I just read this in a newsletter.Valuable Information for anybody, especially if you're pregnant or if you care about someone over 50.
Mental Rocket Fuel for Olympic Brainpower
February 24, 2009
By Jon Herring
The media is full of articles touting fish as brain food. And for once they've got it right. Fish really is brain food. And it's not just because of the omega-3s.
When it comes to "smart nutrients," dimethylaminoethanol - DMAE for short - is at the top of the list. And wild-caught, cold-water fish are chock full of it.
Why is it so good for you? Read on to find out.
The breakfast of champions
By the time an athlete has made it to the Olympics, his or her physical skills have been honed for years. But performance on game day challenges the brain as well. Mental agility is critical. The good news is you don't need to be an Olympic athlete to have Olympic brainpower.
Mental agility comes largely from acetylcholine, an important chemical messenger within the brain. Acetylcholine helps control learning, memory, attention, and general processing speed. It also sends out the signals that tell the body what to do.
The more acetylcholine you have, the faster those signals can go out. The faster the signals go out, the quicker you can think and react.1
So where does acetylcholine come from? Your brain makes it from choline, which is usually considered a B-complex vitamin.
Choline does many important things in the body in addition to its role in the brain. For example, it is vital for metabolism and cell signaling. Egg yolks are an excellent food source of choline, by the way.
Your brain is hungry for choline. While your brain accounts for only about 2% of your body weight, it is an energy hog. It gets first dibs on 20% of the calories you eat so that it can keep all systems alert and ready to respond.
And choline makes a big difference.
A supercharged beginning
Researchers at Duke University tested the benefits of choline in an unusual way. They gave choline supplements to pregnant rats to see if the supplements would make a difference in the brains of the offspring. The results? The brain cells of the offspring were larger and the electrical signals that create memories fired much faster than those of the control group.
Head researcher Dr. Qiang Li noted that previous studies had shown that animals given choline were smarter and learned things more quickly. But it was unclear if the brain was actually changed in the process.
After the study results came in, Dr. Li commented, "Choline didn't just change the general environment of the brain, it changed the fundamental building blocks of brain circuits - the cells themselves."3
This same research has been confirmed by other scientists around the country. As a result, choline now has the status of an "essential nutrient." It is especially important for pregnant and nursing women.
So why not just consume more choline? How does DMAE fit into this picture?
The media is full of articles touting fish as brain food. And for once they've got it right. Fish really is brain food. And it's not just because of the omega-3s.
When it comes to "smart nutrients," dimethylaminoethanol - DMAE for short - is at the top of the list. And wild-caught, cold-water fish are chock full of it.
You can read more about these nutrients and even buy them at discount prices here.