Eat your way to a sharper brain

What’s the secret to a long, happy and healthy life? It’s a question that’s vexed mankind for centuries, but while the elixir of youth remains elusive, scientists have identified the characteristics that make some people apparently immune to the woes of old age.

these are the so-called super-agers — those between 80 and 100 who have avoided dementia and ill health, and lead active and busy lives, full of joie de vivre, even as they approach their century.

the cheering news is that scientists say ageing is a mere 10 per cent genetics — 90 per cent is lifestyle. In other words, we

all have the power to be super-agers. In a unique series starting today and running in the Mail next week, we show you exactly what you can do to ensure the years ahead are as joyous as possible.

today, we focus on the brain, with an age- defying diet devised by a top neuroscientist . . .

LISTEN TO YOUR BRAIN’S NEEDS

You might believe that the sort of healthy diet that is good for your body is automatically good for your brain, but the brain’s needs are more complex. If your aim is to optimise long-term cognitive health, you need to understand that the brain has its own particular demands.

What has gone unnoticed until recently is that of all the organs in our body, the brain is the one most easily damaged by a poor diet. Genes might predispose you to certain issues, but it is lifestyle — and what you eat — that can determine how likely you are to encounter them.

as a specialist in neuroscience ( I work at the alzheimer’s Prevention Clinic at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York, and was the founder and director of the Nutrition and Brain Fitness Lab at New York university), I’ve spent years investigating the genetic and lifestyle triggers for alzheimer’s and dementia.

I had seen its devastating effects on my grandmother, who had grown up in the hardship of wartime Italy.

the science shows that of all the lifestyle factors that affect how our genes behave, food is the biggest player. We eat many times a day, every day, for our whole lives. this continuous exposure makes diet very influential.

When we eat the right foods, they are broken down into nutrients and carried to the brain via the bloodstream.

the nutrients then replenish the brain’s depleted storage, activate cellular reactions and are incorporated into brain tissue. For instance, proteins are broken down into amino acids, which help create new brain cells. Vegetables, fruit and wholegrains, meanwhile, supply the brain with fuel in the form of glucose, and energise it with vitamins and minerals.

We also need healthy fats from fish and nuts, which are broken down into omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids that make a type of brain cell, known as neurons, flexible and responsive. they also shield the brain from damage and support our immune system.

the principles are simple. the problem is our modern diets are typically laced with nutrients that can trigger inflammation — for example, hydrogenated trans fats (found in processed food), refined sugars and harmful chemicals. We tend to eat too much of these foods and too few brain-essential, nutritionally dense foods.

Is it any wonder that the incidences of alzheimer’s and dementia are growing so fast? But there is much you can do to protect your brain. a mounting body of evidence shows that adopting a brain-healthy diet is key to maintaining optimal cognitive capacities well into old age, therefore delaying, or, even better, preventing debilitating diseases such as alzheimer’s.

Based on my research in

neuro-nutrition, I’ve devised a brain-healthy diet plan that provides the optimum nutritional requirements of the brain. I believe following this is the single most important thing you can do to protect your brain as you age.

Try to adopt as many of the recommendations, little by little, into your daily routine as you can. Eating some vegetables is better than none. A glass of plain water is better than a fizzy drink. A bowl of berries is better than a banana (which contains more sugar) — but if you crave a banana, that’s still better than a doughnut.

Here is my prescription for anti- ageing your brain . . .

REMEMBER YOUR GREENS AND GRAINS

Your first goal in your daily diet should be to reverse any shortage of vitamins, minerals and fibre by both increasing your intake of fresh vegetables, fruit, legumes and whole grains, and diversifying the types you eat. The nutrients they release into the bloodstream travel directly to the brain. (See the box on the right to learn how many I suggest you aim for each day.)

Some vitamins are particularly crucial for the brain, such as vitamin A (which the body breaks down from beta-carotene in vegetables such as carrots and sweet potato) and vitamin E (in red peppers and broccoli).

These have antioxidant functions that protect brain cells and tissues from the effects of toxins, free radicals (harmful by-products of natural reactions inside our bodies, which contribute to the ageing process) and even pollution. Vitamin E also increases the delivery and absorption of oxygen into brain tissue.

other vitamins essential for brain function, such as vitamin C (from berries and citrus fruit), vitamin B12, vitamin B6, folate, and the vitamin-like nutrient choline (from leafy vegetables) are the go-getters of the brain.

They facilitate the actions of our neurotransmitters — the brain chemicals crucial for proper communication between brain cells.

Plants also produce a vast array of chemical compounds known as phytonutrients — sometimes called ‘vitamin P’ — which have fantastic antiageing properties. Their job is to fight oxidative stress (part of the natural ageing process) and inflammation to increase the life of the plant, but by eating them we can get these benefits.

It’s important to add onions, garlic and fresh herbs such as sage and rosemary to whatever you’re eating each day to absorb the plant nutrients they are rich in.

Whole grains, such as oats, whole wheat and brown rice, are a great source of steady slow-release energy, which your brain loves, as it prevents stressful blood sugar spikes and dips. Aim to eat one serving twice a day.

And if you love a daily cuppa, there’s good news — coffee can support brain health for some people. It’s the antioxidants in it that are thought to be protective. My preference is one cup of espresso a day for the optimal balance of caffeine to antioxidants.

DON’T BE AFRAID OF FAT

WE NEED the right kinds of fats in our diet, as brain cells are wrapped in a fatty sheath called myelin, which provides insulation for electrical impulses.

neurons are also enclosed in delicate fatty membranes, which protect them and allow signals and nutrients to flow in and out. The two most important brain fats are omega-6 and omega-3, which are ideally eaten in the right balance (twice the amount of omega-6 to omega-3). Most of us eat plenty of omega-6 — usually in sunflower oil — and not enough omega-3.

Many studies have identified omega-3 essential fatty acids as the number one nutrient to fight age-related cognitive decline and dementia. (They are known as ‘essential’ because our bodies can’t make them and we have to get them from food.)

one landmark study from 2015, published in the journal neurology, looked at 6,000 over-65s and showed that low intake of omega-3s (less than 1g a day) led to a 70 per cent higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s. Participants who ate more than 2g were unlikely to develop dementia at all.

Several other studies confirm that people who consume omega-3-rich foods on a regular basis remain mentally clearer and have a lower risk of developing cognitive deterioration than those who consume less.

The best sources are oily fish (salmon, mackerel, sardines and anchovies), eggs, nuts and seeds. I suggest aiming to eat at least 4g of omega-3 every day to keep your brain young and working to its fullest capacity. one small portion of salmon provides almost 2g. Tinned salmon is just as good.

Try to include a tablespoon of flaxseeds in your diet every day, too. You can sprinkle them into soups, salads, yoghurt and cereals, for example. Flaxseeds are an excellent source of omega-3 fatty acids.

Proteins come third, after water (see the panel on the right) and healthy fats, in the line-up of top brain-healthy nutrients. Proteins are complex molecules that do most of the work in our cells and are required for the structure, function and regulation of the brain’s networks.

They are made up of smaller building blocks called amino acids, which are essential for just about every function that takes place in the body, acting as the chemical messengers that our brains use for communicating and processing information.

Amino acids are responsible for how you think, talk, dream and remember, so the brain must receive adequate amounts of them on a daily basis.

However, some sources of protein are better than others, so aim to replace red meat and dairy (too much saturated fat) with vegetable sources such as quinoa and beans, as well as traditional sources such as chicken and fish.

Eggs are hard to beat for brain nutrition. From omega-3 fatty acids, protein, memory-forming choline, many vitamins and minerals, and even disease-fighting antioxidants such as lutein and zeaxanthin, they have it all.

However, research has shown that even though eggs are not as bad for you as previously thought — there were once fears they contributed to high cholesterol

levels — we shouldn’t be overdoing it. I typically recommend eating two to three eggs throughout the week.

If you like a drink, have red wine with a meal (not on an empty stomach). Red wine is a rich source of a powerful phytonutrient called resveratrol, known for its anti-ageing properties. Wine also contains flavonoids, which protect blood vessels and heart health.

YOU CAN STILL HAVE A STEAK

TRY to incorporate two or more servings of legumes such as chickpeas or lentils every week. They are naturally low in fat while being packed with brain-friendly nutrients.

Nuts and seeds are also important to include in your diet, as they feed your brain with healthy fats and hard-tod find vitamins and minerals, such as the selenium in brazil nuts.

Choose raw nuts and seeds and stay away from salted, roasted, spiced or coated varieties, as these contain all sorts of unhealthy oils and condiments.

If you’re a fan of peanut butter, aim to swap out some of this omega-6-rich food (which can boost a harmful inflammatory response) for other nuts and nut butters higher in omega-3s, such as walnuts.

I recommend avoiding meat and eggs for three days a week. On the days you do eat meat, swap pork, beef and other fatty meats for fish, chicken and turkey.

Studies show high levels of saturated fats ( found in meat) have a negative impact on our mental capacities, increasing our risk of dementia. A high intake of saturated fat can cause inflammation throughout the body and reduce oxygen flow to the brain.

Too much saturated fat can also increase the risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes — which, in turn, is known to raise your risk of dementia.

One study of 815 people over 65, published in the Archives of Neurology in 2003, showed those who consistently ate the most saturated fat had up to

four times the risk of developing cognitive deterioration compared with those who ate the lowest amount.

Specifically, consuming more than 25g of saturated fat per day (six rashers of bacon or 100g of cheese) makes you much more likely to develop dementia than eating 13g per day (three rashers or 50g of cheese).

Another study of 6,000 elderly people showed that eating even 13g of saturated fat daily almost doubles your risk of cognitive impairment compared with eating 7g per day (one-and-a-half rashers of bacon or 25g cheese).

If you really love steak, invest in grassfed beef, which is far richer in omega-3s, but eat it no more than once a month.

I recommend limiting dairy intake due to its saturated fat content. Think of cheese as a treat rather than a snack — one matchbox-sized portion per week should do. The only dairy products we should eat daily are plain, unsweetened yoghurt and kefir, as they’re an excellent source of brain-essential nutrients and probiotics (gut-friendly bacteria).

Recent studies have revealed that alterations in the gut microbes can influence the risk of brain disorders including dementia. When it comes to brain health, this field of study is still in its infancy. But optimising the diet to favour healthy gut bacteria might be a viable strategy to manage the cognitive changes that occur with ageing.

This means regular consumption of both prebiotic (vegetables that feed your gut bacteria, such as leeks and onions) and probiotic foods (fermented foods such as yoghurt and sauerkraut, which introduce beneficial bacteria to the gut).