Nutrition for brain health

Our brain is only about 2 per cent of our total body weight, but it accounts for at least 25 per cent of our metabolic demands! Now that statistic is definitely worth thinking about! A quarter of our metabolic demands are made by our brain, no wonder we’ve got an epidemic of mental health issues sitting alongside the physical issues that are a legacy of over-supply, under-nutrition, toxic overload, deranged gut microbiota and vitamin D deficiency to name just a few key issues. 

Restoring mental (and emotional health) could potentially have a massive impact, not only  on levels of depression which are set to be the biggest cause of disability by 2020, but on learning ability in schools and other institutions, on violence in society, on dependence on social poisons such as cigarettes and alcohol and on the incidence of recreational and hard-core drug-taking.

Where to begin for a healthier brain? This infographic does a great job of giving you all the details which can be summed up as, clean, green, wholefood diet, improved gut health, plenty of purified water, no cigarettes, reduced alcohol and caffeine, regular exercise and exposure to sunlight and restful sleep free from electromagnetic pollution (e.g.mobile phones). Sounds just like my prescription for couples planning a pregnancy...  

Revise revisit and refresh

Anyone might be forgiven for thinking I'd fallen from the radar, but au contraire ... since last blog I've taken my important preconception message in exciting, new directions. I've got a brand new website www.flurishh.com ready to go live. You'll find a wealth of information (written by yours truly) from preconception to breast feeding & beyond, also practical, well-ordered information across the categories: eat, do, think, habits & surrounds. So it's all the stuff you need to do and all you need to know! 

But even better - the new site includes a casual game. What better way to connect with a new, younger audience? Through clever deployment of game-play mechanics we've created teaching point situations that require you to actively participate in both the virtual and real world! The game will be played online or directly through Facebook - at the moment it's in alpha-testing phase ... so stay tuned and check the site regularly.

Last year I was also invited to participate in a joint initiative with School/Police Liason - Northern Region. Got to spread the word to Senior High School Students. Making the information relevant to late teens and young adults, they got the message - the adverse effects of alcohol, smoking and drugs on fertility, health of eggs and sperm and subsequent foetal, infant and child development. Great response from teachers, school counsellors, but most importantly from the students! There's no doubt that the teenage years present an ideal opportunity to deliver this information through interactive media, social networks and online communities. Finally - three new books in the pipeline for publication mid-2011!