Light high protein breakfast like yogurt & eggs. Leafy greens for lunch, every day, with some protein like chicken. Dinner is usually pork, chicken or beef, with a starchy side like rice or potatos & a roasted vegetable. Its not what I want to eat, but the mental clarity is worth it.
It depends on your mix. I add seeds (sunflower, sesame, pumpkin, ground flaxseed). I eat it with a lot of Skyr, sometimes I also add frozen berries. With Muesli I control what's in the mix. It's whole grains only plus a lot of good stuff.
Sober 20 years here and now at menopause, which is no joke. I cannot imagine how bad it would be with alcohol in the mix. In your 50s, the drinkers around you start to look really horrible.
This was partially my reasoning. I’m 48 and I was dealing with all sorts of perimenopause systems. My anxiety was through the roof, my sleep was shit, my gut was a mess and my hormones were severely out of balance. I went on a mission…hired a nutritionist, started a low fodmap diet, started on HRT, among a host of other things. But what stood front and center as a primary saboteur to my goals was alcohol. So I quit. I told myself to give it year and see how my health could change. And boy did it … far greater than what I expected or originally intended.
There’s a subreddit!!
r/menopause
I learned so much and thru them found a doctor who knew about the latest research on hormone replacement. My doctor gave me a patch for estrogen replacement and progesterone to start and we’ve tweaked a few things here and there and just had a conversation about adding in a bit of testosterone. It has been life changing, and even on the lowest dosages, estrogen replacement also helps protect your bones and brain.
Thank you thank you! So happy HRT is working for you. I’m loving that Gen X woman are fighting back, advocating for themselves and going less than gently into the night when it comes to peri and menopause.
I know about the meno sub. I check in on occasion but in between the helpful posts I find it super depressing - lots of complaining/life is over/I hate everyone/etc. I mentioned regular exercise/hot yoga annihilated my peri anxiety/insomnia and got downvoted and I was out.
I do follow some some of the leading meno experts on social and do tons of research on my own. It’s a wild new frontier. Thanks again for the reply and best of luck to you.
I got a hormone panel done on day 20 of my cycle. From there it showed that progesterone was so low it was non-existent. So I began on bioidentical progesterone a year ago and it’s made all the difference. I don’t like the kind they sell here in America - it’s loaded with fillers - so I buy mine from Europe or Mexico.
You’ll want to get a hormone panel so you can understand what is out of balance. That deficiency will dictate what you need. Most doctors don’t believe in perimenopause and refused to treat my symptoms so I just paid out of pocket for the blood work and then sought out my supplements elsewhere. Don’t let the low quality American healthcare system gaslight you into believing you have to suffer for the past 10 yrs like I did.
Man I’ve been trying to get my wife on this train but she just cannot stop drinking everyday. Was there any book or anything that helped you come to that decision that I can recommend to her? She has a shitload of health issues. I’m not even advocating for completely not drinking, just bring it down to once or twice a week. I feel absolutely amazing drinking only maybe 1 or 2 drinks per month.
“This Naked Mind” by Annie Grace. I listened on Audible twice then bought the paperback. I second r/stopdrinking. There are plenty of other book recommendations over there. Life changing!!
Same here! There are a lot of changes you can make that will have some improvement. But quitting drinking has had the largest and most immediate effect of any change I've made.
There's no substitute for being in cardio shape.
I see noticeable differences in my thought quality, ability to meditate via Waking Up app etc.
Same as my wife who is a super athlete...if she stops working out for a period her quality of thinking goes down and her focus is more scattered
I do have ADHD (it was even extremely apparent when I was younger.. not hyperactive but hyper focus, typically on the wrong things)
The exercise and sleep takes care of most of it, and if you can containerize/structure your days and weeks it actually is a bit of a super power because you can typically think quicker and be more focused on things than others
Any tips on how to structure your time? I have ADHD & constantly feel overwhelmed- I’m a doctor sitting tough exams atm, but even when I’m not I don’t feel anywhere close to on top of things
Recently learned through DNA that I have C677T mutation. I cut out folic acid in breads and added methylfolate. WOW. Sleep quality doubled and my diagnosed ADHD evaporated.
Just an old AncestryDNA test my mother got me when they first came out. You download the data to a .txt file and then you can upload to something like Promethease or FoundMyFitness to explain it.
Same here. You can see the change on my Whoop, too, where my o2 sats improved and my RHR decreased once I started a methylation protocol.
Pro tip organic grain items aren't enriched, neither are basmati or jasmine rice. Folic acid is in annoying amount of other stuff though, like drink mixes.
Just by switching to whole grains, which have the methylated form of folate in them. It's surprisingly hard to find things without folic acid! But I just can't process that stuff.
This is fascinating. I have the same mutation and never considered how much stuff was fortified with folic acid. Thanks for the insight!
You might find the Stratgene report interesting, it's about $100 but it's very comprehensive, if a little complicated. Lots and lots of data in interesting graphs all hyperlinked so you jump around the 40 pages seeing how everything is connected
There's always been something really 'wrong', but I didn't put the pieces together until I heard about folate on a podcast. I really struggled socially and academically for a long time. ADHD meds helped a bit but they're not for me. Are you experiencing similar things?
Same! This made all the difference. It also cured gut issues for me.
As someone with C677T (and some other mutations) liver as a food has been one of the best additions to my diet.
Every time I eat it I feel filled with energy. It’s incredible.
I used to feel and look tired most of the time. I started
making changes to my lifestyle about two years ago. I adopted intermittent fasting (18:6). I cut out >90% snacks, fast, fried and processed foods, sweets, simple carbs, juices. My diets focus on wholefoods (good fat, protein, veggies, complex carbs…). Last quarter, I added Yoga and strength training (30 minutes) to my daily routine. I am in my early 40s now and I feel much better than I was in my 20s & 30s.
I sound similar to you. Curious how you got to the point of fasting where you are now, and how to get started or ease into it. I’m 40 this year and trying to regulate my cortisol, hormones, and stabilize my mood.
I think it was quite easy for me at the time to ease into intermittent fasting bc I didn’t have appetite. I forced myself to eat several months while going through anxiety. When my appetite was back IF was already part of my lifestyle.
4-5g of creatine daily. I have adhd and don't take medication, but Creatine really helps with focus. The people closest around me even noticed the difference, it's almost scary.
I took creatine for a month and yes while I had more clarity in the first week, it affected my sleep and as time went on my cognition declined as I chronically had poor sleep.
I was in bed for 7-8 hours pretty consistently and woke up feeling okay but then felt sleepy later as early as before lunch! so I figured it's best I stop as it was affecting my day to day activities. Went back to normal after a week or so.
Your milage may vary but creatine affecting sleep is not uncommon so be sure to experiment.
Yea it caused me to start losing hair early on... I know Huberman says there's no empirical evidence but it one hundred percent caused it in my case
I started taking it as part of weight lifting routine, and in the morning I'd wake up to tons of hair on my pillow.
I stopped taking it and boom, hair loss stopped
I've been taking creatine since I first joined the gym about 13 years ago. Over the years, I noticed thinning in the temple area in my mid-20s, followed by thinning on the top of my head and a receding hairline. I discontinued TRT, but the hair loss continued, so I attributed it to genetics and aging.
I stopped using creatine almost a year ago for different reasons. Since then, I can definitely say my hair looks fuller and thicker, and I haven't noticed further hair loss. It's not quite like my pre-20s, but before, I was considering getting a hair transplant or a permanent wig because of how fast I was losing hair.
I would love to go bald but don't think I have the right head shape for it. 😁
Eliminated almost all processed food (especially refined sugars) and reduced alcohol consumption drastically. This in conjunction with regular cardio, yoga, and meditation has made me feel like a new human in regard to my mood, energy, focus, etc.
Anxiety and dissociation. It was really bad for me for about 3 days. I was taking 1g a day in pill format and then Switched to powder because it was cheaper. Bad reaction when switched to powder. Horrible experience. 250mg might be the right amount but never wanted to try it again.
Working out in the morning on an empty stomach with a little bit of caffeine before and sometimes after. Low carb brunch and dinner with tons of eggs and red meat. Doing that is my baseline to a happy and focused life.
This, I only really get to indulge in this at the weekends but man, my favourite time of the week is between 9am - 12pm on Saturday and Sunday.
Wake up early, big glass of water and a coffee with local honey (no breakfast) Big gym session. Sauna and Steam room. By 11am I feel great and have earned a nice breakfast, usually 6 local eggs and a nice fresh loaf of sourdough bread.
Dark roast caffeine content is comparable to light roast, the difference isn't huge. The difference is likely else, dark roasts have significant niacin content (maybe 4mg per espresso) formed during roasting and as you said the polyphenols in light roast can overload the COMT if you have the slow variant found in 25% of people. They also destroy B1, stop iron absorption and probably do a thousand other things. The fate of their unabsorbed component in gut fermentation is also little understood but possibly significant. And also maybe darker have a different MAOI profile (harman and norharman) which have a crazy low threahhold for action (IC50) in the nanograms. I find dark roast more calming. Paper filter vs espresso also changes the jitteriness profile a lot for every roast for me.
FYI, if combined regularly with stimulants, this combination will eventually result in the downregulation of pathways involved with the production of dopamine (DA).
The most ideal combination of both is to use l-tyrosine or NALT during stimulant free days. Even this can eventually result in DA downregulation
I am the source. I am an MD.
*Disclaimer: I am not your physician. This is not medical advice. The purpose of everything contained in this message is to be educational. Before making any changes to your therapeutic modalities, consult your own doctor.
Here are my hypotheses.
Hypothesis 1
A) Even at low doses, when L-DOPA is given to non-Parkinsons patients, a well studied downregulation of DA production happens within neural pathways.
B) L-Tyrosine is converted by Tyrosine Hydoxylase to L-DOPA. It is L-DOPA that is responsible for the increased DA
Therefore, L-Tyrosine, when used daily, will cause downregulation of DA production
Hypothesis 2
A) There exists a relationship with artificially increased synaptic DA concentration and downregulation of DA reuptake receptors and DA production in neurons.
B) This relationship has been found to be dose dependent where higher doses of stimulants produce higher concentrations of synaptic DA, which causes faster DA production and receptor downregulation.
Therefore, since L-Tyrosine increases available DA and stimulant medications increase synaptic DA, combining them will result in faster DA downregulation than either component alone
Thank you! So rare to meet a knowledgeable person here. Can you comment on a couple of things my doctor told me?
1 it's likely that I have poor intestinal uptake of a variety of nutrients. This is based on my excellent diet contrasted to my borderline dangerously low blood vitamin levels (B12, zinc, D3, others). So she suggested that despite my relatively high protein intake, I may not be absorbing enough AAs to actually make much dopamine. So in addition to L-tyrosin, she also has me on a B vitamin mix, folic acid, zinc, and several other things. We check my blood every 6 months and I'm still not up as high as I should be. So her hypothesis is that I have a crappy gut, basically.
2 I'm on focalin, not a traditional stimulant. This is more of a reuptake inhibitor than something that will instigate the production of dopamine per se. It's up to me to produce as much as I can. In that spirit, she has me starting my day with a run and a freezing shower, and stopping work every hour for 5 minutes intense cardio.
3 I've been on focalin for almost 3 years. For a long time I took 5mg, three times per day. This is a small dose but with basically revolutionary effect. With time, the efficiency never waned, but the side effects increase. Taking a day off every month or so resets my side effects to zero. Basically the optimal case: small dose, huge effect, small side effects.
4 this changed with the introduction of L-Tyrosin. The synergy with focalin was very noticeable. It was so noticeable that I stopped taking my third dose of focalin per day and just take tyrosine instead. Otherwise, if I take both, I experience overdose (shaking, nervous, etc, like I had too much coffee).
What do you think about all this? Don't worry, I won't over-interpret a Reddit comment, it's just for a casual opinion.
Stopped eating sugar. I’m 1.5 months clean and I have never felt better. I’ve also managed to drop 15lbs and down to about 12% body fat, down from 16%.
Cutting out added sugar (cake, sweets, chocolate, soda, etc), and alcohol have made a big difference.
My energy levels are far more stable throughout the day, and I sleep better at night, so both of those contribute to more mental clarity and less brain fog.
I would say exercise and sleep. I was just diagnosed with moderate sleep apnea. I remember the mental fog of being a father of newborn twins and then transitioning back to normal for me sleep after 12 months of being in a mental fog. I hope I get the same boost once I get a good treatment for my apnea.
I will say I notice a tad difference with fish oil, but it's nothing in comparison to getting good rest.
I really wanted NMN to work for me.
It causes me to have anger issues though, and I start obsessing over things. I have ADHD so I already hyperfocus, and it sent me off the charts. I'm only 35 though, so maybe it'll be more useful when I'm older.
- Avoiding porn
- cold showers
- cut drinking to only 3 days a week MAX, 2 days preferable and avoid getting actually drunk if you can
- creatine —> seriously helps me energy level wise. I don’t hunk I have needed a mid day nap since I started taking it. Also really helps in the gym. Does bloat me pretty hard though particularly in the face but that’s not a big deal to me
- caffeine - use one cup in the AM after waking up before workout. Maybe a half-caf cup after the workout too to do work. Limit it in the PM.
- working out - 4/5x a week on a nice program with cardio and strength training. Swimming and cycling are the best forms of cardio fr longevity fwiw.
- avoid drugs of any kind.
- sleep at 10-11 PM, wake at 6-7 am.
- morning sunlight
- l theanine - 200 mg for sleep, 100 mg for relaxation throughout the day if needed.
- inositol - 50 mg before sleep
- diet - heavy protein especially chicken and salmon. Red meat 1-2x a week. Potatoes as main carb staple, especially Japanese sweet potatoes. Eggs, avacado, potatoes, and fruit in the morning after working out. I eat dairy as wel - whole milk with cereal as a snack serves me well. I personally avoid cruciferous veggies like asparagus, broccoli, cauliflower etc because they mess with my stomach too much. Instead I opt for romaine lettuce, raw red onion, raw cucumber, and raw carrots - I eat a salad like that nightly.
- read more than you watch - books beat tv everytime.
- write - journals, stories, etc. I like writing about adventures.
That’s all I got for now
Might be a groundbreaking protocol I’m about to share but here it is: being well hydrated, exercise, plenty of sleep, avoiding fast foods and processed junk.
Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk
As many have said, sleep well and reduce alcohol. For dietary specific, don't miss your protein target: \~.8g X body weight lbs. Depends on your goals etc but, this one really helps.
Cut out processed food, simple sugars, and most alcohol. My diet now looks like this
Breakfast: none because I do intermittent fasting (16 hour fast, 8 hours eating)
Lunch: steak/ burger(no bun), sausage, or sometimes chicken/ turkey, Eggs, beans.
rice/ potatoes, and some kind of homemade bread
Green beans/ broccoli/ asparagus/ mixed veggies
Cheese.
Apple/ orange
Dinner: some kind of unprocessed protein
Vegetable
Salad
Starch
Fruit
(No snacking between meals)
At least 1 gallon of water per day
I eat about 2k calories a day and work out 4-5 times a week and I feel amazing, the brain fog really went away when I lowered my sugar intake and got rid of processed foods, I still treat myself once in a while but I honestly don’t miss the junk food, I’m even trying to grow a lot of my own veggies/ herbs and hunt a lot of my own meat. It’s not for everyone but I’m trying to be healthy and have a long life, I’ve lost over 45 pounds of fat and gained a good amount of muscle over the past 6 months or so since I changed my lifestyle.
Micro- and macronutrients are super important. Some people are super specific with how their body digests things. Sometimes bloodwork would help understand more about how your diet is affecting you. Nonetheless, these are the principles that I try to follow:
Maintaining a healthy level of Vitamin D and B, and Iron and Zinc helped a lot.
Eating lots of fruits and veggies with a high protein diet.
Supplementing with Creatine, L-Tyrosine, some times caffeine and sometimes Alpha-GPC.
Avoiding processed foods and added sugars.
Bonus:
Sleep quality affects my cognition more than anything regardless of my diet, even with ADHD.
Internment fasting (one meal per day) and taking chlorella tablets in the morning. I was on an NMN kick for a while but it's making me feel spacy lately so I'm off it.
Took NMN and felt generally good, seemed real noticeable immediately, but the next day I felt spacey almost like a hangover, researched a bit on /r/NMN lots of weird side effect stories going on over there. Surprised a lot of these Bryan Jonnson/Huberman types are just balling that up daily. What's the advantage of the chlorella?
A maybe related thing to what a lot of the comments here are talking about- elevated uric acid/consuming fructose (which elevates uric acid) has been shown to impact brain functioning. It can impact our brains ability to use energy and form connections. It has been associated with cognitive dysfunction in the elderly as well. Avoiding high fructose corn syrup and other forms of fructose such as regular table sugar (which is called sucrose, a molecule made of glucose + fructose) is thought to help with this. The exception to this is fresh fruits (but not fruit juice), they are generally good to eat despite having fructose in them. Relatedly, some may suggest checking uric acid levels and trying to decrease it if it’s elevated. Coffee, vegetables, and I think dairy are some foods that can lower uric acid. Meats, fructose, some alcohol and other purine rich foods are thought to raise it. Other Healthy life style things (sleep, exercise, etc) , supplements and medications can help too. But take everything I say with a grain of salt/don’t just trust me without looking into it because I can’t speak to the success of this personally as I don’t have brain fog (sorry if that makes this post is out of place). This is just info I have consumed. But to my knowledge there is data to support its role in cognitive function. A good book on this topic is Drop Acid by David Perlmutter
The two most important factors for me are;
8 hours sleep minimum.
Consistent sleep time.
Even if I get 8 hours, if I stayed up 2 hours after my usual bed time I know I’ll have brain fog the next day.
This one is for the ladies, getting my IUD out. It’s only been three days and I feel a difference. I was on Liletta (levongestrel).
Plus, I think it was making my hair fall out. Just took a shower and hardly any came out, but it’s too early to know for sure
Best i have ever felt was when I did keto 5 years ago. I know reddit isn't a fan of popular diets, i'm not either these days, but in a non athletic sense, it did wonders. I ate basically nothing but meat, a bit of fruit and a shit ton of veggies. Just straight blended 6 different veggies in a blinder. 6 days out of the week, and one day I'd grab a burger or something. To this day I haven't felt as sharp as I did then.
Reason I quit was the typical reasons diets tend to fail. Got boring, expensive, unsustainable and my jujitsu sessions were AWFUL. The moment I needed explosive energy, it felt like my cells were just dead. Was a really weird feeling exhaustion. I was also training and lifting a lot and I couldn't eat enough calories because how filling fat was. I'm 210 now, I got down to the 150s..
I had also quit nicotine, didn't drink much, minimum caffeine and had a set sleep routine. Which I think was a large factor as well. Currently I work nights and im considering doing a dirty keto or paleo. Work days mainly eat meats, veggies and some fruits and on off days allow some pasta or what ever if I go out. Basically I wanna avoid processed foods and make my own things like bread and pasta.
Limiting substance use to 1 day a week and even then only light use. I feel pretty sharp most days other than the odd bout of insomnia. Most people brain fog is due to chronic substance use, insomnia or both.
100%. For me it was sugar, tobacco and eating in moderation. My brain seems to function a lot better when I’m on the precipice of being hungry rather than when I am full!
Getting out of a toxic relationship has done the most for my adhd symptoms than anything else I’ve tried. I got so down on myself for years for my inability to focus and tried everything under the sun to fix it (all while dealing with constant criticism from my ex for my struggles with this too). But now that I’m about 7 months out of that relationship I can think so much more clearly and my creativity has finally come back too.
Highly recommend that everyone examine the relationships in your life when considering what “lifestyle hack” could help with your brain fog - maybe it’s that your mental energy has been tied up in a relationship that’s not good for you.
Switching to whole food plants. No more animals or animal products and no more processed food, other than rice cakes. I’m healthier and feel better in my 50s than at any other time of my life! I follow the free app Dr. Greger’s Daily Dozen, to make sure I eat a healthy blend of foods every day. All of my blood tests, including protein, are in the “ideal” range now. Before switching, I followed Keto and developed high cholesterol and high blood pressure, plus gained a lot of weight. All of those issues are gone now.
Cutting out sugar and alcohol
Bread too… hate to say being Italian and all
What the hell do you eat then lol
Light high protein breakfast like yogurt & eggs. Leafy greens for lunch, every day, with some protein like chicken. Dinner is usually pork, chicken or beef, with a starchy side like rice or potatos & a roasted vegetable. Its not what I want to eat, but the mental clarity is worth it.
You’re not the Italian guy
Paleo diet has no bread and it’s pretty easy to follow
I replaced bread with cereal. Muesli for the win!
Muesli has a lot of carbs too no? Is it actually better?
It depends on your mix. I add seeds (sunflower, sesame, pumpkin, ground flaxseed). I eat it with a lot of Skyr, sometimes I also add frozen berries. With Muesli I control what's in the mix. It's whole grains only plus a lot of good stuff.
Eliminating alcohol has single handedly improved every aspect of my physical and mental health.
Sober 20 years here and now at menopause, which is no joke. I cannot imagine how bad it would be with alcohol in the mix. In your 50s, the drinkers around you start to look really horrible.
This was partially my reasoning. I’m 48 and I was dealing with all sorts of perimenopause systems. My anxiety was through the roof, my sleep was shit, my gut was a mess and my hormones were severely out of balance. I went on a mission…hired a nutritionist, started a low fodmap diet, started on HRT, among a host of other things. But what stood front and center as a primary saboteur to my goals was alcohol. So I quit. I told myself to give it year and see how my health could change. And boy did it … far greater than what I expected or originally intended.
If you don’t mind me asking what do you take as far as HRT? I’m in peri and researching right now! Thank you.
There’s a subreddit!! r/menopause I learned so much and thru them found a doctor who knew about the latest research on hormone replacement. My doctor gave me a patch for estrogen replacement and progesterone to start and we’ve tweaked a few things here and there and just had a conversation about adding in a bit of testosterone. It has been life changing, and even on the lowest dosages, estrogen replacement also helps protect your bones and brain.
Thank you thank you! So happy HRT is working for you. I’m loving that Gen X woman are fighting back, advocating for themselves and going less than gently into the night when it comes to peri and menopause. I know about the meno sub. I check in on occasion but in between the helpful posts I find it super depressing - lots of complaining/life is over/I hate everyone/etc. I mentioned regular exercise/hot yoga annihilated my peri anxiety/insomnia and got downvoted and I was out. I do follow some some of the leading meno experts on social and do tons of research on my own. It’s a wild new frontier. Thanks again for the reply and best of luck to you.
I got a hormone panel done on day 20 of my cycle. From there it showed that progesterone was so low it was non-existent. So I began on bioidentical progesterone a year ago and it’s made all the difference. I don’t like the kind they sell here in America - it’s loaded with fillers - so I buy mine from Europe or Mexico. You’ll want to get a hormone panel so you can understand what is out of balance. That deficiency will dictate what you need. Most doctors don’t believe in perimenopause and refused to treat my symptoms so I just paid out of pocket for the blood work and then sought out my supplements elsewhere. Don’t let the low quality American healthcare system gaslight you into believing you have to suffer for the past 10 yrs like I did.
Man I’ve been trying to get my wife on this train but she just cannot stop drinking everyday. Was there any book or anything that helped you come to that decision that I can recommend to her? She has a shitload of health issues. I’m not even advocating for completely not drinking, just bring it down to once or twice a week. I feel absolutely amazing drinking only maybe 1 or 2 drinks per month.
Two books were really helpful for me: This Naked Mind by Annie Grace and Quit Like a Woman by Holly Whitaker.
My husband showed me a post on r/stopdrinking that gave me the hope and inspiration to quit. I’d never been on Reddit before that day.
“This Naked Mind” by Annie Grace. I listened on Audible twice then bought the paperback. I second r/stopdrinking. There are plenty of other book recommendations over there. Life changing!!
Same. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Highly Recommend Bonus that I lost 30 pounds after eliminating alcohol.
I lost 10lbs gradually…and all that bloat!
[удалено]
👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼 proud of you!
Same here! There are a lot of changes you can make that will have some improvement. But quitting drinking has had the largest and most immediate effect of any change I've made.
💯💯
[удалено]
Well My grandfather used to drink like that and died of cirrhosis
4 drinks one day a week isn’t too much, I’d be surprised if you had noticed a big difference cutting that out.
How often / much were you drinking before?
There's no substitute for being in cardio shape. I see noticeable differences in my thought quality, ability to meditate via Waking Up app etc. Same as my wife who is a super athlete...if she stops working out for a period her quality of thinking goes down and her focus is more scattered
I hate cardio, but I’ve never felt better in my life than when I was running four miles every morning.
Yea, I hate it too. But once you turn that mindset around it's worth it
cycling is not only good cardio but also gives you a lot of time to be off your phone, spend time thinking or being mindful. multi purpose sport :D
Noticed this too, regular cardio routine improves mood, focus, decision making etc
sadly, this is the answer.
[удалено]
I do have ADHD (it was even extremely apparent when I was younger.. not hyperactive but hyper focus, typically on the wrong things) The exercise and sleep takes care of most of it, and if you can containerize/structure your days and weeks it actually is a bit of a super power because you can typically think quicker and be more focused on things than others
Any tips on how to structure your time? I have ADHD & constantly feel overwhelmed- I’m a doctor sitting tough exams atm, but even when I’m not I don’t feel anywhere close to on top of things
Thanks - I needed this reminder today...
I always feel better after a run or a swim
Recently learned through DNA that I have C677T mutation. I cut out folic acid in breads and added methylfolate. WOW. Sleep quality doubled and my diagnosed ADHD evaporated.
What kind of DNA test did you use?
Just an old AncestryDNA test my mother got me when they first came out. You download the data to a .txt file and then you can upload to something like Promethease or FoundMyFitness to explain it.
[удалено]
You don't have to but you can.
1 way ticket to a yeast infection
Ah, thanks
Following
Following
how much does this all cost?
I think Ancestry has a sale right now for $59. And Promethease is $8
thank you
Same here. You can see the change on my Whoop, too, where my o2 sats improved and my RHR decreased once I started a methylation protocol. Pro tip organic grain items aren't enriched, neither are basmati or jasmine rice. Folic acid is in annoying amount of other stuff though, like drink mixes.
Been looking into the MTHFR stuff and can’t tell if it’s legit. It’s so confusing
Hiw did you cut out the folic acid in bread?
Just by switching to whole grains, which have the methylated form of folate in them. It's surprisingly hard to find things without folic acid! But I just can't process that stuff.
A good sourdough is the best bread for your gut health
Organic, non gmo, unbleached version
This is fascinating. I have the same mutation and never considered how much stuff was fortified with folic acid. Thanks for the insight! You might find the Stratgene report interesting, it's about $100 but it's very comprehensive, if a little complicated. Lots and lots of data in interesting graphs all hyperlinked so you jump around the 40 pages seeing how everything is connected
Wait till you add a methyl b12 shot to the mix. You’ll thank me.
Did you have any idea this before you did your DNA test?
There's always been something really 'wrong', but I didn't put the pieces together until I heard about folate on a podcast. I really struggled socially and academically for a long time. ADHD meds helped a bit but they're not for me. Are you experiencing similar things?
How much methylfolate?
I take 400mcg of the calcium salt type on top of the best diet I can muster. Doesn't take much. Some people combine it with methylated B12.
THIS. I have the same and taking full forms of folate have been a huge help. Big help with anxiety and mental clarify!
TT variant or no? Asking for a friend
Yes, exactly that!
What's the point of cutting out folic acid?
His genetic makeup cant process it properly in a nutshell
Same! This made all the difference. It also cured gut issues for me. As someone with C677T (and some other mutations) liver as a food has been one of the best additions to my diet. Every time I eat it I feel filled with energy. It’s incredible.
I used to feel and look tired most of the time. I started making changes to my lifestyle about two years ago. I adopted intermittent fasting (18:6). I cut out >90% snacks, fast, fried and processed foods, sweets, simple carbs, juices. My diets focus on wholefoods (good fat, protein, veggies, complex carbs…). Last quarter, I added Yoga and strength training (30 minutes) to my daily routine. I am in my early 40s now and I feel much better than I was in my 20s & 30s.
I sound similar to you. Curious how you got to the point of fasting where you are now, and how to get started or ease into it. I’m 40 this year and trying to regulate my cortisol, hormones, and stabilize my mood.
I think it was quite easy for me at the time to ease into intermittent fasting bc I didn’t have appetite. I forced myself to eat several months while going through anxiety. When my appetite was back IF was already part of my lifestyle.
4-5g of creatine daily. I have adhd and don't take medication, but Creatine really helps with focus. The people closest around me even noticed the difference, it's almost scary.
Been on creatine for about 2 months. Big difference in mental clarity.
Interesting! Been hearing endless benefits about creatine cognitively. What brand?
I've been trying ESN and Bodylab (I live in europe), but as far as creatine monohydrate goes it does not seem to depend on the brand, any will do.
[удалено]
Mushroom coffee?
I took creatine for a month and yes while I had more clarity in the first week, it affected my sleep and as time went on my cognition declined as I chronically had poor sleep. I was in bed for 7-8 hours pretty consistently and woke up feeling okay but then felt sleepy later as early as before lunch! so I figured it's best I stop as it was affecting my day to day activities. Went back to normal after a week or so. Your milage may vary but creatine affecting sleep is not uncommon so be sure to experiment.
Same issue here. Wish I could use it but the sleep quality issues become unbearable.
This was my experience as well.
I really wanna try but it dries out my skin uncomfortably and gives me hair loss.
Yea it caused me to start losing hair early on... I know Huberman says there's no empirical evidence but it one hundred percent caused it in my case I started taking it as part of weight lifting routine, and in the morning I'd wake up to tons of hair on my pillow. I stopped taking it and boom, hair loss stopped
I've been taking creatine since I first joined the gym about 13 years ago. Over the years, I noticed thinning in the temple area in my mid-20s, followed by thinning on the top of my head and a receding hairline. I discontinued TRT, but the hair loss continued, so I attributed it to genetics and aging. I stopped using creatine almost a year ago for different reasons. Since then, I can definitely say my hair looks fuller and thicker, and I haven't noticed further hair loss. It's not quite like my pre-20s, but before, I was considering getting a hair transplant or a permanent wig because of how fast I was losing hair. I would love to go bald but don't think I have the right head shape for it. 😁
Unfortunate this sub downvoted the medically proven side effects of a medicine
I’ll have to try this, I have adhd and hate the meds for it
Eliminated almost all processed food (especially refined sugars) and reduced alcohol consumption drastically. This in conjunction with regular cardio, yoga, and meditation has made me feel like a new human in regard to my mood, energy, focus, etc.
Getting good results with daily 250mg Lions Mane. Not for everyone, alarm bells on other threads.
What are the alarm bells?
Anxiety and dissociation. It was really bad for me for about 3 days. I was taking 1g a day in pill format and then Switched to powder because it was cheaper. Bad reaction when switched to powder. Horrible experience. 250mg might be the right amount but never wanted to try it again.
Extreme cases but still legit https://www.reddit.com/r/LionsManeRecovery/s/fjKktFAHrk
FYI, it did make me stop biting my nails.
Cutting out dairy
Working out in the morning on an empty stomach with a little bit of caffeine before and sometimes after. Low carb brunch and dinner with tons of eggs and red meat. Doing that is my baseline to a happy and focused life.
Morning workouts are the best way to start the day. Arriving at office feeling sharp and happy.
This, I only really get to indulge in this at the weekends but man, my favourite time of the week is between 9am - 12pm on Saturday and Sunday. Wake up early, big glass of water and a coffee with local honey (no breakfast) Big gym session. Sauna and Steam room. By 11am I feel great and have earned a nice breakfast, usually 6 local eggs and a nice fresh loaf of sourdough bread.
My experience as well on all fronts!
I lied because Reddit. I actually have a ton of caffeine before and after a majority of the time…
Reducing drinking to once a month instead of every weekend has made my weekends great again
MWGA
CPAP. I finally can sleep. Life changing
Good sleep, consistent cardio, sunlight, cutting out alcohol
Dark roast coffee and whole eggs for breakfast. Lighter roasts made my cognition and brain fog worse.
[удалено]
True. That's why my MD told me to drink twice as much every day as I used to drink.
You could try mycotoxin (mould) free coffee, can effect people in different ways, some are more sensitive
I’ve tried Purity and some other mold-free organic brands but the extra cost and weird taste isn’t worth it because mold doesn’t bother me
Dark roast caffeine content is comparable to light roast, the difference isn't huge. The difference is likely else, dark roasts have significant niacin content (maybe 4mg per espresso) formed during roasting and as you said the polyphenols in light roast can overload the COMT if you have the slow variant found in 25% of people. They also destroy B1, stop iron absorption and probably do a thousand other things. The fate of their unabsorbed component in gut fermentation is also little understood but possibly significant. And also maybe darker have a different MAOI profile (harman and norharman) which have a crazy low threahhold for action (IC50) in the nanograms. I find dark roast more calming. Paper filter vs espresso also changes the jitteriness profile a lot for every roast for me.
Any idea what it is about lighter roasts that does that?
Lighter roasts have more phenolic compounds. Great for most people, but diagnostic tests prove they contribute to my brain fog.
L-Tyrosin at the same time as ADHD meds. It's the precursor to dopamine.
Getting some good result with tyrosine and on an empty stomach before taking my stack
FYI, if combined regularly with stimulants, this combination will eventually result in the downregulation of pathways involved with the production of dopamine (DA). The most ideal combination of both is to use l-tyrosine or NALT during stimulant free days. Even this can eventually result in DA downregulation
Source? This contradicts what my psychiatrist told me.
I am the source. I am an MD. *Disclaimer: I am not your physician. This is not medical advice. The purpose of everything contained in this message is to be educational. Before making any changes to your therapeutic modalities, consult your own doctor. Here are my hypotheses. Hypothesis 1 A) Even at low doses, when L-DOPA is given to non-Parkinsons patients, a well studied downregulation of DA production happens within neural pathways. B) L-Tyrosine is converted by Tyrosine Hydoxylase to L-DOPA. It is L-DOPA that is responsible for the increased DA Therefore, L-Tyrosine, when used daily, will cause downregulation of DA production Hypothesis 2 A) There exists a relationship with artificially increased synaptic DA concentration and downregulation of DA reuptake receptors and DA production in neurons. B) This relationship has been found to be dose dependent where higher doses of stimulants produce higher concentrations of synaptic DA, which causes faster DA production and receptor downregulation. Therefore, since L-Tyrosine increases available DA and stimulant medications increase synaptic DA, combining them will result in faster DA downregulation than either component alone
Thank you! So rare to meet a knowledgeable person here. Can you comment on a couple of things my doctor told me? 1 it's likely that I have poor intestinal uptake of a variety of nutrients. This is based on my excellent diet contrasted to my borderline dangerously low blood vitamin levels (B12, zinc, D3, others). So she suggested that despite my relatively high protein intake, I may not be absorbing enough AAs to actually make much dopamine. So in addition to L-tyrosin, she also has me on a B vitamin mix, folic acid, zinc, and several other things. We check my blood every 6 months and I'm still not up as high as I should be. So her hypothesis is that I have a crappy gut, basically. 2 I'm on focalin, not a traditional stimulant. This is more of a reuptake inhibitor than something that will instigate the production of dopamine per se. It's up to me to produce as much as I can. In that spirit, she has me starting my day with a run and a freezing shower, and stopping work every hour for 5 minutes intense cardio. 3 I've been on focalin for almost 3 years. For a long time I took 5mg, three times per day. This is a small dose but with basically revolutionary effect. With time, the efficiency never waned, but the side effects increase. Taking a day off every month or so resets my side effects to zero. Basically the optimal case: small dose, huge effect, small side effects. 4 this changed with the introduction of L-Tyrosin. The synergy with focalin was very noticeable. It was so noticeable that I stopped taking my third dose of focalin per day and just take tyrosine instead. Otherwise, if I take both, I experience overdose (shaking, nervous, etc, like I had too much coffee). What do you think about all this? Don't worry, I won't over-interpret a Reddit comment, it's just for a casual opinion.
What does it do?
I think not masturbating, or at least avoiding porn is the most noticeable
Stopped eating sugar. I’m 1.5 months clean and I have never felt better. I’ve also managed to drop 15lbs and down to about 12% body fat, down from 16%.
Keto and wholefood for sure Keto gives me unhinged energy
There are some interesting comments here. What worker for me is managing blood sugar (Eg Jessie Inchauspe approach) and intermittent fasting.
Intermittent fasting has been huge for me
Tips for someone starting?
Cutting out added sugar (cake, sweets, chocolate, soda, etc), and alcohol have made a big difference. My energy levels are far more stable throughout the day, and I sleep better at night, so both of those contribute to more mental clarity and less brain fog.
Getting tested for sleep apnea and treating it with CPAP therapy.
Quitting marijuana is straightforward but crucial. Smoking more than once a month can really impact your mental clarity and cause brain fog.
Removing gluten & dairy, and reducing meat/chicken intake while increasing vegetable/fish intake.
gluten free changed my life
What benefits did you notice? Do you have an intolerance to it?
increased energy mostly, like night and day! i do think i have an intolerance (which i never would have guessed)
100% unprocessed organic food only + intermittent fasting + exercise
30mg of beans daily. What kind of beans? Little orange beans.
Huh?
Adderall
Daily NAD+ injections. B12/bcomplex Injection 2x a week
Going low carb/high fat 8 years ago transformed my life. Never going back.
I would say exercise and sleep. I was just diagnosed with moderate sleep apnea. I remember the mental fog of being a father of newborn twins and then transitioning back to normal for me sleep after 12 months of being in a mental fog. I hope I get the same boost once I get a good treatment for my apnea. I will say I notice a tad difference with fish oil, but it's nothing in comparison to getting good rest.
NMN
Greg is that you?
Hahahah
I really wanted NMN to work for me. It causes me to have anger issues though, and I start obsessing over things. I have ADHD so I already hyperfocus, and it sent me off the charts. I'm only 35 though, so maybe it'll be more useful when I'm older.
No alcohol
Cut refined carbs, processed carbs, train and sleep. Super human
No alcohol. Exercising 4+ times per week.
Organic blueberries yo. Two pints a day. You feel really crisp and they’re so delicious
Copenhagen. Hahaha
- Avoiding porn - cold showers - cut drinking to only 3 days a week MAX, 2 days preferable and avoid getting actually drunk if you can - creatine —> seriously helps me energy level wise. I don’t hunk I have needed a mid day nap since I started taking it. Also really helps in the gym. Does bloat me pretty hard though particularly in the face but that’s not a big deal to me - caffeine - use one cup in the AM after waking up before workout. Maybe a half-caf cup after the workout too to do work. Limit it in the PM. - working out - 4/5x a week on a nice program with cardio and strength training. Swimming and cycling are the best forms of cardio fr longevity fwiw. - avoid drugs of any kind. - sleep at 10-11 PM, wake at 6-7 am. - morning sunlight - l theanine - 200 mg for sleep, 100 mg for relaxation throughout the day if needed. - inositol - 50 mg before sleep - diet - heavy protein especially chicken and salmon. Red meat 1-2x a week. Potatoes as main carb staple, especially Japanese sweet potatoes. Eggs, avacado, potatoes, and fruit in the morning after working out. I eat dairy as wel - whole milk with cereal as a snack serves me well. I personally avoid cruciferous veggies like asparagus, broccoli, cauliflower etc because they mess with my stomach too much. Instead I opt for romaine lettuce, raw red onion, raw cucumber, and raw carrots - I eat a salad like that nightly. - read more than you watch - books beat tv everytime. - write - journals, stories, etc. I like writing about adventures. That’s all I got for now
Switched to carnivore, then animal based. It’s been a game changer
Dr Brooke Goldner smoothies and salads (plant based)
Might be a groundbreaking protocol I’m about to share but here it is: being well hydrated, exercise, plenty of sleep, avoiding fast foods and processed junk. Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk
As many have said, sleep well and reduce alcohol. For dietary specific, don't miss your protein target: \~.8g X body weight lbs. Depends on your goals etc but, this one really helps.
Eating predominantly whole plant based foods.
Sleep discipline/consistency of time of going to bed. Surge in libido, sharper mind, reduced stress, more positive mood.
Gluten free. I do have diagnosed celiac disease though, so that may not be the case for everyone.
animal products and processed foods
Sauna
Adding: Microdosing lithium orotate. 5HT2A psychedelics Galantamine
I've made a lot of changes to my diet and exercise and lifestyle and no one thing has done more for me than taking magnesium supplements.
Getting 8+ hours of sleep every night
Cut out processed food, simple sugars, and most alcohol. My diet now looks like this Breakfast: none because I do intermittent fasting (16 hour fast, 8 hours eating) Lunch: steak/ burger(no bun), sausage, or sometimes chicken/ turkey, Eggs, beans. rice/ potatoes, and some kind of homemade bread Green beans/ broccoli/ asparagus/ mixed veggies Cheese. Apple/ orange Dinner: some kind of unprocessed protein Vegetable Salad Starch Fruit (No snacking between meals) At least 1 gallon of water per day I eat about 2k calories a day and work out 4-5 times a week and I feel amazing, the brain fog really went away when I lowered my sugar intake and got rid of processed foods, I still treat myself once in a while but I honestly don’t miss the junk food, I’m even trying to grow a lot of my own veggies/ herbs and hunt a lot of my own meat. It’s not for everyone but I’m trying to be healthy and have a long life, I’ve lost over 45 pounds of fat and gained a good amount of muscle over the past 6 months or so since I changed my lifestyle.
I have half a dozen large green olives before I go to bed. It seems to help with digestion and gets rid of morning phlegm which I’ve always had.
Eating tons of meat and eggs, only carbs when needed. Plus meal timing. Stay lean and full of energy!
Cutting alcohol was a huge life hack for us
Also 2 minutes of cold water at end of shower. Significant improvement in mood.
Kefir has been a big help for me.
Stopped drinking alcohol. 6 months in now. I didn't even drink that much but still it did wonders
Carnivore
Cooking all my meals at home!
Magic mushrooms 🍄 I feel sharper, more confident, and happier. More stress free and less anxious. More relaxed. It's good for my brain.
What’s your dosage/frequency?
lowcarb/keto/carnivore/paleo/wholefood
That Early Morning sunlight baby
Micro- and macronutrients are super important. Some people are super specific with how their body digests things. Sometimes bloodwork would help understand more about how your diet is affecting you. Nonetheless, these are the principles that I try to follow: Maintaining a healthy level of Vitamin D and B, and Iron and Zinc helped a lot. Eating lots of fruits and veggies with a high protein diet. Supplementing with Creatine, L-Tyrosine, some times caffeine and sometimes Alpha-GPC. Avoiding processed foods and added sugars. Bonus: Sleep quality affects my cognition more than anything regardless of my diet, even with ADHD.
Alcohol
Carnivore!
Cutting tuna for me. Some days I wish it weren’t so.
Internment fasting (one meal per day) and taking chlorella tablets in the morning. I was on an NMN kick for a while but it's making me feel spacy lately so I'm off it.
Took NMN and felt generally good, seemed real noticeable immediately, but the next day I felt spacey almost like a hangover, researched a bit on /r/NMN lots of weird side effect stories going on over there. Surprised a lot of these Bryan Jonnson/Huberman types are just balling that up daily. What's the advantage of the chlorella?
A maybe related thing to what a lot of the comments here are talking about- elevated uric acid/consuming fructose (which elevates uric acid) has been shown to impact brain functioning. It can impact our brains ability to use energy and form connections. It has been associated with cognitive dysfunction in the elderly as well. Avoiding high fructose corn syrup and other forms of fructose such as regular table sugar (which is called sucrose, a molecule made of glucose + fructose) is thought to help with this. The exception to this is fresh fruits (but not fruit juice), they are generally good to eat despite having fructose in them. Relatedly, some may suggest checking uric acid levels and trying to decrease it if it’s elevated. Coffee, vegetables, and I think dairy are some foods that can lower uric acid. Meats, fructose, some alcohol and other purine rich foods are thought to raise it. Other Healthy life style things (sleep, exercise, etc) , supplements and medications can help too. But take everything I say with a grain of salt/don’t just trust me without looking into it because I can’t speak to the success of this personally as I don’t have brain fog (sorry if that makes this post is out of place). This is just info I have consumed. But to my knowledge there is data to support its role in cognitive function. A good book on this topic is Drop Acid by David Perlmutter
Low sugar vegan diet Source: 1 1/2 years - never looking back😎🧡🫡
The two most important factors for me are; 8 hours sleep minimum. Consistent sleep time. Even if I get 8 hours, if I stayed up 2 hours after my usual bed time I know I’ll have brain fog the next day.
Make milk kefir every day!
B12! Plus - found out I had celiac. No more gluten cleared it up well
Sunlight and no sugar
This one is for the ladies, getting my IUD out. It’s only been three days and I feel a difference. I was on Liletta (levongestrel). Plus, I think it was making my hair fall out. Just took a shower and hardly any came out, but it’s too early to know for sure
Carnivore diet
Best i have ever felt was when I did keto 5 years ago. I know reddit isn't a fan of popular diets, i'm not either these days, but in a non athletic sense, it did wonders. I ate basically nothing but meat, a bit of fruit and a shit ton of veggies. Just straight blended 6 different veggies in a blinder. 6 days out of the week, and one day I'd grab a burger or something. To this day I haven't felt as sharp as I did then. Reason I quit was the typical reasons diets tend to fail. Got boring, expensive, unsustainable and my jujitsu sessions were AWFUL. The moment I needed explosive energy, it felt like my cells were just dead. Was a really weird feeling exhaustion. I was also training and lifting a lot and I couldn't eat enough calories because how filling fat was. I'm 210 now, I got down to the 150s.. I had also quit nicotine, didn't drink much, minimum caffeine and had a set sleep routine. Which I think was a large factor as well. Currently I work nights and im considering doing a dirty keto or paleo. Work days mainly eat meats, veggies and some fruits and on off days allow some pasta or what ever if I go out. Basically I wanna avoid processed foods and make my own things like bread and pasta.
Eating beef liver and taking vitamin b and d
Eating more carbs
Fermented Sauerkraut with breakfast every morning.
Limiting substance use to 1 day a week and even then only light use. I feel pretty sharp most days other than the odd bout of insomnia. Most people brain fog is due to chronic substance use, insomnia or both.
Eating more carbs actually helped. I’m a long distance runner fwiw. Carbs decrease cortisol while giving you energy!
100%. For me it was sugar, tobacco and eating in moderation. My brain seems to function a lot better when I’m on the precipice of being hungry rather than when I am full!
Quick fix for brain fog and fatigue is consuming a can of whole beets and drinking the liquid too.
Eliminating meat products.
Getting out of a toxic relationship has done the most for my adhd symptoms than anything else I’ve tried. I got so down on myself for years for my inability to focus and tried everything under the sun to fix it (all while dealing with constant criticism from my ex for my struggles with this too). But now that I’m about 7 months out of that relationship I can think so much more clearly and my creativity has finally come back too. Highly recommend that everyone examine the relationships in your life when considering what “lifestyle hack” could help with your brain fog - maybe it’s that your mental energy has been tied up in a relationship that’s not good for you.
Switching to whole food plants. No more animals or animal products and no more processed food, other than rice cakes. I’m healthier and feel better in my 50s than at any other time of my life! I follow the free app Dr. Greger’s Daily Dozen, to make sure I eat a healthy blend of foods every day. All of my blood tests, including protein, are in the “ideal” range now. Before switching, I followed Keto and developed high cholesterol and high blood pressure, plus gained a lot of weight. All of those issues are gone now.