Brain Supplements Info

Brain supplements are growing increasingly popular throughout the world due to their promise of improved mental function including memory and concentration.

Moreover, many want to avoid brain-related diseases and ailments such as depression and Alzheimer's disease as well.

In 1986, America alone had health care costs for dementia and Alzheimer's disease with over $50 million dollars a year spent. It's accelerated since then and shows no real signs of stopping.

Needless to say, we need to take care of our brain and it will certainly take care of us.

Is it possible to find and take supplements & vitamins for brain and mind, to find supplements that support brain repair? Is it possible to stave off impaired mental ability?

The answer is yes, there are powerful, nutritional brain supplements that have powerful brain boosters. However, unless one improves their diet and exercises, and avoids harmful environmental influences, the nutritional brain supplements will be limited in their power.

A key component of this nutritional brain supplements page is knowing how diet and brain power coincide. People need to remember that the body is a highly coordinated, interdependent organism that works synergistically together.

If we have, for example, a healthy vascular system with clean arteries, this ensures good blood flow to the brain as well as the rest of the body.

If, however, we eat excessive sugar in the form of highly refined carbohydrates as well as hydrogenated oils foods, this does not contribute to brain health. Oxidized fats are toxic to the body. Our diet is a critical factor to healthy brain function.

A good rule of thumb is this: avoid processed foods. Natural foods like Olives, cold-pressed olive oil, raw nuts and seeds cold-water fish, and avocados have Omega-3 essential fatty acids that the body and brain need for healthy function. So, what are the best supplements & vitamins for brain and mind? Researchers, naturopathic doctors, and herbal practitioners all agree the following are the most potent nutritional brain supplements on the planet.

They are: Gingko Biloba, Gotu Kola, and DMAE. Let's explore supplements that support brain repair and health now in depth.

In one study, when Gotu Kola was given to children with capsicum (cayenne pepper) and ginseng, it increased I.Q. of mentally retarded children. Mowrey, Herbal Tonic Therapies, (New Canaan, Connecticut: Keats Publishing, Inc., 1993) 53.

Gotu Kola is ranked, and deservedly so, as one of the greatest herbs. Like most medicinal herbs, its taste is earthy yet mildly bitter and sweet combination. (We also make it as an herbal tea in addition to supplementing our diet with it in tablet form.) Without question, however you take it, Gotu Kola deserves to be ranked with powerful memory supplements such as Gingko and DMAE.

Some of the benefits of Gotu Kola are better concentration, memory, improved blood flow through blood vessels, and general better cognitive function.

Gingko Biloba
Gingko Biloba, or Ginkgo Biloba as some spell it, is one of the most powerful brain nutrients on the planet. Gingko Biloba has long been recognized as one of the very best brain supplements known to humankind. Gingko also has an illustrious history as it is considered to come from the oldest tree species on earth -- a species of tree that dates back literally over 200 million years!

Researchers from the University of California, Los Angeles Neuropsychiatric Institute used positron-emission tomography to study brain regions associated with memory and found that gingko biloba correlated with better brain functioning in these areas.

The herb works by increasing blood flow throughout the body and is thought to support memory recall by repairing circulatory malfunctions in the brain.

DMAE
DMAE is a nutrient that exists in fish. In particular salmon and sardines. In actuality, our brain already has a small amount of it in it for DMAE actually helps protect the fundamental integrity of the cell membranes in the brain. This is important as researchers say the slow deterioration of these critical cell membranes lead to aging and slower mental function.

DMAE increases mental functionality including memory and concentration, but it also helps improve one's moods and lessens severe mood and depression emotional swings. Some studies assert it even increases human intelligence. More research has to be done to verify the later, but the results look promising.

Clearly, DMAE is among the powerful nutritional brain supplements. A side benefit of DMAE is that it helps promote healthy skin by limiting the growth of arachidonic acid -- the compound that leads to wrinkle formation.

Supplements That Support Brain Repair Precautions

Whenever you embark upon possible supplementation, we encourage you to discuss it over with your doctor. Pregnant and nursing women especially should not take any supplements without doing so. DMAE, Ginkgo Biloba, and Gotu Kola are powerful, but what about side effects?

At this time, there are no real known side effects with DMAE. Gingko Biloba, however as it's a blood thinner, when used with prescription medication, there could be some unwanted interaction. Taken by itself, it is safe if the dosage is small.

Gotu Kola actually can cause sensitivity to sunlight. Be advised if you have the type of skin that can burn easily, you should be mindful of this. Overall, though, it is a very safe herb. Take in recommended dosages with all herbals.

How To Choose Quality Brain Supplements

When choosing supplements & vitamins for brain and mind, look for the following criteria to be met. This will assure you of a quality nutritional brain supplement.

1. The supplements should be produced at pharmaceutical standard GMP registered facilities. Facilities that are GMP registered comply with the most rigid standards so as to minimize the possibility of product contaminants. (These are the same standards pharmaceutical companies in the United States are required to operate under as mandated by the FDA.) Nutritional supplements are not regulated by FDA and as such fraud is rampant with many so-called supplements containing contaminants with 1 in 5 not having the ingredients as proclaimed on the label!

2. Ensure the supplement manufacturer has a Certificate of Analysis (COA) on file for review by you the customer thus confirming the potency of the herbal ingredients listed on the label.

3. Ideally, make sure the supplement does not contain any fillers or additives such as sucrose (sugar), starch, gluten, silica (sand) or any other artificial colors, dyes, or flavors.

4. Look for tablets with enteric coating as this inert substance protects the vitamins from being lost in the gastric acids. Enteric coating protects the vitamins until they can dissolve in the upper intestine where they are then assimilated into the blood stream.

5. Take the vitamin or mineral of choice with other vitamins and minerals as they are interdependent in their biochemistry. Acetylcholine cannot be made by only DMAE for it requires other B vitamins, namely, vitamins B5 (pantothenic acid), B8 (biotin), and B9 (folic acid) to produce it. Take the brain supplement with a full spectrum of other nutrients for maximum efficacy. 6. If the supplement has herbal extracts, make sure they're standardized extracts as this is where the therapeutic qualities of the herbs are contained. This is expensive to do and that's why most supplement manufacturers don't use it.

Supplements That Support Brain Repair

I've  found a company that offers GMP compliant products, and meets all the above criteria. This company is headquartered in New Zealand, which country's government has the same exacting standards for dietary supplements as they do for prescription medication. In fact, they have manufacturing standards that surpass even the U.S. FDA.

Their product has the nutrient DMAE, critical B complex vitamins, Gotu Kola, Gingko Biloba, and other specific nutritional brain supplements or supplements and vitamins for brain and mind.

Their brain supplements or neurological formula is new, having just been released in June 2004 after two years of research.

I've been taking this company's products for more than four years now and can testify to their benefits.

Yours in health, hope, and harmony,
Nutritional-Supplement-Bible.com