Jack Williams, Contributor
YOU COULD call it the brain wave of the future. In any case, it's a tsunami of supplements and so-called cognitive cocktails designed to enhance and prolong our mental fitness.
We know that exercising the mind is healthy. We know that certain nutrients, especially carbohydrates, provide premium fuel for a glucose-craving brain. But are we willing to add a whole genre of "smart pills" to our anti-ageing arsenal?
Vitamin companies, already profiting from the proliferation of joint-support formulas, think so. And the National Institute of Ageing (NIA), a federal research agency, is basically saying, "Why not?" Acknowledging that there are no guarantees, NIA researcher Molly Wagster recently told USA Today, "It's really looking like some of these things could work."
Although driven by anti-ageing attitudes and advances in research, the smart-pill movement is all-encompassing, targeting everybody from children who need to concentrate in class to seniors seeking to stay up to speed.
CAUTION FLAG
Before the brains-in-a-bottle concept goes too far, consider this caution flag. Three years ago, researchers at Williams College in Massachusetts decided to test the efficacy of ginkgo biloba, a medicinal herb highly touted for its ability to improve memory and concentration. The conclusion: "When taken following the manufacturers' instructions, ginkgo provides no measurable benefit in memory or related cognitive function" in generally healthy adults. The study involved 230 people subjects between 60 and 82.
On the other hand, there is some evidence that ginkgo enhances cerebral blood circulation, guarding against the circulatory deficiencies that can promote short-term memory loss, headache, depression and other maladies.
Keep in mind, too, that the National Institutes of Health's National Centre for Complementary and Alternative Medicine sees enough promise in ginkgo that it is overseeing a phase III clinical trial. The objective: to determine whether the herb decreases the incidence of dementia and slows cognitive decline. The study is looking at daily dosages of 240 milligrams.
Among the more celebrated brain boosters is phosphatydylserine, widely known as PS. A fat-soluble phospholipid, it exits naturally in the body and nourishes nerve tissues, neurons and cell membranes. You'll find it in a variety of products designed to fine tune your grey matter. Such products also are beginning to incorporate folic acid, a B vitamin that starred in a Dutch study. More than 800 people ages 50 to 70 took 800 micrograms a day of folic acid supplements for three years.
In the study, those taking the supplement outperformed a placebo group on cognitive tests and scored as well on memory tests as people five years younger. The effect could be due to the fact that folic acid lowered blood levels of homocysteine - which is linked to the risk of heart disease, stroke and Alzheimer's - by 25 per cent. In fact, the entire B vitamin family, as found in a comprehensive B complex supplement, may offer protection against cognitive decline.
BRAINSPEED LINE
When Natrol Inc. of Culver City, Calif., a 25-year-old supplement firm, recently introduced its BrainSpeed line, folic acid and vitamins B6 and B12 were among the core ingredients. So was huperzine A, which inhibits the breakdown of acetylcholine, a chemical messenger in the brain that affects memory, learning, recall and thought processes.
On the website www.brainspeed.com, Natrol invites its users to take a cognitive test and chart their progress while using the product. Before launching its BrainSpeed products, Natrol conducted a six-week, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled study involving 430 people from ages 19 to 74. At the end of the study, those taking nutraceuticals performed "significantly better" on a battery of tests than they did at the outset, the company reported.
Whether you opt for such supplementation or not, two proven strategies are worth considering to promote mental fitness: aerobic exercise and the consumption of cold water fish (salmon, sardines, mackerel and trout). The exercise improves the flow of oxygen to the heart, which in turns delivers it to the brain. The fish are abundant in fatty acids that promote cell membrane health. Consider them food for thought.
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