A lot of the time when it comes to health, a lot of people are overly focused on handling issues when they arrive rather than trying to live a healthy lifestyle and minimize their risk of issues. Now, this doesn’t mean that accidents and emergencies won’t happen. For example, a Louisville concussion lawyer will be a big help if you have some sort of injury and need to recoup money for medical costs, but what happens after you’ve recovered?

There are many different ways that you can support your brain health, whether you’re recovering from an injury or just looking to try and boost your brain power. Results may vary, but here are a few of the standout options.

Let’s start the conversation with dietary supplements. The main reason why these are a good place to start with in terms of brain support (or any specific health support) is that you have full knowledge and control of what you are introducing to your body, as well as how much. For example, if you talk to a doctor, they may tell you to get a certain dosage of a certain vitamin. However, it’s difficult to gauge how much is in a cup of vegetables versus say, one capsule of a supplement.

When it comes to brain health, one of the most common categories you are going to hear about are nootropics. Nootropics actually cover a pretty wide span of options, from herbal extracts to amino acids to certain nutrients. How do they work? Well, one way is by improving plasticity in the brain. This helps synapses communicate better. There’s a lot of variances here, though. Some nootropics focus more on helping your brain release certain enzymes and hormones in appropriate amounts. Many of these entities help regulate our mood.

In addition, you may be looking to take a few specific standouts as well. One good example is omega-3 fatty acids. These are commonly discussed for cardiovascular health, but have applications in terms of brain health as well. This is especially useful for children. Since children are still developing, nutritional deficiencies in these critical stages can lead to major issues later on. For example, lacking in omega-3s can manifest in ways like mood swings, memory problems or depression.

One thing about the natural health revolution is that in a lot of ways, we’re seeing a renewal of past favorites. Ginkgo biloba is a good example. This staple of traditional Chinese medicine is useful because it provides essential flavonoids. These antioxidants help minimize cellular damage, something that is linked to a variety of health issues later in life, including cognitive decline. Ginkgo is also believed to help improve the oxygen flow to the brain.

There are a few lifestyle changes you can make as well that have been shown to improve your brain power overall, and best of all, these are pretty beneficial to other areas of your health as well. One example is lowering your added sugar. We know that this can lead to heart issues and chronic diseases, but you may be surprised to hear that excess added sugar is linked with cognitive decline as well. One study covered over 4,000 people and showed that those with a higher intake of sugary beverages like soda had lower total brain volumes and poorer memories on average.

In addition, if you’re keeping stationary a lot of the time, you’re not only hurting your body but your brain as well. Don’t feel that you have to be a true athlete in order to get a little exercise. Even something as simple as getting up from your desk at regular intervals for a quick stretch or walk around the office can work wonders.

Brain health is a little more difficult to quantify than something like losing weight or trying to manage your blood sugar levels. In many ways, we’re still learning about the mechanism behind cognition and intelligence as we know it. As a result, the idea of a “brain-booster” is still one that’s constantly evolving. The good news is that as you may see, a lot of the different supplements and items that we’ve been talking about have a variety of positive effects outside of brain support. So at the very least, you know that you’re introducing some positive elements to your body and lifestyle.