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Foods high in tryptophan include turkey, cottage cheese, chicken, eggs, and nuts (especially almonds). Just watch your portion, however. A handful of nuts might be perfect. You don?t want to devour a three-egg omelet with turkey right before bedtime. Choose wisely.

resveratrol 100 mg twice daily turmeric 350 mg twice daily vitamin D3 5,000 IU daily

DHA 1,000 mg daily (Note: It?s okay to buy DHA that comes in combination with EPA; opt for a fish oil supplement or choose DHA derived from marine algae.)

alpha-lipoic acid 600 mg daily coconut oil 1 teaspoon daily, taken straight or used

Homocysteine is an amino acid?like chemical, now generally regarded as being quite toxic to the brain; as noted above, you want to see a homocysteine level at around 8 micromoles per liter (µmol/L) or less. Having a homocysteine level of just 14?a value exceeded by many of my patients when

In sleep studies, ghrelin levels soared in response to inadequate pillow-time in men. This triggered a bigger appetite and a propensity to gravitate toward high-carb, low-nutrient foods that, once consumed, easily get turned into fat.

It?s the yin to leptin?s yang. Ghrelin is secreted by the stomach when it?s empty and increases your appetite. It sends a message to your brain that you need to eat.

you become leptin resistant.

The same happens with leptin. When the body is overloaded and overwhelmed by substances that cause continuous surges in leptin, the receptors for leptin start to turn off

The more refined and processed the carbohydrate, the more out of whack healthy levels of leptin and insulin become.

When your stomach is full, fat cells release leptin to tell your brain to stop eating.

Leptin oversees all energy stores. Leptin decides whether to make us hungry and store more fat or to burn fat. Leptin orchestrates our inflammatory response and can even control sympathetic versus parasympathetic

leptin is found in fat cells,

body?s rhythmic activities and a vast array of physiological functions, from hunger to sex.

influences all other hormones and controls virtually all the functions of the hypothalamus

It?s called leptin,

hadn?t been helped by antidepressants in the past finally reported improvements once they started to supplement

supplemental zinc has been shown to enhance the effects of antidepressants in people with major depression.

The nerve cells in your gut are not only regulating muscles, immune cells, and hormones, but also manufacturing an estimated 80 to 90 percent of your body?s serotonin. In

If you?ve got low cholesterol, you?ve got a much higher risk of developing depression. And the lower you go, the closer you are to harboring thoughts of suicide.

suicide attempts have long been shown to run higher in people who have low total cholesterol.

Excessive body fat increases not only insulin resistance, but also the production of inflammatory chemicals that play directly into brain degeneration.

dumped directly into the liver,

visceral fat itself becomes inflamed.

visceral fat is uniquely capable of triggering inflammatory pathways in the body as

know that fat cells do more than simply store calories; they

your pancreas is trying hard to normalize your blood sugar. It?s also a clear signal that you are consuming too much carbohydrate.

fasting insulin level. An

Most doctors employ a measurement of one glycated protein routinely in their medical practice. I?ve already mentioned it: hemoglobin A1C.

These ketone bodies are profoundly neuroprotective. They decrease free radical production in the brain, increase mitochondrial biogenesis, and stimulate production of brain-related antioxidants. Furthermore, ketones block the apoptotic

Specifically, consuming ketogenic fats (i.e., medium-chain triglycerides, or MCT oil) has

Coconut oil, from which we derive MCTs, is a rich source of an important precursor molecule for beta-hydroxybutyrate and is a helpful approach to treating Alzheimer?s disease.24 A ketogenic diet has also been shown to reduce amyloid in the brain,25 and it increases glutathione, the body?s natural brain-protective antioxidant, in the hippocampus.26

therapeutic option in the treatment of Parkinson?s disease, Alzheimer?s disease, ALS, and even autism.19

special fats called ketones. By far the most important fat for brain energy utilization is beta-hydroxybutyrate

Dr. Mark P. Mattson at the National Institute

In January 2009, for example, the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science published a study in which German researchers compared two groups of elderly individuals?

Aerobic exercise in particular not only turns on genes linked to longevity, but also targets the BDNF gene, the brain?s ?growth hormone.?

protein called ?brain-derived neurotrophic factor,? or BDNF. BDNF plays a key role in creating new neurons.

BDNF is activated by a variety of lifestyle habits, including physical exercise, caloric restriction, following a ketogenic diet, and the addition of certain nutrients like curcumin and the omega-3 fat DHA.

First, if you?re insulin resistant, your body may not be able to break down a protein (amyloid) that forms brain plaques associated with brain disease. Second, high blood sugar provokes menacing biological reactions that injure the body, by producing certain oxygen-containing molecules that damage cells and causing inflammation that can result in hardening and narrowing of the arteries in the brain (not to mention elsewhere in the body). This condition, known as atherosclerosis, can lead to vascular dementia, which occurs when blockages and strokes kill brain tissue. We tend to think about atherosclerosis in terms of the heart, but the brain can be equally affected by changes in its arteries? walls.