New in Brain Health

Concussion Dangers

Though often “shaken off” by athletes, concussions can pose serious neurological dangers. Doctors define a concussion as a traumatically induced brain injury in which there is no identifiable anatomic lesion. A dire...

Salt in the Diet and Memory in the Elderly

Salt, or sodium chloride, is often spotlighted in the media in relation to hypertension. Little attention has been given to the issue of salt and memory problems, however, especially in the elderly. Yet older people are more at...

Quadriplegic Diet

While no one diet works for everyone dealing with quadriplegia, some basic nutritional principles and goals can help you stay healthy. Complications such as diabetes, high blood pressure, constipation and osteoporosis occur mor...

Weight Training After a Concussion

A concussion presents a serious brain injury, and depending on the severity of it, can present long term health ramifications or even death if you fail to properly take care of yourself afterward. If you want to resume your wei...

The Effects of Jogging on Neurotransmitters

Neurotransmitters are brain chemicals that encourage communication between brain cells. These chemicals are responsible for regulating mood and sleep patterns, among other things. Certain neurotransmitters, such as dopamine, cr...

Compensation Exercises for Imbalance

Conditions of the inner ear often cause severe imbalance. The ears sense movement and then send messages to your eye, neck, torso, arm and leg muscles, helping you to maintain balance even under unsteady conditions. If you suff...

How Injuries Affect Athletes Later in Life

Whether you play an impact sport such as football or engage in individual competition such as gymnastics, the demands of athletics can increase the likelihood you will experience an injury. Unfortunately, some injuries can have...

Can Multivitamins Help With the Shakes?

Having the "shakes" -- an episode of rhythmic, involuntary movements -- can be alarming, inconvenient and embarrassing. Medically known as essential tremor, the shakes usually become more apparent when you try to per...

Headache & Nausea After a Fall on My Back

If you fall hard on your back and have a headache and nausea shortly afterward, the most likely reason is that you hurt your head during the fall and that caused a concussion. However, it is also possible that another, slightl...

Diet After Pituitary Removal

When constructing a low-sodium, low-protein diet, consider the patient’s clinical status and fluid-electrolyte balance in the brain. If you are willing to throw yourself into a low-sodium, low-protein diet, you should wor...

Does Fish Oil Reduce Brain Swelling?

It is available in supplement form as liquids and capsules, alone or in combination with vitamin E, other vitamins, calcium and iron. Some research indicates fish oil may decrease cerebral edema, or brain swelling. Consult a he...

Homeopathy & Spinal Cord Astrocytoma

Spinal cord astrocytoma is a rare tumor that begins in the brain or spinal cord in cells called astrocytes. These cells, which are star-shaped, are the supporting cells of the nervous system. The spinal cord tumor usually affec...

Diet for a Child With Progeria

Overall growth is affected usually within the first year of their lives as the body simply stops growing. They may drop several pounds of body fat and lose bone structure. Children with progeria's growth rates differ significan...

Can Exercise Help With Nicotine Withdrawal?

Cigarette smoking can kill you and endanger your love ones as well, but it is not easy to quit. No one wants to experience nicotine withdrawal symptoms. Fortunately, withdrawal symptoms are temporary, and there are several me...

Dopamine Intolerance

Dopamine is a natural chemical produced in the brain, but some people may be intolerant when too much is produced, resulting in health side effects that may be mild or severe. Dopamine is produced from the amino acid known as t...

The Relationship Between Exercise & Memorization on the Brain

There are at least four different types of human memory, each constituted by particular cognitive and physiological processes. Implicit memory governs complex habitual acts such as driving a car or recalling language while conv...

Exercises to Help Keep Your Heels Down in Your Riding Position

A correctly positioned heel — one that sits just below the stirrup bar — allows your calf and ankle to flexibly absorb the movement of the horse. Olympic dressage coach Jane Savoie advises that if your heel will no...

Exercises for Right Homonymous Hemianopia

Right homonymous hemianopia is characterized by vision loss toward your right temple in your right eye. This condition may be caused by traumatic brain injury such from a car wreck, a stroke or brain surgery. Exercises help re...

Sodium & Memory Loss

Although many people experience occasional episodes of mild memory lapses, progressive memory loss may signal the presence of an underlying disorder. Numerous factors, including diet, play a role in the development of cognitive...

Does Exercise Release Dopamine?

By increasing the amount of dopamine in certain regions of the brain, exercise can exert a number of health benefits that can promote positive well-being and even counter negative mental states. Although much of the research is...

How to Help a Friend Who Is Addicted to Exercising

Even though addiction to exercise may be considered less dangerous by many, it is an addiction like any other and can wreak havoc on a person’s health and happiness. Exercise addiction is also known as obligatory exercise...

Does Exercising Help Cervical Stenosis?

The top or neck portion of your spine is called the cervical spine. Over time, this portion of the spine can start to narrow, putting pressure on the delicate nerves in your spinal cord. This condition is called cervical stenos...

Red Meat & Brain Function

Brain diseases and disorders adversely affect these functions. Red meat is a source of protein, iron and certain vitamins and other minerals required for good health, yet it also contains saturated fat that increases your risk ...

Can Amino Acids Boost Brain Function?

When you eat proteins and your body digests them, amino acids are what remain after the protein has been broken down. Your body uses amino acids for a variety of purposes, such as proper brain function. Ensuring that you get ce...

Exercise & Brain Function

Whether you are trying to lower your cholesterol, regulate your blood pressure or lose weight, medical professionals will suggest that you get some exercise. Often ignored is the equally important impact of exercise on the body...

Does Sweating From Exercise Help With Blackheads?

Acne's primary cause is the buildup of dead skin cells, skin oil and bacteria in pores. This buildup can be controlled to some extent but not completely stopped. Acne lesions take forms such as blackheads, whiteheads, pustules ...

A Concussion in Soccer

It's no secret that American football and ice hockey are rough, full-contact sports resulting in a high number of player injuries. However, you might be surprised to learn that soccer ranks equally with both sports in the numbe...

Can Exercise Help Poor Circulation?

Poor circulation is primarily caused by your arteries becoming narrower and less flexible over time. A regular exercise program improves your circulation by strengthening your heart and improving your oxygen transport system. C...

Can Cauliflower Have a Good Effect on the Brain?

The nutrients obtained from your diet have an effect on the functioning of several tissues, including your brain. Nerves within your brain require a number of nutrients to preserve the nerve cells' structure, as well as facilit...

Does Grape Juice Help With Your Brain Function?

They reduce the risk of blood clots, lower LDL cholesterol, prevent damage to your blood vessels and help you maintain normal blood pressure. Drinking grape juice also improves brain function and lowers the risk of certain medi...

Does Exercise Cause an Adrenaline Rush?

Adrenaline is another word for the hormone epinephrine, part of the brain's response to exercise. Epinephrine has an effect on your body to increase the cardiorespiratory activity that facilitates exercise. It also has an affec...

Thoracic Spine Therapy

Thoracic spine therapy reduces the effect of injury and strengthens the thoracic spine and its components. There is very little motion in a healthy thoracic spine but any restriction of movement in your thoracic area is uncomfo...

Strabismus & Dopamine

Strabismus results when eyes do not align properly, causing each eye to look in a separate direction. This condition, often referred to as crossed eyes, will often cause one or both eyes to have low vision, and this may cause d...

Right & Left Brain Development in the Baby

From the third trimester of gestation through 24 months, the neural connections in a baby's brain increase by about threefold. During this time, the infant brain imprints genetic information into brain cells and body cells. To ...

Nutritional Deficits That Affect Memory

Memory loss affects people in different ways. While some people notice memory loss in their inability to concentrate or remember where they placed something, others have difficulty remembering things that happened years ago or ...

What Exercises Help Put on Size?

In "The New Encyclopedia of Modern Bodybuilding," eight-time Mr. Olympia Arnold Schwarzenegger explains that first you put on mass, then you work to refine it. He explains that the way to build basic muscle size is wi...

Zinc & Brain Function

Brain is the control and communication center of the body, and is responsible for vital functions such as breathing, heartbeat and blood pressure as well as for reasoning, planning, thinking and emotions, among other things. It...

What Exercise Helps You Punch Faster?

Although movies and fight highlight reels tend to emphasize the dramatic power shots of a fight, experienced fighters will tell you that speed is a more important attribute in martial arts success. This is because faster strike...

Does Exercise Help Anemia?

Anemia is a condition in which you have less than the normal number of red blood cells your body needs. Red blood cells contain hemoglobin, a protein that transports oxygen from the lungs to your body organs. If you have low le...

Tyrosine & Brain Function

The amino acid phenylalanine converts into another amino acid, tyrosine. Tyrosine is essential for making the brain neurotransmitters norepinephrine, epinephrine and dopamine. Tyrosine uses the protein from the food you eat to ...

Nutrition & Chemical Imbalances

The nerve cells in your brain, also called neurons, produce chemicals known as neurotransmitters to carry the electrical impulses across the gap between nerve cells. Normal brain function requires a delicate balance between the...

Thermogenic Endorphin (Releasing) Diet

The Thermogenic Endorphin (releasing) Diet, also called the Dr. TED Diet, claims to help you quickly lose fat without losing lean muscle mass. The diet's website proposes that you can lose up to 1 pound a day if you are a man a...

Do Carbohydrates Affect Our Brain Function?

This is due to the carbohydrates in bread and other foods that provide glucose, the main energy source for your brain and body. The Linus Pauling Institute notes that the brain requires continuous glucose to function efficientl...

Does Exercising Help Teenagers Feel Better About Their Body Image?

According to the Center on Media and Child Health, a teenager's body image is closely related to her self-esteem. If a teen doesn't feel good about her body, this will translate into a lack of confidence in other areas of her l...

What Does the Brain Need to Function Nutritionally?

The Franklin Institute created the Brain-Food Pyramid as an alternative to the USDA's former Food Guide Pyramid to help people visualize the nutritional requirements of the brain and better comprehend the effects of these nutri...

Gluten & Brain Function

Gluten is only partially digested in your gastrointestinal tract, giving rise to protein fragments that prompt a vigorous immune response in people with certain genetic traits. This autoimmune reaction can have far-reaching con...

Can Exercise Help Mood As Well As Antidepressants?

The physical benefits of regular exercise are well known, but the mental benefits may be just as likely and apparent, according to MayoClinic.com. Those who exercise routinely may realize a slight boost in mood after a workout,...

Foods to Improve Concentration in Sports

In this way, well designed diets should help athletes concentrate during a competition. Athletes should maintain diversity in their diets to ensure access to a broad range of nutrients and minerals whose effects on the brain du...

Does Caffeine Improve Brain Function?

It is classified as a stimulant, the only stimulant classified as safe and effective by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to be used in over-the-counter products. Caffeine is the most widely used psychoactive compound in th...

How to Improve Your Reflexes

Improved reflexes can also help to keep you safe in dangerous conditions and prevent injury. If you have any medical conditions or are taking medication, consult your doctor to ensure you are healthy enough for exercise before ...

Does Exercise Help You Emotionally?

For years people have been saying exercise makes them feel better. Now, scientists and health care providers are beginning to acknowledge this common sense advice. While exercise has long been recommended for its physical benef...

Can I Exercise After Frontal Lobe Head Injuries?

Exercise plays a key role in everyone's health, even after a frontal lobe head injury, since exercise can improve memory, functioning and mental outlook. Exercises range from cognitive-based to physical activity, all with the i...

Does Exercise Help Relieve Inflamed Muscles?

After an intense game, run, swim or workout, your muscles may feel stiff and inflamed for as long as 24 to 48 hours. However, instead of sitting on the sidelines while tired muscles heal, you can safely and quickly rid your bod...

Manganese Deficiencies and Dementia

You can easily obtain manganese from your diet, but an estimated 37 percent of Americans do not get adequate daily intake of this mineral, notes the University of Maryland Medical Center. Manganese deficiency can lead to a host...

Can Exercise Help Cure Cancer?

In the past, doctors advised cancer patients to rest and reduce physical activity. Recently, the American College of Sports Medicine released a report that advised cancer patients to avoid inactivity. The organization further s...

Herbs That Help With Exercise

Herbs useful for exercise fall under the categories of stimulants or adaptogens. Stimulants increase the heart rate, respiration and blood pressure. Stimulants also might increase the rate of muscle fiber contractions, accordin...

How Long Should You Keep an Infant Awake After a Head Injury?

However, keeping your infant awake immediately after the head injury is important because it allows you to observe your baby's behavior, watching for signs of a "shake-up" in the brain, called a concussion, or bleeding inside t...

Almonds and Dopamine

Dopamine is one of several neurotransmitters, chemicals released by your brain cells to allow for nerve communication. Dopamine signaling plays an important role in your mood regulation, the ability to learn and feelings of ple...

Does Exercise Help Make Your Bones Stronger?

Weight-bearing exercises -- or exercises that put stress on your bones -- can promote stronger bones and also slow bone loss as you age. Similar to muscles, as you exercise, your bones become stronger. Weight-bearing exercises ...

Speech Therapy Ideas for Traumatic Brain Therapy

Traumatic brain injury, or TBI, can cause a number of physical, emotional and social difficulties, including problems with communication. If you or a loved one has speech or language difficulties following a head injury, a spee...

Fruits That Improve Heart Function

The health of your heart is paramount, and you can do many things to promote a robust heart, including exercise, adequate sleep and a good diet. As part of a proper heart-healthy diet, certain fruits offer special benefits. Con...

Spinach & Brain Function

If you eat spinach regularly, chances are the antioxidants, nutrients and phytochemicals found in spinach leaves will have a positive effect on the health of your brain. The spinach plant, also known as Spinacia oleracea, has b...

Turmeric & Epilepsy

Epilepsy is a neurological disorder characterized by repeated and unpredictable convulsions over a period of time. It occurs when the brain sends abnormal signals. Conditions such as stroke, brain injury or tumor, infections an...

Cinnamon & Brain Function

Structural or physiological changes in the brain can lead to brain diseases. The symptoms and type of brain disease depend on the part of brain that has been affected. Treatment varies and may include medication, psychotherapy ...

Epilepsy & Melatonin

The term epilepsy refers to disorders of the brain that causes irregular electrical activity in your nervous system known as seizures. Approximately 0.5 percent of people in the world suffer from some form of epilepsy, accordin...

Vitamins for Healthy Brain & Hearing Function for Children

A child is born with roughly 100 billion neurons or nerve cells. Through childhood, the circuitry between these neurons develops through the formation of synapses or connections between nerve cells. Because of this rapid growth...

Brain Function & Development in Boys & Girls

Through the first three years of life, your child's brain is hard at work, making more connections than it ever will again. In fact, a 3-year-old's brain is more active than the brain of a young adult, according to a webpage ab...

Head Bumps on Children

Bumps to your child's head occur during the course of normal play and exploration, especially for youngsters who lack coordination. In most cases, a bump to the head is treatable at home, but more serious head injuries require ...

Does Exercise Always Help Mood?

Regular exercise offers a number of proven health benefits. Not only does exercise help manage your weight, but it also helps combat a number of potentially serious health conditions and diseases, boosts energy, improves stamin...

Signs and Symptoms of Concussion Syndrome After Football Hit

Football players are vulnerable candidates for experiencing concussions throughout their athletic career due to hard impacts and strong blows to the head. Common signs and symptoms of an athlete who has sustained a concussion c...

Blueberries & Brain Function

Blueberries contain antioxidants and compounds that could help enhance cognition and other brain functions, if you believe the hype. While studies on blueberry benefits on brain function are still ongoing, scientists are studyi...

Diets to Encourage Brain Function After a Stroke

A healthy diet is one important factor of rehabilitation. Although no one post-stroke diet exists, various dietary programs, eating habits and foods promote brain function and can enhance your overall recovery. For best results...

CoQ10 for Memory Loss

CoQ10 is short for coenzyme Q10, an antioxidant commonly used as a natural remedy for a variety of health conditions. More recently, the antioxidant has gained attention as a potential treatment for Alzheimer's disease, a chron...

Carnitine & Epilepsy

Epilepsy is a brain disorder that involves repeated and unpredictable seizures. Medical conditions such as stroke, dementia, tumors or brain injury may increase the risk of epilepsy which is characterized by abnormal brain acti...

How to Stimulate the Production of Endorphins & Dopamine

Dopamine, a well-known neurotransmitter that is implicated in the reward circuitry of the brain and often inextricably linked with addictive disease, can also be regulated to keep you motivated, upbeat and enthusiastic about ac...

What Do Stair Exercises Help?

Stair machines are designed to mimic the action of walking or running regular stairs. Consult your doctor before beginning any new exercise regimen, particularly if you have health concerns or have been sedentary.

The Disadvantages of Mountain Climbing

The environmental writer Edward Abbey once wrote, "May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds." The combination of danger and gl...

Bleeding Brain & Green Tea

Bleeding may occur in the brain during a stroke, causing brain cell dysfunction and damage. While green tea may not prevent bleeding in the brain directly, it can control some stroke risk factors. While most people can safely d...

How to Improve Heart Function

Some of the conditions that may lead to decreased heart function include obesity, high cholesterol and high blood pressure. The good news is that there are actions you can take right now to reduce your risk of potentially deadl...

Dopamine & Pregnancy

Although dopamine is often used to treat shock or low blood pressure associated with trauma, infection, heart attack or surgery, it may not be safe for use during pregnancy. Consult your health care provider about the benefits ...

Phosphorus Deficiency & Epilepsy

Phosphorous is a key nutrient essential to human health; it is found in every cell in your body. Phosphorous deficiencies arise when people do not get enough of the mineral in their diet, resulting in a variety of adverse effec...

Can Gluten Sensitivity Mimic MS on Brain MRI Tests?

Gluten is a protein found in a variety of grains, including wheat, rye, barley and their relatives. If you possess a certain genetic makeup, consumption of gluten leads to a heightened immune response that can cause intestinal ...

Vegetables for Brain Function

Just as proper food-based nutrition helps fuel healthy muscles and bones, the brain relies on the right blend of vitamins, minerals, fats and other nutrients to function optimally. Many vegetables provide nutrients that are cri...

Can Exercising on a Bicycle Help With Head Shaking?

Exercising on a bicycle helps a wide range of physical conditions. It's an effective aerobic activity and it's a great option for people who need to keep pressure off their knees and hips. Cycling has also been shown to reduce ...

How Do I Tell If a Toddler Has a Concussion?

Toddlers are often so accident-prone that it can be difficult to decipher between normal bumps and bruises and an actual medical emergency. A concussion is the result of a traumatic brain injury, which usually results in a temp...

Foods That Enhance Dopamine Output

Dopamine is an important neurotransmitter in your brain. It can either elevate your mood or relax you, depending on the dopamine receptor to which it binds. Dopamine can be increased with certain medications, such as stimulants...

How Exercising Helps Maintain a Healthy Lifestlye

These recommendations are specifically put in place to help all Americans maintain a healthy lifestyle, due to the beneficial effects exercise has on the body. Before starting any new exercise program, consult with your doctor ...

Returning to Soccer After a Concussion

Concussions have ended or put on hold the careers of notable soccer players including U.S. Women's National Team former captain Lori Chalupny and Swedish standout Hanna Ljungberg. Head trauma also forced the retirements of New ...

Treatments for Brain Edemas in Children

Brain edema is the swelling of the brain due to accumulation of excess fluid in brain tissues. In children, it is mainly caused by head trauma, stroke, aneurysms, brain tumors, infections and hydrocephalus. Hydrocephalus is a n...

Natural Sources to Raise Endorphins

Endorphins are chemical messengers in your brain, responsible for your feelings and moods. They are your own personal narcotic, responding to stimuli such as stress, fear and pain. Just as morphine, a synthetic narcotic, suppre...

Foods That Improve Myelination

Myelin, a fatty substance, insulates your nerves and makes nerve impulse conduction faster and more efficient. Trauma and some health conditions can degrade or damage myelin. Certain foods contain building blocks from which you...

Sodium Aluminosilicate and Alzheimer's Brain Health

Alzheimer's disease is a devastating disorder that affects millions, and is characterized by progressive neurodegeneration and dementia. The exact cause is not known, but the industrial chemical sodium aluminosilicate has been ...

Herbs to Increase Dopamine

A dopamine deficiency is associated with disorders like Parkinson's disease and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. Herbs may help to increase dopamine levels naturally. Consult your health care provider before starting a...

Glutamate and Epilepsy

Epilepsy is a brain disorder characterized by seizures. Seizures are caused by disturbed brain activity. Medical conditions like stroke, infections, brain injuries and infections all are potential causes. Surgery and medication...

Short-Term Memory Loss and High Cholesterol Meds

Most people know that high cholesterol has been linked to an increased risk of heart disease. Cholesterol is necessary for a number of functions in the body, but it also can build up in the blood vessels. If you have high chole...

Why Not an Oral Dopamine Replacement for Parkinson's?

Parkinson's disease is a neurological disorder that becomes progressively worse over time as the neurons in the substantia nigra area of the brain degenerate. This can greatly affect people's ability to move and induce symptoms...

Caffeine Associated Memory Loss

Caffeine, which is classified as a drug and food additive by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, boosts energy and alertness by preventing adenosine, a chemical produced by the brain that induces drowsiness, from binding wit...

Low Potassium & Bad Short-Term Memory

Age-related changes in the composition and functioning of the brain can result in diminished short-term memory. Potassium is an essential mineral, crucial to the nervous system and electrical activity in the body. Of the many f...

Cacao & Dopamine

Chocolate is one of the most popular foods in the world. But not everyone understands the impact that chocolate can have on their mood or focus, even if they notice they feel better after eating it. The reason that chocolate ca...

Why Is Creatine Level Important for a Brain MRI?

Magnetic resonance imaging is a test that uses a computer to produce very detailed pictures of body structure to help diagnose various diseases and medical conditions. MRIs are not X-rays and do not use radiation. A serum creat...

Does Exercising Help When You're Pregnant?

Exercising during pregnancy can benefit both you and your baby -- but not if done to excess. Avoid overexerting yourself. Base your amount of exercise during pregnancy on how much is normally in your routine. Pregnancy is not t...

Dopamine Deficiency in Children

Neurotransmitters are chemicals in the brain that facilitate communication, and dopamine is a neurotransmitter that is associated with feelings of pleasure. Drugs such as heroin, cocaine and alcohol increase the level of dopami...

Flaccid Dysarthria Exercises

Flaccid dysarthria occurs as a result of damage to the lower cranial nerves involved in speech. Exercises concentrating on improving flexibility and strength of your lips, tongue and jaw will improve speaking capabilities. Sinc...

Can Exercise Help Tremors?

Tremors, the involuntary shaking of the hands, arms, head or other muscles, can be symptoms of conditions such as Parkinson's disease and dystonia. Exercise can play a key role in helping patients with tremors, though usually m...

Eating-Induced Endorphins

A disruption or imbalance of any of these factors can affect your mood, alter your behavior, and potentially increase your risk of mental illness. One way your body maintains your mental health and emotional well-being is throu...

What Vitamin Is Good for Dementia?

Dementia, also called senility, is a term for a group of symptoms caused by disorders that affect the brain, such as Alzheimer's disease and stroke, characterized by inability to think, remember, solve problems, control emotion...

Dopamine D4 & Parkinson's

Parkinson's disease is named after the English physician James Parkinson who first described it in a detailed way in 1817. It is a degenerative disorder of the central nervous system. Parkinson's disease involves the loss of do...

Asperger's & Dopamine

However, scientists believe that a combination of genetics and malfunctions in the brain's communication system, such as an overproduction of certain neurotransmitters like dopamine, are involved in the etiology of this disorder.

Short-Term Effects of Good Eating

The average American diet lacks sufficient amounts of fruits, vegetables, whole grains and healthy fats, according to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, and is excessive in unhealthy fats, refined foods and added sugars. Suc...

Nutrition for Brain Tumor Survivors

Brain tumors may be metastatic or benign and a doctor will individualize treatment plans since each person is affected by various physical, emotional and social factors. Nutrition is an essential component of a healthy individu...

Nutrients for Left & Right Brain Function

Nutrients support brain function on many different levels -- from ensuring healthy energy production to providing the raw materials necessary for cellular structure and vital chemical compounds. The function of the human brain ...

Exercises for Cranial Nerve Dysfunction

Damage to some nerves, such as the olfactory nerve related to your sense of smell, will not respond to exercises as treatment. Other nerves respond well to a variety of exercises that help restore lost functioning because of ...

What Is CFIT Exercise?

Until there is a cure, helping people improve brain function is the next-best treatment. CFIT was started by Kenneth Kosik, a neuroscientist at the University of California Santa Barbara who researches Alzheimer's cures as well.

The Effects of Snacks on the Brain

The right snacks can help fuel your body between meals and keep you from getting hungry until time to eat again. The snacks you choose also have an impact on your brain, and knowing which foods have the most positive influence ...

Is Chronic Caffeine Use Linked to a Loss of Memory?

Caffeine is a drug found in coffee, tea, energy drinks, sodas and some foods. Because caffeine is a stimulant, excessive caffeine consumption might cause sleep loss leading to memory problems, but there is no evidence that chro...

What Do BCAAs Do & How Do They Affect the Brain?

However, they may also be helpful in speeding up your body's healing of brain injuries. Several universities, such as the University of Pennsylvania, are studying the amino acids' effects.

Foods & Drinks That Boost Memory

Just as what you eat -- or don't eat -- can help to improve the health of your heart and other major organs, diet can play a significant role in the efficiency with which your brain functions, thus affecting a wide range of cog...

What Minerals Are Needed to Prevent Bone Loss?

While a certain amount of bone loss is expected, continued loss may result in a stooped stance, brittle bones and frequent fractures quickly decreasing your quality of life. However, a combination of minerals can help prevent b...

Exercises to Help Femoral Anteversion

Femoral anteversion is a condition where the femoral neck tilts forward, which causes the lower leg to rotate inward. The condition is present in 10 percent of children and usually corrects itself with time. Only when the rotat...

Dopamine for Tourette's

It is thought that low levels of the neurotransmitter dopamine contribute to Tourette's syndrome. According to Washington University in St. Louis, research suggests that therapy to increase dopamine levels in the brain can impr...

Can Low Zinc Cause Dementia?

Allan Butterfield of the Sanders-Brown Center on Aging at the University of Kentucky. However, whether or not low zinc causes dementia remains unclear. Speak to your doctor or health care practitioner about zinc supplementation...

How to Check for a Concussion in a Child

Even minor concussions can threaten your child's health. According to KidsHealth.org, more than 400,000 children visit the emergency room for serious brain injuries every year. Concussions can be difficult to diagnosis because ...

How to Check a Toddler for a Concussion

While the most common causes are playground accidents, sports injuries and car crashes, toddlers can be susceptible to concussions because of their high level of activity and curiosity. Concussions are traumatic brain injuries ...

Supplements That Fight Neurotoxins in the Brain or Body

Scientists have documented the effectiveness of such remedies and now use them to cure patients. Neurotoxins have become prevalent in our environment. Natural compounds protect your brain from the damage they can cause. These s...

What Is the Effect of Vitamin E on Memory Loss?

Memory loss, often thought of as simply a natural consequence of aging, has many causes. Alzheimer's disease, stroke, hypertension, epilepsy, Parkinson's disease and brain cancer may all contribute to varying degrees of memory ...

Foods That Affect Brain & Body Functions

Foods all affect brain and body in some way. In the simplest case, they provide the energy that brain and body need to function. However, some foods have specific, more dramatic effects, sometimes almost immediately upon consum...

Does Exercise Help PIH?

Pregnancy-induced hypertension, also known as pre-eclampsia, toxemia of pregnancy, or by the acronym PIH, is a serious condition. Symptoms include high blood pressure, swelling, and protein in your urine. The usual treatment ...

Does Exercise Help Produce Blood?

Exercise training causes many adaptations to the body's systems that improve performance over time. One area of ongoing interest is the adaptations that take place in the production of blood as a response to exercise. Blood pla...

Hyperthyroidism & Dopamine

The thyroid gland is responsible for regulating how your body uses energy through metabolism. If your thyroid gland becomes overactive, due to illness, too much iodine in the diet, infection or tumor, that regulatory ability be...

Natural Alternatives for Dopamine

Dopamine is a neurotransmitter associated with pleasure, reward and learning. Lack of dopamine in the brain may lead to impaired feelings of pleasure, reduced concentration, poor learning, movement disorders and poor motivation...

Epilepsy & Selenium

Epilepsy is a neurological condition characterized by seizures; it occurs when electrical signals in the brain are disturbed. The U.K. National Health Service's website, NHS Choices notes that although epilepsy is a long-term c...

Herbs for Dopamine in ADD

Of the several different prescription medications to treat the disorder, all act partly by raising the activity of a neurotransmitter known as dopamine in certain areas of the brain. Some herbs may also show some benefit in inc...

Do Humans Get Brain Damage From Eating Meat?

Maintaining brain health involves following a healthy lifestyle that includes a good diet and exercise. While you cannot control some of your risk factors, such as family history or age, you can make a difference in your brain ...

Losing Weight & Short-Term Memory Loss

Weight loss or excess weight gain may cause short-term memory disturbances. Short-term memory, also known as working memory, holds a limited number of items in your brain accessible for up to 20 to 30 seconds, according to Robe...

Do the Neurotransmitters From Exercise Make You Manic?

Exercise not only improves your cardiovascular fitness and strengthen your muscles but also helps improve your mood by increasing production of neurotransmitters know as endorphins. Endorphins are responsible for the feeling of...

How to Help Progeria Sufferers With Exercise

The condition is progressive, with the typical life expectancy being approximately 13 years. There is no cure for progeria, but there are therapies and treatments that are used to reduce health risks. Exercise helps those with ...

Memory Loss & Lack of Vitamin B12

Vitamin B-12, a nutrient in most animal-based foods, plays an essential role in neurological function. Insufficient vitamin B-12 in the diet and chronic absorption problems can lead to low levels of vitamin B-12, potentially ca...

Does Being Hydrated Help in Doing Exercise?

While you can go weeks without food, your body can only go an estimated three to five days without water. Water is your body's principle chemical component with about 60 percent of your body being made up of the substance, sugg...

Which Exercises Help Men Look Thinner?

Whether you are carrying around a beer gut or just a few extra pounds, several exercises can help you look thinner. You can reduce the amount of body fat you have and reach a healthful weight with weight training and aerobic tr...

How Physical Exercise Works to Prevent Dementia

Physical exercise has positive effects on the brain, and may be the best means of preventing dementia. Regular exercise works better than intellectual activity, medications and nutrition for maintaining cognitive function, acco...

Brain-Based Exercises

The brain begins creating neurons -- the brain cells that communicate with each other -- before birth at a rate of 16 billion per hour. These neurons are designed to help you organize and make sense of your surroundings regardl...

Jogging Down the Street Will Help You Exercise

If you're trying to lose weight, improve your cardiovascular health, blow off stress in a healthy way, or tone and strengthen your legs all at the same time, jogging may be for you. No other form of aerobic exercise is as cheap...

Melatonin and Dementia

The prevalence of dementia continues to increase, according to an April 2011 article in "Science Translational Medicine." Several medications are available to treat this medical condition, yet few drugs remain effective with ex...

Brain Atrophy Rehabilitation

Brain atrophy occurs when diseases such as stroke, traumatic brain injury, infections or chronic neurological conditions cause damage to your brain cells. According to the National Institute of Health, neurons in your brain no ...

Fish Oil Medicine for Memory Loss

Fish oil seems to be touted as a cure-all for almost any physical and mental complaint you may experience. Of course, no dietary supplement is a cure-all. However, according to the Nature Cures Clinic, a naturopathic acupunctur...

Exercises to Bring Oxygen to the Brain

Your brain needs oxygen to function. However, common daily activities, and poor lifestyle habits or body mechanics, can reduce the amount of oxygen circulating to your brain. Keep your spinal column aligned throughout the day t...

Magnesium & Dementia

The most common form of dementia occurs in people with Alzheimer's disease, a progressive neurological condition. Dementia refers to a set of symptoms within a specific disease, not a disease in itself. Memory loss, impaired ju...

Niacinamide for Reversing Dementia

Alzheimers's disease, the best-known form of dementia, affects at least 5.4 million Americans and accounts for 60 to 80 percent of dementia cases, according to the Alzheimer's Association. Dementia normally appears after age 65...

Dopamine for Anxiety

The Anxiety Disorders Association of America reports that as of 2011 over 40 million adults aged 18 and older experience anxiety, which makes anxiety disorders among the most prevalent mental illnesses in America. The symptoms ...

Exercise & Excess Dopamine

Exercise provides many benefits for the body and mind. In some rare cases, exercise can cause an excess of the neurotransmitter dopamine. Dopamine is a catecholamine, along with serotonin, epinephrine and norepinephrine. This...

The Best Amount & Method of Exercise to Stimulate the Brain

Many exercises can effectively benefit the brain, improving cognitive function and helping prevent neurodegenerative decline as you age.

Niacin for Dementia

Niacin, also called vitamin B-3 and nicotinic acid, is a vitamin essential for a healthy body. A deficiency in this essential nutrient causes a condition called pellagra, and one of the principle symptoms of this condition is d...

Appetite & Brain Function

Controlling appetite isn't always an easy thing to do. For one thing, signals from the brain control how much you eat and when you feel full. It's actually your brain and not your stomach that lets you know you feel hungry. Ano...

Brain Damage From Mountain Climbing

You might not be able to see any abnormalities with your naked eye, but when a mountain climber climbs into a MRI machine, the consequences of past high attitude experiences become clear: the sport takes a measurable toll on br...

How Does Soccer Affect the Body?

Playing a 90-minute game of soccer is an intense experience, and affects your whole body, from your brain to your feet. Playing the sport provides cardiovascular and muscular fitness. The bulk of the work is done by your legs, ...

Can Niacinamide Help Dementia Patients?

Niacinamide, a derivative of vitamin B-3 generally found in supplemental form, aids in the conversion of food to usable energy for your body and plays a role in neurological functions. Niacin, nicotinic acid and niacinamide are...

Flax Oil for Mood & Brain Functions

Flaxseed oil, made from the seeds of the flax plant, may provide a number of benefits for mood and brain functioning. Do not use flaxseed oil in place of conventional medical treatment.

Mental Exercises to Improve Brain Activity

Mental exercises improve memory and can strengthen neural connections and form new connections. Although taking up a new task or trying an unfamiliar mental exercise may seem awkward or frustrating at first, repeated effort wil...

How Are Endorphins Associated With Exercise?

According to the Harvard School of Public Health, exercise may result in an increased feeling of well being and decrease in stress and anxiety. The stimulation of endorphin release may be one of the pathways through which exerc...

Natural Substitutes for Dopamine & Norepinephrine

Dopamine and norepinephrine are neurotransmitters, brain chemicals that carry impulses from cell to cell, store them and release when ready for use. They also give you a sense of satisfaction and reward, regulate behavior and a...

Cholesterol in the Human Brain

You probably know that high cholesterol can clog your arteries. Persistently high cholesterol can also prevent your brain from working properly and raise the risk of developing neurological diseases such as Alzheimer's. Every c...

Is Eating Fruits Good for Brain Function?

Not surprisingly, studies have shown that a diet high in fruit can help prevent many of the symptoms of diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and other deteriorating conditions of the brain.

Fish Oil Use in Traumatic Brain Injuries

Fish oil also supports proper brain development and offers protective benefits for the nervous system. In some cases, traumatic brain injury has responded well to treatment with fish oil. Consult your doctor before using fish o...

Teas That Help Brain Function

Drinking tea regularly helps your brain to function optimally. Any tea that contains caffeine is a stimulant drink. The caffeine in tea helps your brain stay alert, notes MedlinePlus. Tea also has anti-inflammatory properties a...

Melatonin & Dementia

Melatonin is a common sleep-promoting supplement that may benefit those who suffer from dementia. Common side effects of the disease, which primarily affects the elderly, include sleep disorders. While there are few scientific ...

High-Energy Foods to Improve Brain Function

The food you eat can make a significant difference in your energy levels. It can even affect brain functions such as memory and alertness. To have optimal overall functioning, eat a whole foods diet that incorporates plenty of ...

Rehabilitation & Development for a Brain Injury

A brain injury can occur in only a fraction of time, but its results may be devastating and permanent. According to the Brain Injury Association of America, over 1.7 million people experience a traumatic brain injury in the Uni...

Does Caffeine Help Improve a Person's Memory?

If you've even turned to coffee to help jump-start your brain or keep you awake late at night, you're well aware of caffeine's stimulating effects. But caffeine may also benefit your brain in other ways. Research suggests that ...

Frontal Lobe Exercises

The left and right frontal lobe portions of the brain play a role in planning, evaluation, sequencing, visual analysis and language. A form of traumatic brain injury, a frontal lobe injury requires recuperative exercises that i...

Can Exercise Really Make Our Brains Work Better?

Health care professionals prescribe daily exercise to reduce risk of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and weight management. In Healthy People 2020, the U.S. government has defined specific exercise durations and activi...

Mental Exercises

Physical exercise keeps the body healthy and helps reduce the risk of serious illnesses and diseases. Mental exercise provides the same type of benefit to the brain, as well. Mental stimulation helps the brain grow new neurons,...

Does Dark Chocolate Affect Your Short Term Memory or Health?

People have consumed chocolate products for more than 3,000 years, according to a 2011 analysis published in the "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences." Chocolate has been used for spiritual, monetary and dietary pur...

Does Exercise Help You Remember?

Exercise is beneficial to more than your heart, lungs and muscles. An increase in brain size and your brain's ability to develop new cells may result from aerobic exercise, which can have a positive affect on your memory. Regul...

Exercises to Help Sore Backs

Your back muscles help align your spinal cord with your neck and skull to keep a mobile and flexible back. Performing actions that put excessive pressure on the spinal cord can lead to back pain caused by a shifted spinal disc,...

The Best Brain Exercise

At birth and throughout childhood, the human brain takes in new information and processes it continuously. As a person ages, there is not quite the explosion of new information and skills to learn. However, the human brain can ...

Does Exercise Help Get Rid of Hangovers?

When you wake up with the telltale splitting headache and debilitating nausea of a hangover, you may be willing to try nearly anything to get rid of the symptoms. Old wives tales of drinking more alcohol and eating raw eggs may...

B-12 & Brain Functioning

Although it is a water-soluble vitamin, it is the only one stored in small amounts in your liver. B-12 has several roles in a variety of functions, including normal neurological, or brain function. For optimal brain power, make...

Does Exercise Help Raynaud's?

Raynaud's syndrome is a group of symptoms that occur when the blood vessels supplying oxygen and blood to the extremities become constricted. Raynaud's syndrome causes spasms of the small vessels in the fingers and toes, but it...

Schizophrenia & Dopamine and Glutamate

Given the serious nature of this disease, much research has been conducted over the past century to better understand schizophrenia. One area of intense research involves understanding how chemicals in the brain, such as dopami...

Hyperprolactinemia & Dopamine

Hyperprolactinemia, or high blood prolactin, is normal in pregnancy because milk production is necessary for the nursing of a newborn. Besides pregnancy, other causes of hyperprolactinemia are abnormal. Dopamine, a neurotransmi...

Memory Loss & Ginkgo

Ginkgo is one of the most extensively studied plants, long used for memory disorders such as Alzheimer's disease, and conditions stemming from decreased blood flow to the brain, including memory loss. Widely used, ginkgo contin...