A SHOPPING LIST OF SMART NUTRIENTS

You can use mind-fitness nutrients to rejuvenate sluggish mental performance, to elevate your mood, and to think more clearly, especially when you face a demanding work or study schedule. In addition, these nutrients improve the blood supply to the brain and help protect it from damage by free radicals. Research studies have found that mind-fitness nutrients can actually extend the life span of laboratory animals 30-50 percent.

Here is an inventory of mind-fitness nutrients that can help rev up your brain to its maximum performance levels. I've listed dosages that are commonly used in most commercially available smart-nutrient products, in case you want to take one or another of them separately to judge their effectiveness for yourself. You'll see that many of the following nutrients appear in the "choline cocktail" formula for mental energy and memory that appears right after this list.

Ginkgo Biloba. Ginkgo biloba is extracted from the leaves of the oldest-known surviving species of tree, the ginkgo tree. Chinese physicians have used ginkgo-leaf extract for thousands of years to boost cerebral metabolism, improve blood flow to the brain, and augment mental alertness. Dozens of published studies on humans have revealed that gingko increases brain metabolism by promoting the synthesis of ATP (adenosine triphosphate—the primary energy-producing molecule in the body), improving the brain's ability to metabolize glucose, its primary fuel, and helping to prevent blood clotting in the brain's arteries. Ginkgo also acts as an antioxidant smart nutrient and has been shown to improve short-term memory in the elderly. It increases the brain's alpha electrical rhythms, associated with alertness, and decreases the brain's theta rhythms, associated with lack of attention and an unfocused state of mind. It is available either as a powder in capsules or in liquid form.

Dosage commonly used: Most published studies have used ginkgo extract standardized to a 24 percent concentration (look for this number on the package label and accept no less). At this strength, the typical dosage is 120-150 mg per day, divided into three equal doses.

Caffeine. Caffeine (and related methyl-xanthine compounds) is probably the best known mind-fitness nutrient in the United States. Millions of coffee- and tea lovers may be addicted not so much to the stimulant properties of caffeine, but to the paradoxical calming effect it has on many people. Coffee actually contains several opiate-related compounds that exert a mild heroinlike effect on the brain. These compounds are found in decaffeinated coffee as well. Caffeine helps improve typing skills (the number of error-free typed words per minute), mental alertness, energy, and the ability to do work even when fatigued (caffeine improves mental stamina by stimulating the release of norepinephrine in the brain).

Dosage commonly used: Most published research indicates that apparently healthy people can consume up to 200 mg per day (the approximate amount in two cups of brewed coffee) without any adverse health effects. Green tea, generally sold in health food stores, contains about 100 mg of caffeine per serving and potent antioxidant smart nutrients, called polyphenols, that recent research has shown may protect against damage to arteries that can lead to heart attack and stroke.

Vitamin B1 (thiamin) and B2 (riboflavin). These  vitamins help control energy production from glucose in the brain and the nervous system. They assist in the formation of the fatty acids that lend structural integrity to membranes of nerve cells (neurons) and participate in the synthesis of the memory-related brain neurotransmitter acetylcholine. Eating raw fish or raw eggs or chronic alcohol consumption can destroy vitamin B1; vitamin B2 is destroyed by light and cooking.

Dosage commonly used: Most high-potency vitamin formulas on the market contain 10 to 50 mg each of thiamin and riboflavin.

Vitamin B3 (niacinamide). A deficiency of this vitamin leads to a condition known as pellagra, characterized by malfunctioning of the nervous system, gastrointestinal disturbances (indigestion, anorexia), and skin inflammation. Your brain and nervous system require optimal amounts of niacinamide to perform at maximum levels (the body can also convert the amino acid L-tryptophan into niacin; some authorities believe that up to two-thirds of the body's daily requirement can be satisfied by L-tryptophan).

Vitamin B5. Known as pantothenic acid (because it occurs in foods of both plant and animal origin), this vitamin participates in the synthesis of the brain neurotransmitter acetylcholine.

Vitamin B6. Also called pyridoxine, this vitamin promotes maximum mental performance by aiding in the transport and metabolism of the amino acids used by the brain to manufacture neurotransmitters involved in mental energy and memory. A deficiency of vitamin B6 can lead to brain-wave abnormalities and malfunctioning of the nervous system. Chronic megadoses of this vitamin (2 to 6 grams per day) that are used to treat carpal tunnel syndrome have led, in a few cases, to vitamin toxicity (peripheral neuropathy), which disappeared once the dosage of B6 was reduced.

DMAE (demethylaminoethanol). Like choline and lecithin, DMAE can increase the brain's production of acetylcholine. Recent studies have shown that DMAE can elevate mood, improve memory and learning, and even extend the life span of laboratory animals. Although DMAE is a nutrient found in seafood, such as sardines and anchovies, some smart-nutrient formulas call for 100-500 mg, which requires the use of a DMAE supplement (available as a liquid or a powder). DMAE has been used to treat learning disorders in children who are diagnosed as underachievers, those with shortened attention spans, or those who are hyperactive. The brain-stimulant effect of DMAE develops slowly over a period of weeks, with no druglike letdown when discontinued. Published studies have noted that DMAE in low doses can, ironically, be used to induce sleep.

Vitamin C. The brain and central nervous system contain a high concentration of vitamin C. Brain cells have a high content of unsaturated fat, which makes them susceptible to oxidation and damage from toxic atoms or molecules called free radicals. Thus, high levels of vitamin Ñ are required to prevent brain damage and premature aging. Published studies have shown that students with higher vitamin Ñ levels in their blood scored better on IQ tests than did those with lower vitamin Ñ levels. Vitamin Ñ is required for the synthesis of acetylcholine and norepinephrine.

Coenzyme Q10. CoQ10 helps create brain energy in the form of ATP, and it serves as a free-radical scavenger that protects the brain's cell membranes. Tissue concentrations of CoQ10 are depleted under a variety of conditions, including stress, various illnesses, exposure to cold, drug use, and physical activity. Seafood is a rich source of CoQ10, with white albacore tuna (the kind packed with spring water in cans) containing the highest amount.

Vitamin B12 and Folic acid. I've lumped these two vitamins together because of their similar functions. Vitamin B12 is unusual in that the only source in nature is synthesis by microorganisms, that is, the vitamin is not found in plants except when contaminated by microbes. (Intestinal bacteria can synthesize a small amount of vitamin B12, but animals, including humans, cannot get enough from their own bacteria and so must obtain it through the diet. The vitamin B12 that you got from the steak you ate last night originally came from the bacteria that lived in the feed eaten by the steer.) The common food sources of vitamin B12 are meat; fish (including clams, oysters, crab, salmon, and sardines); poultry; and, to a lesser extent, milk products, such as nonfat dry milk. Vitamin B12 is required for the transportation and storage of folic acid. It also helps regulate the metabolism of carbohydrates and proteins in the brain and the synthesis of myelin in the nerves (myelin is the protective fatty sheath surrounding nerve branches) and is involved, indirectly, in making choline available for the synthesis of neurotransmitters.

Folic acid is required for the synthesis of memory molecules (such as ribonucleic acid, or RNA) in the brain. It also helps control protein metabolism in the brain (involving at least two neurotransmitters, glutamic acid and glycine), and plays an essential role in the development of the nervous system in the fetus. Common food sources of folic acid include green, leafy vegetables, such as lettuce, spinach, kale, and collard greens; folic acid is also present in fresh fruits. Vitamin B6, another mind-fitness nutrient discussed previously, is intimately involved in the metabolic roles played by vitamin B12 and folic acid.

Chromium picolinate. This special form of the mineral chromium was developed and patented by scientists at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Chromium helps the hormone insulin remove carbohydrates from the blood and get them into brain cells, where they can be metabolized for energy. Chromium picolinate seems to work more efficiently than does ordinary chromium and has been shown to have anabolic, or muscle-building, effects in people who take it and exercise regularly.

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