Brain healthy

Step One is your first line of defense against depression, the techniques to which you turn when you re in the throes of a depressive episode and need immediate help. It s based on the understanding that just as the heart patient needs a heart-healthy lifestyle, so do depressed patients need a brain-healthy program that includes diet, exercise, and a healthy relationship to natural cycles—the ultradian, circadian, and seasonal rhythms that affect us more than we think. 

When I began using these Mind-Body precepts to treat my patients, I discovered that they went beyond conventional science to help me fine-tune my recommendations for nutrition, exercise, and other brain-healthy activities that could help my patients rebalance their brain chemistry. As a result, 1 now routinely identify each of my patients Ayurvedic type to help me better tailor my suggestions to their needs. When you take the quiz in Chapter 7, you can identify your own Ayurvedic type and go on to adopt the practices that are most beneficial for you. 

I know there s a lot of confusing information out there about diet and health. But what you eat can have such a revolutionary impact on how you feel that I strongly urge you to give the following brain-healthy... 

Your Brain-Healthy Diet Eating for Improved Mental Health... 

Enjoy your eggs. This nearly perfect food once had a bad rap as a dangerous source of cholesterol, but nutritionists now understand that eggs are actually good for your heart and circulation, especially if you get them from farm-raised free-range chickens, and even more so if you eat eggs from flax-fed chickens, which inserts some brain-healthy Omega-3 into your diet. 

Your Brain-Healthy Daily Cycle Aligning with Nature Through... 

Your Brain-Healthy Sleep Plan Sleeping for Better Brain Chemistry... 

Your Brain-Healthy Detox Plan Ridding Yourself of Toxins... 

Your Brain-Healthy Vata Diet How Air Types Need to Eat... 

Your Brain-Healthy Vata Exercise Plan Activities for Air Types Check out my suggestions in Chapter 6 for serotonin-building exercise suggestions, supplemented with these additional principles ... 

Your Brain-Healthy Vata Routine Daily Life for Air Types Have a daily routine, even on your days off. When it comes to routine, the problem for Air types is that they often don t have one. Their tendency is to be scattered, rushed, and erratic. Many of my vata patients flounder when they have too much unstmctured time, such as when... 

Your Brain-Healthy Pitta Detox How Fire Types Need to Cleanse... 

Your Brain-Healthy Pitta Exercise Plan Activities for Fire Types... 

Your Brain Healthy Kapha Detox How Earth Types Need to... 

Your Brain-Healthy Kapha Exercise Plan Activities for Earth... 

Your Brain-Healthy Kapha Routine Daily Life for Earth Types... 

But don t take too much vitamin D. More than 2,000 units daily for six months can raise blood-calcium concentrations to toxic levels. So unless your doctor tells you otherwise, keep the supplement dose to about half that. Or you could hold your nose and gulp down a tablespoon of cod liver oil. With 1,360 units of vitamin D (and lots of brain-healthy omega-3 fatty acids ), it s more than enough to jump-start your day. 4... 

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