Preveting Leaky Brain

Your brain has a membrane that protects it just like your gut has a membrane. Just like you can have leaky gut syndrome, you can have a leaky brain. This happens when the blood brain barrier around your brain gets damaged. It is not uncommon to have both leaky gut and leaky brain syndrome because some of the risk factors are the same. If you have damage to your blood brain barrier, you may experience fatigue, brain fog, poor mood, hormone inbalances and more. If this condition persists for a long period of time, it can result in more severe health issues. Here are some tips for preventing leaky brain.

Good Sleep

Your brain cleanses itself at night when you are sleeping. The fluid in your brain's glymphatic system increases and removes anything that does not belong there. That is why when you don't get enough sleep, you may feel slow and like you can't think as fast as normal. Getting a good night sleep is key to maintaining your brain health.

Reduce Long Term Stress

Your body releases cortisol as part of it's response to stress. This hormone, along with adrenaline and heavy breathing, is neccesary for helping your body deal with stress. But too much cortisol over a long period of time disrupts brain function and can contribute to a leaky brain. Learn to manage your stress by doing thins like deep breathing, taking walks, listening to sounds that calm you, or watching something that brings you happiness.

Diet

Eating a diet high in processed foods can cause inflammation through out your body. Food allergies or intolerances can do the same thing. If you want to maximize your health, eat lots of fresh organic vegetables and pasture raised protein that can help reduce inflammation. Foods that are high in antioxidants, like dark berries, can also help reduce inflammation and minimize the damage done by free radicals.

Eliminate Toxins

Even though you are surrounded by toxins, you can minimize their impact on your health by reducing your exposure. Drinking filtered water and using clean personal care and household products is a good first step. The environmental working group (EWG.org) scores the ingredients found in the most popular personal care and household products. They look at many categories of chemicals, including those that cause neurotoxicity, or damage to the brain and nervous system. They rate fragrance an 8 on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the most harmful.

Maintain a Healthy Gut

The gut and the brain are more connected than you may realize. There is constant communication between the two through your vegus nerve. Your vegus nerve is connected to your brain stem and all of your digestive organs. Making sure you get enough prebiotics and probiotics can help you maintain a healthy gut. Prebiotics are fibers that you can't digest and they become food for the healthy bacteria in your gut. There are dozens of options such as asparagus, jicama, garlic, onions and leeks. Probiotics are living organisms that you get from a supplement or from fermented foods, such as sauerkraut, kombucha and kimchi.

Did this help you? If so, I'd greatly appreciate it if you commented and/or share it on social media.