The Doctor-Designed Anti-Brain Fog Diet

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My patients sometimes complain they frequently lose their train of thought or otherwise feel mentally "fuzzy." I know this feeling all too well. About 20 years ago, when I became seriously ill with chronic fatigue syndrome, I felt like I simultaneously had depression and ADD. For lack of a better word, my brain felt broken!

Lack of focus? Heavy metals may be to blame.

Eventually, I discovered I suffered from mercury toxicity and was completely exhausted from overworking. My brain health suffered the most. I had terrible brain fog and couldn't focus for long periods of time. Here I was, a physician with brain fog: Some days I couldn't even remember my patients' names. How embarrassing.

I knew things had to change. That's when I discovered functional medicine. One huge benefit I experienced when I reversed chronic fatigue syndrome was how well my brain improved. Over the years, I fine-tuned my approach for a sharper, faster, and better brain.

I want you to experience this same transformation. Whatever your situation might be, optimal brain health creates more opportunities and makes life better.

Learn how to manage your energy without stimulants.

Rather than learn how to manage our energy and bodies, we use drugs like sugar, caffeine, and alcohol to self-medicate and manage our energy and moods. We don't connect our behaviors and choices with how we feel, and broken brains often result.

Unfortunately, I've found many patients don't connect how they feel with how they eat, how much they rest and sleep, how much they exercise, how much time they make for friends and community, and the media and news they expose themselves to. Once you make those connections, you can change these and other daily decisions.

Feeling fully energized and maintaining great brain health ultimately requires taking out bad stuff and putting in good stuff, including food choices and lifestyle choices.

Many of us get too little good food, nutrients, light, air, water, rest, sleep, rhythm, exercise, community, love, meaning, and purpose. We're exposed to too much poor-quality food, stress, toxins, and allergens. The good news is with these five strategies, you can eliminate the bad stuff to cultivate your best brain ever.

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Here's your brain-boosting diet strategy:

1. Eat real food.

That means whole, organic, fresh, local, and unprocessed food. If it has a label or a bar code, you should probably avoid it. If your great-grandmother wouldn't recognize it, don't eat it. Processed junk foods mostly exist in the middle aisles of the grocery stores, so avoid those aisles!

2. Eat lots of colorful fruits and vegetables.

These colorful superfoods come loaded with brain-boosting stuff like phytonutrients. The dark, deep reds, yellows, oranges, greens, and blues mean these foods contain powerful anti-inflammatory, detoxifying antioxidants and energy-boosting, brain-powering molecules.

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3. Eat plenty of healthy fat.

I provide an excellent, detailed healthy-fats plan in my book Eat Fat, Get Thin. Fat is actually very good for your brain. In fact, 60 percent of your brain is the omega-3 fat DHA, which you can get from algae and fish. My brain worked pretty well before, but embracing fat (even good saturated fats like coconut oil and MCT oil) pushed my mental clarity through the roof.

4. Optimize protein.

We need, give or take (depending on your size), 30 grams of protein per meal to build muscle. When you lose muscle, you age faster and your brain takes a huge hit! Eat protein at every meal, including omega-3 eggs, protein shakes, or nut butters, and even fish for breakfast. (Lox, anyone?)

5. Stop poisoning your brain.

Eliminate sugar, high-fructose corn syrup, trans fats, food additives, and preservatives, which poison your brain and disrupt your biochemistry.

If you've tried these things yet still struggle with fuzzy thinking and other mental problems, dig a little deeper. For me, mercury toxicity was the issue. Yours might be bad gut bugs or hidden food allergies. If you feel like you've tried everything, consider working with a functional medicine practitioner to dig deeper.

Mark Hyman, M.D.
Mark Hyman, M.D.
Mark Hyman, MD, believes that we all deserve a life of vitality—and that we have the potential to...
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Mark Hyman, M.D.
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