Easy ways to boost your brain - fast!

Wear sunglasses. Butter your broccoli. And hit the dancefloor – a groundbreaking book reveals...

AT 26, tech guru Dave Asprey was a multi-millionaire, yet he struggled with mood swings and poor memory. Applying his computing skills to his brain, he created Bulletproof coffee (with butter and oil), which helped him focus. Asprey, now 45, runs a neuroscience institute and has devised a two-week plan called Head Strong to improve mental agility. Here, he reveals how small lifestyle, diet and exercise tweaks can help us all develop a sharper brain . . .

Too much stress, lack of sleep and exercise, poor diet, and other forms of brain kryptonite affect our thinking power, leaving us tired, irritable, unfocused, and craving sugar.

This is because the health of our mitochondria — the tiny structures in our cells that break down nutrients to generate energy — is affected by what we eat and how we live, as well as our genetics. Worryingly, poor mitochondrial performance is linked with brain ageing, too.

However, making the simple changes I suggest here will boost the efficiency and growth of your mitochondria, and with that, your focus, energy and resilience.

My programme also promotes neurogenesis — the creation of new brain cells — a high rate of which is associated with rapid learning and problem- solving abilities. These tips will reduce inflammation as well (chronic inflammation, a prime cause of which is a high sugar diet, impacts on your ability to think).

In just a fortnight, you’ll see an incredible difference in mood, vitality, and performance — and as a bonus, you’ll look great, too!

DON’T BE TOO AFRAID OF THE SUN

WHILE we tend to avoid ultraviolet A and ultraviolet B light, because we’re worried about skin cancer, our bodies need some UV light.

Being exposed to natural sunlight in the day is vital as it enables our bodies to produce vitamin D. It also helps regulate our circadian rhythm — by enabling us to produce enough melatonin to sleep soundly at night. go outside for at least a few minutes every morning without your sunglasses.

DIM JUNK LIGHT ON TVs, PHONES AND LAPTOPS

If We spend too much time under energy- saving artificial light or staring at our screens — all of which emit blue wavelength light — it stresses our mitochondria.

Adjust brightness and contrast settings on phones and laptops to low and ‘warm’. Dim your TV, too, and reduce its blue tone. If reading on a screen strains your eyes, try tinted shades to block brain- stressing light frequencies; even cheap sunglasses can help.

HOW TO CREATE A SLEEP CAVE

TWO hours before bed, dim or turn off the lights, especially any white leds. low and gentle light will then tell your body to start producing melatonin. Put your phone on airplane mode so it doesn’t buzz. Turn off your wi-fi. Replace any bright lights in your bedroom with lower-wattage halogen bulbs, or use a lamp with a red or amber bulb — it won’t disrupt your sleep like a blue-light emitting fluorescent or led.

Cover any indicator lights with black tape.

LATE SNACK OF HONEY FOR A SWEET SLEEP

Too much sugar inflames the body and brain: in one study, mice eating a high-sugar diet for two months showed a significant decrease in cognitive function.

I recommend no more than 20g of fructose a day. But a table- spoon of raw (unprocessed) honey before bed on an empty stomach can improve sleep quality. Your brain uses liver glycogen at night, and raw honey replenishes this supply better than other carbs, meaning you can create stable glucose levels and supercharge your sleep.

CLEVER FASTING FOR A BRAIN BOOST

DURING fasting or severe carbohydrate restriction, when liver glycogen stores are depleted, the liver breaks down fatty acids to produce water- soluble molecules called ketones. our mitochondria make energy more efficiently with ketones than

with glucose, so this is a good way to shift your mitochondria into high gear.

But it’s not an ideal state to be in for ages — and eating a low carb diet for too long can damage your health.

However, eating all your food within a daily window of six to eight hours — otherwise known as ‘intermittent fasting’ — is a way of cycling in and out of ketosis. I boost this by breakfasting on Bulletproof coffee, made with unfermented coffee beans, butter from grass-fed cows and a teaspoon or two of my branded Brain Octane Oil or a little coconut oil.

This combination tricks the brain into thinking you’re fasting, but stops hunger pangs and gives you energy.

THE 3 Fs – FATS, FISH, AND FLAVONOIDS

YOU need the right raw materials to maintain brain health, and eating enough of the right kinds of fats, such as the omega-3 fatty acids found in sardines, salmon, anchovies, mackerel and wild trout, is crucial.

Your brain requires specific amino acids to optimise the performance of neurotransmitters; good sources include beef, chicken, egg, lamb, almonds, and avocado. Butyric acid found in butter is anti-inflammatory and protects the blood-brain barrier. High-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol found in eggs for instance, is also important.

Poach or soft-boil free-range eggs. When they’re runny they preserve the cholesterol.

Bioflavonoids — plant compounds in fruits and vegetables including leeks, broccoli, carrots, Romaine lettuce, tomatoes, oranges, blackberries and raspberries — are essential to keep new neurons healthy.

So is a group of plant chemicals called polyphenols found in coffee, blueberries, grapes, and pomegranates. Polyphenols are better absorbed if eaten with fat, so butter your broccoli! Grape seeds contain a powerful polyphenol, but sadly, it doesn’t transfer to wine. Too much sugar or alcohol causes oxidative stress in your mitochondria.

CHILL OUT WITH SOME ICY TREATMENTS

CRYOTHERAPY, where you expose your body briefly to extremely low temperatures, is popular with athletes as it reduces inflammation, and boosts metabolism. It can also help mitochondrial function.

Cold thermogenesis is a milder type of cold therapy that uses low temperatures to force your body to create heat. Cold therapy also helps to tone your vagus nerve, a key component of your nervous system — responsible for calming you after stress.

It’s important to gradually increase your exposure to cold. Start by plunging your face into ice water for five minutes daily, for a month.

Or simply turn your shower to cold for one minute each morning — or evening, as lowering your body temperature before bed aids sleep. Keep the water cooler than 50f. Make sure the water hits your face and chest, as these areas in particular will activate thermogenesis.

YOU CAN BREATHE YOUR STRESS AWAY

REGULAR meditation causes more folds to develop in the outer layer of the brain, a trait correlated with intelligence. It also thickens areas of the brain associated with complex thought, and concentration.

Twenty minutes of deep, slow diaphragmatic breathing can reduce stress and increase mitochondrial energy.

Lie down, with your hands on your thighs. Take a deep breath and direct it like a beam, down through your entire body, into the earth. Then imagine that beam of breath, retracing its path, back from the earth, through your torso up to your lungs. Repeat, let the breath gain momentum and strength.

Imagine being lifted into the sky, travel faster and higher, up mountains, over fields, with your powerful breath.

Then rub your hands together and place them over your eyes, and relax. Then rub your hands again, and place them on your chest, relax and breath calmly.

GIVE YOUR GREY MATTER A WORKOUT

FUNCTIONAL movement, such as walking and dancing is superb for the brain. It doesn’t have to be strenuous.

a 40-minute walk three times a week has been shown to increase the size of the brain’s memory centre. Yoga, Pilates, or Tai Chi, too, are excellent, partly because they incorporate cross-lateral movements — where one of your limbs crosses the centre line of your body, increasing blood flow to the brain.

endurance training, such as running or cycling, is great for the heart and mood. Swimming is particularly beneficial — just being in water up to your shoulders increases blood flow to the brain by 14 per cent.

HEAD STRONG by Dave asprey is published by Harper Wave, priced £18.99. To order a copy for £14.24 (a 25 per cent discount) visit mailbookshop.co.uk or call 0844 571 0640. p&p is free on orders over £15. offer valid until July 10, 2017.