Conquer Brain Fog: Clearer Thinking and More Productive Days
Have you ever struggled with a lack of mental clarity, memory trouble or an inability to focus? We’re guessing you probably have and you’re not alone. These symptoms can all point to something called brain fog, which seems to be a growing trend in our culture affecting a wide variety of demographics. We’re not talking about a deteriorating mind, but about the many toxic contributors in our life that can affect our thinking and make us feel sluggish.
On this episode we have a conversation about how brain fog might be causing you to not live at your full potential. We have an epidemic problem with concentration in our culture and there many environmental factors that are keeping us from optimal health including poor diet, chemicals in products we use every day, dehydration and lack of clean water, EMF’s and the list goes on. We talk about simple things that you change in your own life for short term and long term solutions.
Some Topics We Discussed:
What is brain fog and why do people experience it? (2:01)
What are the symptoms of brain fog? (5:52)
What is the long term solution for reducing brain fog? (8:13)
What is the quick, natural fix when you’re in a crunch for time? (20:09)
Key Takeaways From This Episode:
Your medical conditions can greatly impact your cognitive ability. (4:52)
Your diet can cause foggy thinking. Even if you’re doing a highly recommended diet like the keto diet or practicing intermittent fasting. (6:40)
Be aware of foods that trigger brain fog for you: artificial sweeteners, MSG, preservatives, artificial colors, etc. (8:19)
Products + Resources:
CLICK HERE FOR THE FULL SHOW TRANSCRIPT
Brian Strickland 00:43 Hey, everyone, you're listening to The Holistic Navigator Podcast, where we believe the body has the capacity to heal itself, if given the proper nutrients and care. Thanks for listening today. My name is Brian Strickland. I'm the producer of the show. And here with me in the studio, as always is your host Ed Jones. How's your week been Ed?
Ed Jones 01:04 Super Duper, Brian. Thank you so much. I actually flew my small airplane yesterday, which helps me immensely on everything from stress to the elimination of brain fog.
Brian Strickland 01:16 Well, on that note, listeners, have you ever just felt that your thinking isn't that clear or that you're just slugging through the day? Chances are, we've all felt these symptoms at one point or another. But there was never really a clear term to describe what we felt. Well, brain fog is now a widely used term, and can be indicative of memory problems or a lack of concentration and poor focus. And we're bombarded with things that battle for our attention in our culture. So it's no wonder that many of us have a difficult time focusing on the things that matter. Well, today we're going to spend some time talking about the options that are available to help alleviate brain fog, and some of the reasons you may be experiencing it. So Ed to begin, can you just give everyone your definition of brain fog and why it's so prevalent today?
Ed Jones 02:08 Thank you, Brian. And it is a lengthy conversation, but I'm going to make it quick. So there's a tremendous amount of information to cover. And you know, you asked me before the show, when did this word actually become official brain fog. And I have to say being 62 years old, I do not remember any of this being an issue until I'm guessing about the mid 80s is where it kind of started. But before that, unless you had not slept the night before that was really the only issue. But today, I'm going to cover it from A to Z. And again, covering it in a way that's not just painting over the issues, but actually going in and adressing and repairing, which is the only long term solution that wins and in my game of life, because when you patch something like conventional medicine seems to want to do, the tire will not last very long. And I want you and myself and all the people listening to have a long and healthy and joyous life. And it's hard when you have brain fog. In fact, I read a nice little description yesterday on brain fog. And this person said it feels like my mind is like my internet browser. 19 tabs are open, seven are frozen, and I have no idea where that damn music is coming from. That's a pretty good description but a little bit more official. Of course it is the slowed speed of cognitive processing, or difficulty in working memory. And we've all experienced it. There is no doubt. I don't know of anyone who hasn't. Well, one reason is because sleep is the number one probable reason for the brain to get foggy, but I'm going to go through and do a three step program here. One is discussing the number one main reasons why we need to rule these out first before we even go into step two, which is the repair part of this conversation. And then step three is for people who you know, they're working on their long term process, but they got a big chore to do tomorrow and we you know, the we have to be on top of our game. This is our job. This is our whole career and I don't have time for the long term solution to kick in because I only have 24 hours so I want to give those points also. Alright, first off, I do have to do my normal disclaimer, we are not treating any medical condition. I'm only here to educate and you need to ask your healthcare professional if you are dealing with health issues before starting in a new program. But here we go. First big step in alleviating brain fog is to rule out significant medical issues. What are those? Just some of those are like blood sugar. We all know if our blood sugar goes way down or way up, it can disrupt the thinking mind. So we got to make sure that we're not in a pre diabetic or diabetic state. The liver, the kidneys, chronic inflammation, an immune system is going crazy, because it's fighting something how many of us have, you know, gotten sick with the flu or some kind of infection, you know, it affects the way that your cognitive abilities are processing. So going to someone who can do basic good panels to rule out the medical conditions. Again, I've found that the insurance companies are getting more and more stingy about these blood tests. And you have to take responsibility to make sure you are receiving what you need to be receiving. But as far as the brain fog, you know, there's other symptoms that go along that we can actually use to describe it. One is low energy, fatigue, headaches, forgetfulness, anxiety, confusion, all of those are part of the package of brain fog. And, you know, there are certain things that we all go through in life that can disrupt this thinking that there's really not much you can do about it in the moment. But one of those is allergies. Believe it or not, having a really sensitive system to ragweed and all the other things floating around can create the brain fog because the brain is actually out of balance when all of these histamines are being released. Lack of sleep, of course, is predominant reason, but believe it or not, and I'm going to give some bullet points on this that you have not heard anywhere else probably. One is the keto diet, people who do it too strictly brain fog is a side effect, too much fasting, even though I'm again a massive fan of intermittent fasting. What is that? That is where we're going to eat about eight hour window of eating and we're not going to eat for the other 16. Now I do a 13 and 11 schedule because I tend to have a super fast metabolism. But it is an amazing for your health, but too much brain fog can occur. So dehydration is the last one of the most prominent reasons of having brain fog. Now I want to say something that is very, very important. We need to quantify everything. And what that means is because we're living in an age of technology, where we have the magic ability of the the apps and the computer at our fingertips, you and I need to be able to monitor things like sleep, energy levels, your weight, have a food log, monitor moods, plug in your supplements, etc. The reason we have to do this, we have such a complex life with so many variables. And if you're just wing it, which is what many people do, they read an article, they listen to a podcast, oh, I'm going to try this certain thing. There's too many things that affect the outcome and you will quit most likely. So part two of this is the long term solution. Number one, cut back on processed foods and clean up your diet. Now when I say the number one is cut back on processed foods, here's the real deal breakers on this. Artificial sweeteners are disasterous to brain fog. Not in everyone. There are people who can drink these diet cokes and really not have any issues. And then there's a subset of people that it is poisoning their brain, and nutrasweet and the sucralose and aspartame all of these are affecting your brain activity. Second, under the Clean up the food is MSG, monosodium glutamate, which is found in so many Chinese food restaurants, but is found in all most every soup that I eat at any restaurant. And you can ask the cook, do you use MSG? And they will say no, because they're not buying a container and dumping it. It's in the seasoning and they're not privy enough to even look into the ingredient list. So they just assume it's not in there. And it's also a MSG is used under different terms like natural flavors. How criminal is that? Next is the preservatives the red dyes. I remember seeing a video in the 1980s of a pediatrician who had children come to their office and she would have them be on an elimination diet for 30 days very clean. And then she would introduce three drops of different chemicals from food and one was the red dye. And these kids would come in like normal kids kind of talkative, maybe not and within two minutes of giving this red dye, they were all over the place, obnoxious, out of control. And it happened within minutes. And this only does this if you're on elimination diet, because once you do it every day, you know it becomes a norm. So you don't actually see the massive results that you would give if you had been on that diet. Bad oils, like fried oils, you know that your brain is significantly made of fat. That's why when you do oils, and it goes into the brain, it's creating oxidation because these bad oils have been heated, and they're unhealthy and like canola oil is awful. And everything fried is old oil that's been sitting in a container for days or weeks, and is completely rancid. Two things in a health store, they're going to cause you brain fog. It took me years to figure out the first one. Stevia, oh, the worshiped natural sweetener that's found in almost everything. It was my own personal journey that allowed me to find this out. I continued, especially when I get on the keto diet, I use a breakfast drink. that is purely keto. And I kept having this brain fog despite every single attempt I could make to figure it out. And to address it, nothing helped me. And finally, my daughter actually said that I think Stevia is bothering me. So I went on a stevia free diet. And within four days, my brain fog had 100% eliminated. And guess what? It has been gone now for four months, I've not had one significant brain fog in four months. So keep that in mind. Again, quantify, experiment, it probably doesn't affect most people, but it sure did me. Lastly, in this list is probiotics. We know that 60% of your brain chemistry is made by the gut micro flora. And I can tell you from fact, if you get a one that's not friendly to your body, and I like to say that they're not harming you, they're just not friendly, that it can disrupt some of your thinking because half of your brain is in the gut people not in the brain. Alright, number two is we got to have omega three have to no other way around it. I've talked to 10,000 people over the years looked at blood testing, I've only found two individuals who could supply the optimal amount of omega three based on blood work without taking supplements. They were both eating one entire can of sardines packed in olive oil every single day. That's a little bit much for me and many people would not like to do that. So omega three, from quality brands use omega three at 2000 milligrams of EPA DHA every day. Number three chronic stress, all of us experience it. And what it is, is actually an increase in cortisol. And what happens when you do that? When you increase cortisol, you suppress dopamine, guess what dopamine does people? The pleasure of life and helps you think. So a lot of us are really walking around numb because we don't have enough dopamine. Of course, the pharmaceutical industry has plenty of nice little candies for you to get prescriptions on. But they're all full of significant side effects. So how do we lower chronic stress? Well, first we have to address the sleep issues which we will talk a tiny bit more about in a moment. But the products that I love that helps to balance this cortisol is ashwagandha is an absolute twice a day dosing I live will let the rest of my life I will live taking ashwagandha at morning and afternoon dose. It helps you to balance this cortisol and is super healthy on dozens of different items in our health. Second rhodiola similar to ashwagandha, GABA and theanine help to lower the anxiety. We know that many times super anxiety is going to freeze your brain up. And if you're studying for a test and you're having to go to work to do something special or something acutely significant in your life. I like to reduce this anxiety by doing one of three things taking one to 2000 milligrams of GABA, and or theanine, which work on a GABA receptor. That is what gives you relaxation and sense of well being. But there's a product by Terry naturally called Anxiocalm that is a special type of explanation that has worked in clinical studies very well. So using ashwagandha two everyday, rhodiola. and then as needed GABA, Anxiocalm, or theanine before your event or your stressful moment if it can be planned. And holy basil is the last herb that also sometimes utilized for lowering of cortisol. Now sleep, you cannot take a magic pill that's going to put you out because that's again, patching the tire, it is not addressing the underlying issue. And I want you to listen to my podcasts from many, many moons ago. Just go back to the older entries and listen to one on sleep. Number five hormone imbalances. You know, I did a mazing podcast interview actually two of them with Dr. Scott Resnick. Very well qualified physician. And so I would encourage you to go into one of our previous podcast was Scott Resnick on hormone imbalances. Can't get into how to address it, but Dr. Resnick did a very fine job of that. Number six unknown food sensitivities. That is, can be a host of those lactose, gluten, dyes, dairy, peanuts, strawberries. I did a stool test where I determined my sensitivities. When I say sensitivities, people, this does not always mean allergies. You go to your allergy doctor, and he sticks the little needles in your back and says, oh, you're allergic to ragweed. That means there's an immune response. There's a difference between an immune response and a sensitivity. Both of those can be devastating to your body. But most of the time, in my 41 years experience it is sensitivities, which means there's not immune response. But there's another response on a different level that is taking your health on a windy road, that is not pleasant. Number seven, I've talked about this topic called MTHFR. It is a gene defect that a good percentage of the population has it has to do with what we call methylation. And it's really kind of like, could be conceived of like a garbage truck coming in and emptying your garbage at night when you're asleep. And everything seems to always stay nice and pretty and roll fine. But just imagine if those garbage trucks did not show up and how quickly would everything accumulate. And methylation, if it's not proper, is really causing this kind of imbalance and is easy to modulate and to control but you got to know what you're doing. Number eight medications. We always have to look into that because most conventional people who practice medicine think that they are as safe as M&Ms and in fact, the word MD stands for more drugs in many cases, not all. There are some amazingly wonderful people in this system. But they also as they also are in a system that I feel is very broken and is not a healthcare system. It is a sick care system. Number nine dehydration. The brain is full of fat and water. Guess what happens when you don't drink enough clean liquids? I don't mean milkshakes, I don't mean beer and I don't mean cokes people. Clean water one of the best water filters made is Propure it actually takes out fluoride any filter that does not take out fluoride is not fully cleaning your water. So that's what you look for number lemon, low thyroid function. We have done a wonderful podcast on how you can add your house monitor if your thyroid is optimal by using a thermometer first thing in the morning. I tell all the details of that on the podcast on thyroid. Number 12 neurotoxins. What are neurotoxins? They are things like plastics, heavy metals, air fresheners, flame retardants, pesticides, formaldehyde, things that we cannot run from there. They're everywhere. So you have to clean up your environment, especially your house. Number 13 mold and yeast. Mold, oh my gosh, if you listened to my podcast three or four podcasts ago on mold, you'll understand the implications and how you can check whether you have mold in your body with a simple, inexpensive visual test on the computer. EMFs, electromagnetic fields There is no doubt this will be this the same as cigarettes were in the 50s where it was, well, we think it's okay, so don't worry about it. EMFs are going to be similar as the years go on. Please buy phone case that blocks it and put your phone at least six feet away when you go to sleep at night. Number 14 is intermittent fasting. I love it. You have to experiment with it. It is a key to longevity now so we've covered How are we gonna fix the machine in the long run? These are all the steps again quantify, say what you need, put them in place. B20:09)ut tomorrow is a big day for you. You have to take a big test. You have to go to work and give a speech. You have to create something and your life really depends on it. So like I did this morning before I walked into this podcast room, here's the quick and immediate fix options for you. Number one, I love the Mushroom lion's mane. Lion's Mane is one of the strongest mental stimulants there is I did a liquid version by company that's owned by Paul Stamets, which he's an amazing individual. He probably can change the world with his knowledge of mushrooms. Second, bulletproof coffee. I saw Dave Asprey out in California about two years ago, he's always been one of my mentors. He's just on top of the game. What is bulletproof? It's where you mix one tablespoon of MCT one tablespoon of butter with hot coffee and you blend it it gives you long term energy and also a quick boost to the brain. The other thing I did this morning essential oils, the one named Rosemary. Rosemary applied to my wrist on both sides, especially by good companies like Pranarom or Garden of Life or a few others is truly amazing for brain focus. Don't trust most essential oil companies. They only smell good and they do nothing. Using Choline Alpha GPC is long term or short term will kick your butt up. Micro dosing Believe it or not, I can't believe I'm saying this but micro dosing if it's a huge deal breaker for you, and you have to get it done a small amount of nicotine slash caffeine. Do you know that nicotine and caffeine is nature's to original smart drugs, and then breathing. The Buteyko breathing that I spoke about on the breathing podcast, you got to listen to people because it is a game changer. I can't finish without saying Adderall. Do not do Adderall. The risk against benefit is far too large and is addictive. So please don't follow the recommendations of many people. Again, quantify everything you got to monitor what's going on in your life in order to fix and find the results that you need. So that is pretty much going to wrap up the quick conversation of brain fog. I can assure you if you embrace those quantify, use your wisdom, you will find significant results because life is so worth living. But if you have a big pair of glasses over your eyes in your ears and you can't think clearly, you kind of just walk away and walk around in a very gray Twilight is a word that Roosevelt used long ago. You know there was a guy I really respect who wrote a book called Pain Free and his name is Egoscue and I always always loved his first page of his book it says it has become obligatory for health books to carry legal disclaimers, you've read them the following material is not intended as a substitute for the advice of a physician, and they go on to recommend that you consult a doctor before embarking on whatever program is being offered. As I did in my first book, he says I will again urge readers who feel the need for this disclaimer protection and counsel to close these covers of my book and leave the pages unread. My working principle as an author and therapist is that the most important consultation is the one a person has with himself or herself. Healthcare starts with personal responsibility people. Any disclaimer that suggests otherwise does a great disservice. But I have to be legal and say check with a doctor if you got health concerns before trying or doing anything else and do remember, if a doctor cannot do you good, he must be kept from doing harm upon her case.
Brian Strickland 24:12 Thanks for listening to the holistic navigator podcast. For more information, previous episodes and other resources, visit www dot the holistic navigator.com. The information on this podcast and the topics discussed have not been evaluated by the FDA or any one of the medical profession and is not aimed to replace any advice you may receive from your medical practitioner. The holistic navigator assumes no responsibility or liability whatsoever on the behalf of any purchaser or reader of these materials. The holistic navigator is not a doctor nor does he claim to be please consult your physician before beginning any health regimen.