Covid brain and “brain food”

(Robin) #1

@coopdawg recently shared a pic of his sour cream with walnuts and blueberries. And it got me to thinking…

I have been dealing with covid brain fog and memory issues for a couple months now. My friends are concerned about what I eat… actually what I don’t eat. And many have suggested I add blueberries and walnuts, as they are, quote: “food for the brain”.

I have issues with nuts (diverticulitis) and I really dislike blueberries. Plus I feel much better without veggies or fruit in my diet.

But I have to wonder about this claim of “brain food”.
If there is some real science behind that I could make a mush of it and get it down. I’d be adding carbs back, but if I thought it could truly make a difference, I’d be crazy not to try.

Pretty much strictly carnivore for a year now (plus decaf coffee.)
Wasn’t a goal, just happened naturally as I discovered what MY body thrived on or did not tolerate. Eliminating foods was enlightening. So I slid naturally from keto to carnivore.

That’s my story. I’m NOT interested in any debate about covid or vaccines (I had it all). I AM interested about this theory of brain food.

Any thoughts or experience? Thanks in advance. :vulcan_salute:t2:

(Joey) #2

I have no experience with “brain food.” (I struggle enough with my brain in its natural state.) But I’d be truly flabbergasted if there were any credible science behind such a notion.

Producing science would be nearly impossible given the confounding factors, normalizing for individual brains at various points in time, with genetic and epigenetic conditions.

The most scientific research I could envision would be on lab animals (still not able to control for differences between individual test subjects.) No less how you would define the success of a putative “brain food” item in an animal.

And even then, whether the results would be meaningfully applicable to humans would remain worth a study unto itself.

In short, any claims you come across about certain ingredients being “brain food” should be taken with the assumption that the guidance falls somewhere between loving family lore and wack-a-doodle quackery to push some other agenda.

Hope you get some relief from the long COVID symptoms soon!! :worried:

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #3

Fish is also supposed to be brain food. If you want to stay carnivore, why not increase your fish intake, instead of the nuts and berries?

I also question some of these claims of the special properties of various foods. In cases where I’ve actually read the studies, I have found the conclusions to be questionable at best. Also, in most cases the effect may be statistically significant, but the effect is so small as to be clinically irrelevant.

#4

Makes no sense to me… If I give the proper nutrients to my body, it should work well and that’s it.
My diet never seemed to have an effect on my brain anyway…

Maybe it has an effect on someone else, who knows?
But I am wary with general statements…

(Robin) #5

I have never been able to stand any fish, except maybe a mild tuna salad. Maybe I should make some effort in that direction. Or not. I have a feeling I just need to wait this out.

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #6

My long-Covid fatigue is slowly passing. I’d say I’m between 85 and 90 percent at the moment.

(Robin) #7

Thanks. And love the phrase “wack-a-doodle quackery”.

(Robin) #8

That’s awesome!!!
Remind me of your covid date.

I have days where I think I’m back! Then I lose a skill again. I’m riding the wave. My main relief is I can still drive!

(You've tried everything else; why not try bacon?) #9

It was late January into early February. And here we are at the end of May. So over 90 days of recovery and counting.

(Robin) #10

Ughhhhh

(Allie) #11

I wonder if supplementing creatine would benefit you? There’s lots of research now to support its use in this context.

(Robin) #12

Whoa. This is rather exciting! A really good report. Not just a one-off, multiple studies ongoing, and some are with folks just like me. Thanks, Allie.
Hope it’s over the counter. Going looking now.

(Robin) #13

@Shortstuff, the report mentions 20g as a baseline supplement. But most of the products I am finding online have a more fraction of that. Looks like it’s a common supplement for athletes and often includes other vitamins etc.
I think I will just ry to find the most pure version and begin. Then I’ll stick with it, with no expectations. I did that with collagen (knowing it could be all hype) and after some months saw big time benefits.

Is this something that is included in your regimen, as an athlete?

(Allie) #14

Yes I take it daily, buy in powder form and mix with water. This is the one I get and I’m sure they have an online store for America too.

https://www.bulk.com/uk/creatine-monohydrate.html

(Robin) #15

Thanks so much.

#16

I never knew that!

About the ‘brain food’ claims I mean.

I just make that dish because it’s delicious, plus I know of the nutritional health benefits (claims) of blueberries and walnuts, and sour cream is just awesome! All keto friendly in moderation.

It’s important to note, some of portions that I have pics of on here may be misleading, and look larger than they really are. That desert was literally a small handful of berries, about 120 ml of sour cream, and again there is just a small handful of walnuts.

But yeah, I see where your friend get the notion from after a quick google search, one example of which is below:

image

(Robin) #17

Just ordered.

(Karen) #18

My mum always said fish was brain food. She worked for The White Fish Authority which eventually merged with The Herring Industry Board and did all their advertising and publicity and I can still remember one of the poster ads was about it being brain food.

(Bob M) #19

If I’m buying protein or something similar, I always buy the bulk stuff. Assuming, that is, you can hack the taste. Which after years of taking supplements, I can.

I took creatine for a while, for its muscle building effects. I couldn’t find much benefit, so I stopped taking it. Can’t remember if it had an effect on my brain, though.

Also, when taking for muscles, you start high, but then end up pretty low, 5 grams a day, I think.

(Bob M) #20

Too bad most of those studies are so short. The longest one is only 16 weeks.