to be replaced by me…”
In other words, agriculturally speaking, God had it right from the very start. And food chemist Liebig had it all wrong.
Unfortunately, most governments, in the face of rapid population growth, and amid concerns of not having enough food to feed their people, long ago forced Liebig’s “fast grow” chemical-laden farming practices onto farmers throughout Europe and the U.S. As a result, the vast majority of the food we eat today is severely nutrient deficient.
Slowly but surely, we’re all becoming nutrient-deficient – unless, of course, we take the right nutritional supplements to make up for it.
Feed Your Head Its Daily Dose of AMG
If you’re anything like me, you probably take a good, daily multi-vitamin/mineral supplement to help make up for some of the nutrient deficiencies in the foods you eat. And that’s great. It’s wise. It’s prudent. And it’s beneficial, as long as you’re not taking cheap, synthetic vitamins like those being sold in Walmart and other Big Box stores.
But don’t forget to “feed your head” as well as the rest of your body.
After all, your brain is extremely sensitive to nutritional deficiencies. In fact, it has some very specific and unique nutrient requirements that, when met, allow it to function at optimal levels. Neurons fire faster and smoother. Thinking becomes easier. Memory is no longer a struggle. Brain chemicals that promote feelings of happiness and well-being are also triggered in the presence of these specific nutrients.
But what are they? That’s where a brand new brain health supplement from Targeted Nutrients called AMG comes in. The letters “AMG” stand for the product’s three main nutrients:
- Adenosine triphosphate
- Methylcobalamin
- Glucoronolactone
That’s “AMG” for short. But let’s take a quick look at each one of these vital brain nutrients, and see exactly why they’re so important to optimal brain function as we age:
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#1 Must-Have Brain Nutrient: Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) – The human brain uses more energy than any other organ. After all, it’s the master control organ for the entire body. And the primary source of cellular energy in the brain is a nutrient known as adenosine triphosphate, or ATP, which the brain requires in prodigious quantities every single minute of every single day. |
ATP, or adenosine triphosphate, is critical to brain function. Indeed, it’s the second-most important molecule involved in brain function, next to oxygen. According to Dr. Richard Passwater, Ph.D., “ATP enhances the delivery of nutrients and oxygen to the brain, and stimulates the removal of waste products.” But that’s not all it does – not by a long shot.
For example, when researchers at the University of Minnesota Medical School conducted a study to determine to what extent ATP levels were linked to improved brain function, they were stunned to find that consistently high ATP levels were needed not only for the efficient firing of neurons in the brain, but also for the brain’s little-understood “housekeeping” activities – i.e., it’s ability to self-repair any damage to brain cells and tissues, and to help keep brain tissue alive and functioning at optimal levels.
Later, another clinical study conducted under the auspices of the National Academy of Sciences demonstrated that higher functioning brains contain up to 50% more ATP than normal brains. In other words, the more ATP you have in your brain, the better your brain works. It’s a plain and simple correlation: With more ATP, you’ll enjoy sharper memories…greater clarity of thought…greater ability to “think on one’s feet”…and far less “brain drain” throughout the course of a day.
Today, there’s no argument that peak brain health and function is largely dependent upon ATP. According to Dr. Barry Sears, M.D., “Without adequate levels of ATP, your brain has an energy drain and its function decreases…Below a critical level of ATP production, brain cells can begin to die.” In other words, ATP is foundational to optimal brain health, well-being and function.
Researchers have only recently discovered that ATP also works as a neurotransmitter in the brain – it helps brain cells to communicate and control each other. In fact, according to Dr. Sarah Myhill, M.D., “Other brain neurotransmitters won’t work unless they’re accompanied by a molecule of ATP.” According to physician’s assistant David Overton, this means the brain’s main energy source also serves as the language between brain cells.
What’s more, according to board-certified nutritionist Byron J. Richards, ATP levels in the brain largely determine how effectively you communicate with others, as well as the quality of your mental and emotional state:
“The brain’s glial cells use ATP to communicate. And glial cells are the primary regulators of neurons; they must have ATP to tell neurons what to do.
This means that your brain uses energy to communicate. If you run low on energy your brain does not communicate and your neurotransmitters do not flow in an optimal way.
In short, your overall supply of energy in the form of ATP is the single-most important factor determining the health of your mind and mood.
… If you don’t have enough ATP on hand you will feel irritable, tired, have a poor mind, and it will seem like the burden of stress is causing wear and tear.”
In a study titled “ATP and the Brain,” conducted at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, the researchers discovered that adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is the most important of all energy molecules for the brain. They point out that the brain harbors and utilizes even more adenosine triphosphate (ATP) than the heart, which depends upon ATP to supply the energy needed for each and every heartbeat. Therefore, the brain’s constant and massive need for high levels of ATP reflects its function as the master control system for the entire body.
Indeed, according to the University of Pennsylvania researchers, the central nervous system – which is comprised of both the brain and the spinal cord – “requires a constant input of ATP” for energy. And according to Scientific American, “It’s well established that the brain uses more energy than any other human organ” and that “the primary source of that energy is ATP.”
The researchers also pointed out that “the metabolic rate of the brain” (i.e., the rate that energy is produced and utilized in the brain) is “closely correlated with physiological function.” In other words, if you want improved brain function, you must increase your brain’s levels ATP.
What’s more, without ATP there can be no neurogenesis taking place in the brain, meaning no formation of new brain cells. And there can be no brain repair, either. As pointed out by Dr. Sarah Myhill, M.D., “The brain creates a million new connections every second. This means there is huge potential for healing and repair; it is simply a case of moving things in the right direction. But the brain has to have the optimum energy supply to allow this process to happen! And ATP is the energy supply it depends upon.”
Dr. Myhill concludes by saying “Improve ATP levels in your brain, and you’ll improve all aspects of brain function. Indeed, improving ATP delivery is the best treatment for low mood and depression.”
The bottom line is that in order for your brain to work at peak efficiency and effectiveness, it needs ATP – and lots of it. Without ATP, brain energy and related brain function gradually grind to a halt, just like a car sputtering out of gas on the freeway.
(I’ll show you where to get the highest-quality ATP in just a moment. But don’t jump the gun just yet. There’s two more critical brain nutrients to learn about, first…)
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#2 Must-Have Brain Nutrient: Methylcobalamin – Long known as the body’s “brain and energy vitamin,” this special co-enzyme form of vitamin B-12 is the most biologically active form of B-12 available. It’s also the most cerebrally invigorating, because it’s the only form of B-12 that can quickly and easily cross the blood-brain barrier to nourish a nutrient-starved brain. |
According to Dr. Jeffrey J. Stuart, D.O., author of Could it Be B-12: An Epidemic of Misdiagnosis, not only can low vitamin B-12 levels in the brain make your memory fuzzy, cause cognitive difficulties and even mimic Alzheimer’s disease, but the deficiency can also directly impair the function of the vital nerve cells in your brain that control how you feel, think and behave.
In fact, vitamin B-12 is so important to good mental health and optimal brain function, a long-term deficiency “can cause severe mental illness including depression, paranoia and symptoms resembling schizophrenia or bipolar disorder.” What’s more, according to Dr. Stuart, “…anyone, at any age, can be a victim of a B-12 deficiency.”
In people over 40, low levels of vitamin B-12 have been tied directly to declining brain function (see August 2012 Journal of the American Geriatrics Society). In fact, in recent studies, researchers from the USDA and Tufts University have demonstrated that even a mild deficiency of vitamin B-12 can indicate ongoing cognitive decline.
Other recent clinical studies have shown that older adults who are deficient in vitamin B-12 face a 50% greater propensity toward brain shrinkage and related cognitive deficiency than those who are not deficient in the vitamin – another crucial reason to maintain as reasonably high levels of B-12 as possible in the body and brain as we age.
According to Dr. Joseph Mercola, DO, declining vitamin B-12 levels will inevitably have a profoundly negative effect on mood and mental health. He writes:
“As your vitamin B12 levels falter, some of the initial signs will often include mood changes, such as lack of motivation or feelings of apathy. Low B12 levels can also lead to acute mental fogginess, memory troubles, muscle weakness, and fatigue. Chronic health problems of vitamin B12 deficiency include nerve damage, psychiatric problems (which may also mimic more serious mental illness), and dementia.”
According to WebMD.com, “Since your body doesn’t make vitamin B12, you’ll need to get it from animal-based foods or from supplements, and it needs to be consumed on a regular basis in order to avoid deficiency problems.”
Researchers at the National Institute on Aging have found that a B-12 deficiency can double the risk of depression in older women. Not only that, but according to Dr. Stuart, “One telling fact is that around 90% of the patients we identify with vitamin B-12 deficiency in the ER are on antidepressants, which reveals that their primary care doctors and other specialists failed to screen them for B-12 deficiency as a reason for their depression.”
Unfortunately, additional clinical studies have demonstrated that most older Americans are already vitamin B-12 deficient. The culprit, according to Dr. Joseph Mercola, is two-fold: poor digestion and taking the wrong form of vitamin B-12.
✓ One, as our body ages, it begins to have more difficulty extracting B-12 from the foods we eat – even from foods known to be rich in the vitamin, such as red meat, fish and dairy. According to Dr. Mercola, “When you get older, the lining of your stomach gradually loses its ability to produce hydrochloric acid, which releases vitamin B12 from your food in the form your body can efficiently absorb and utilize. If you’re over 40, it’s safe to assume you’re not absorbing vitamin B12 at an optimal level.“
✓ And two, even your vitamin supplements and vitamin “fortified” foods probably aren’t helping much when it comes to sustaining optimal vitamin B-12 levels. That’s because most vitamin manufacturers and food processors have taken to using a cheap and completely synthetic form of B-12 called cyanocobalamin, which the body has to convert through a complex metabolic process into the active natural form before it can be utilized. It’s estimated that only about 12% of a dose of cyanocobalamin is ever converted to the active form of B-12 and utilized in the body.
What’s more, cyanocobalamin is bound to a potentially toxic cyanidemolecule (hence the name “cyano-cobalamin”) that must be separated from B-12 in the liver and removed from your body through an elaborate detoxifying process. This process further reduces the amount of active B-12 that can be derived from cyanocobalamin and used for the health of both body and brain.
For these two reasons, most adults in the 40-plus age range are now known to be deficient in vitamin B-12 – either clinically, or sub-clinically – and are therefore at growing risk of cognitive decline and brain malfunction. Forgetfulness…”brain fog” and other signs of slowing mental function…low mental energy…sluggish brain self-repair…poor mood and morale – all of these are symptoms of low B-12 levels in the brain.
But here’s the secret: According to natural health experts, the solution to keeping your brain’s levels of B-12 at therapeutic levels is to always use the much rarer but far more bio-active co-enzyme form of B-12 known as methylcobalamin. According to a study published in the Journal of Pharmacological Therapeutics:
“…methylcobalamin is the only form of vitamin B-12 that can cross the blood brain barrier without biotransformation. Its methyl group stimulates serotonin creation, a neurotransmitter which is responsible for mood enhancement and protects the brain from damage against excitotoxins.”
In other words, the correct form of B-12 – the active co-enzyme methylcobalamin form – goes directly to work in the brain triggering neurotransmitters that are responsible for elevated mood, quick-thinking and protection against brain damage from toxins.
Thankfully, because the methylcobalamin form of vitamin B-12 is so powerful, most people notice improved brain function within the very first few days of taking it. It not only boosts mood and mental clarity, and improves brain function, but it also protects the aging brain against the otherwise devastating effects of exitotoxins that can kill brain cells.
(I’ll tell you where to obtain therapeutic-quality methylcobalamin in just a moment, so you’ll never be without this crucial brain nutrient again. But first, let’s take a look at one last critical brain nutrient everyone should add to in their brain-enhancement arsenal…)
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#3 Must-Have Brain Nutrient: Glucoronolactone – While little-known to the general public, this all-natural metabolite of glucose has actually been around in supplement form since the 1960’s when it was given to U.S. troops during the dark days of the Vietnam war as a natural means of uplifting mood and morale while relieving mental stress and depression. Known as nature’s “nirvana compound,” glucoronolactone promotes brain energy, enhanced mental clarity and mild euphoria. |
According to Brian D. Evans, author of How to Become Super Smart and Get Limitless Memory, glucuronolactone is a little-known “smart nutrient” that “works to fight fatigue and provide an overall sense of well-being.”
Jonathan Samson, M.D., Ph.D., says, “What’s known about glucuronolactone is that it allows an amazing natural energy increase, heightening both mood and mental clarity simultaneously.”
In other words, glucoronolactone is both ergogenic (i.e., performance, energy and stamina-enhancing) andeuphoragenic (i.e., pleasure-inducing). It boosts brain energy and function and helps induce feelings of well-being or even mild euphoria by triggering your body’s “happy” brain chemicals.
The brain-boosting and mood-boosting benefits of glucoronolactone are so impressive, ex-Google employee Michael Brandt and Glassmap founder Geoffrey Woo, both Stanford graduates, admit to using it as part of their regular morning “nootropic brain stack” for achieving optimal brain function. And glucoronolactone was even featured for its brain-boosting and mood-enhancing benefits on ABC TVs Shark Tank.
According to Health Monthly, “Glucuronolactone delivers a valuable energy boost for the brain…giving you an extra edge to enhance your focus and concentration.” And according to Nootriment.com, “Glucoronolactone reduces sleepiness, increases focus, lightens the mood and quickens reaction times.”
Finally, according to NutriScience, “Studies suggest that glucuronolactone…promotes mental performance and positive mood as well. When given glucuronolactone in a clinical study, subjects showed significant improvements in reaction time, concentration, and memory.”
As a bonus to the mood-boosting and energy-enhancing benefits of glucoronolactone, it’s also known to be one of the human body’s most important metabolites, being intimately involved in fatty acid synthesis, nucleotide synthesis, and amino acid synthesis – which could help explain some of its profoundly uplifting qualities on both mental and physical performance.
In other words, virtually all of your body’s metabolic building blocks are directly or indirectly aided by the presence of glucoronolactone, which means it’s needed for the very process of life, itself. What’s more, it’s completely natural. Glucoronolactone is made in the liver, out of glucose. And it can also be found in a variety of plant gums and other natural sources – it’s even in wine, in small amounts.
Plus, it’s one of the body’s most important natural de-toxifiers, being demonstrated in clinical trials to convert toxic substances – including drugs like morphine and codeine, or harmful chemical substances such as xenoestrogens, pollutants, toxins, and carcinogens – into harmless water-soluble substances which can then be easily excreted through the kidneys rather than building up in the body.
In a nutshell, glucoronolactone is a powerful nutritional metabolite of glucose that boosts brain function, provides a profound sense of physical and mental well-being, increases stamina, improves metabolism, and detoxifies the liver – all at the same time.
Best Brain Supplement Ever
The bottom line is that AMG contains an exclusive combination of powerful, bio-active brain nutrients scientifically proven to support brain health and boost brain function, while helping the brain and body detoxify itself at the same time. In a nutshell, you get:
- adenosine triphosphate for maximum brain energy and quick-thinking (increases firing of neurons in the brain; gives the brain the energy it needs for self-repair),
- plus methylcobalamin for reversal of fatigue and depression, increased motivation and mood, and enhanced brain and nervous system function,
- and GRL (glucoronolactone) for sustained mental pleasure, relaxation and mild euphoria.
Put these three powerful all-natural nutrients together in a single supplement known as AMG,
and you have one of the most cerebrally invigorating and uplifting nutritional supplement formulas on the face of the earth. It’s truly a nutrient feast for the brain. You’ll feel the difference from the very first day.
PLUS…AMG is non-addicting. Yet when used regularly it gives you lightening fast brain power…keeps your brain functioning at optimal levels…improves memory…aids the brain in making fast and efficient self-repairs…and finally, it makes you feel like a million bucks again, to boot. Click Here To Learn More About AMG!
