Food for Performance

The doctor of the future will give no medicine, but will instruct his patients in care of the human frame, in diet, and in the cause and prevention of disease.
Thomas Edison

Nutritional advise and guidelines are changing almost in a blink of a second. Every day new “evidence” reaches us in our timelines, newspapers, rss feeds and email accounts. On one day we should put butter in our coffee, on the next butter and coffee are unhealthy.
It’s hard to keep track. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by all the good indented advice.

Fact is, the way the most people are living today undermines their mental health, (cognitive) performance and resilience.

There is no universal right way. You need to find the right way for you. Experiment, listen to your body (objectively) and get to the right conclusions for you. What may be good for your friend- might not be for you.

Nutritional Guidelines for high cognitive performance

Nutrition is highly individual due to allergies and intolerances as well as other conditions. Despite very individual taste and digestibility there are certain rules for a healthy nutrition that are almost universally correct:

• Limit the amount of alcohol.
• Don’t smoke.
• Don’t take drugs or unnecessary medicaments.
• Avoid eating transfats. Eat real (nutrient dense) food- not processed food.
• Drink caffeine only in small amounts and none after 2 pm.
• Drink enough (preferably still) water.
• Eat at a regular time – but never too late.
• Avoid sugar.
• Eat complex carbohydrates- instead of simple ones.
• Don’t undereat. Don’t overeat. Go for smaller, but more frequent meals.

The role of fasting in high performance

Fasting offers the benefit of cognitive alertness. Periods of fasting can hence be very useful in executing and implementing strategic actions and protocols such as learning and memory storing, whereas highly creative work is often best performed with a lesser level of alertness.
Depending on the kind of work you need to perform during the day an optimal timed period of fasting can be beneficial for your performance.

Carbs for high performance

A low carb diet performed during the time of the day cognitive alertness is required can be beneficial for high performance, where as a slightly higher carb nutrition can be beneficial for sleep and calmness.

The use of (herbal) supplements for high performance

Supplements of any kind are standing in the spotlight of enthusiasts as well as of harsh critics. Some scientific studies show a clear benefit of incorporating them (for certain populational cohorts), while others deny any significant evidence of benefit, whereas other studies are not scientifically adequate constructed and hence don’t get to valuable insights and conclusions.

I am personally a keen advisor of conducting personal and individually informed experiment in life. I research the possible benefits and side effects of incorporating certain behaviors, habits and co in life, make a decision pro or contra the activity (according to medical advise) and just try it out for a certain limited amount of time. What is beneficial stays- what is not, needs to go.

Since this is neither a nutritional nor medical writing, I keep the information about supplements to the necessary to be inspired to further research it (with your physician) and conducting an informed experiment on your own. I am not a physician and hence I am not in the position to give you – as my reader a clear advise. You are responsible for your own health and hence need to research it with your physician on your own. These are merely inspirational guidelines.

Multivitamin

Any supplement, especially a multivitamin is not a substitute for a good an healthy diet. But none of us is perfect. We are just faulty human beings. Where as scientific studies about the use of (multi)vitamins often lack a clear practical conclusion Dr. Walter Willett the chair of the Harvard School of Public Health’s nutrition department advises the use of a multivitamin as an insurance against the lapses in healthy eating and lifestyle choices due to modern life. Most multivitamin supplements consist of a combination of Vitamin A, B 1, B2, B3, B6, B12, Folate, Pantothenic Acid, Biotin, C, D, E, K, Calcium, Potassium, Iron, Phosphorus, Iodine, Magnesium, Zinc, Copper, Selenium and Chromium (often in combination with Omega fatty acids).
Since some of these “ingredients” are not safe for people suffering from certain conditions- you should consider a physician before taking them.

Bio hacking supplements

The use of ayurvedic herbs like Ashwagandha, Gotu Kola and Bacopa to enhance the cognitive performance is widely popular in the brain- and bio-hacking community.
These scientifically proven cognitive beneficial herbs will often be used in combination with Rhodiola which decreases stress levels and enhances the cognitive performance as well as resilience in individuals.

The scientific evidence of the popular use of hericum (brain fuction/ depression) as well as shankpushpi (brain function), guduchi (immune system), guggul (lowering cholesterol), triphala (digestive system) is sadly – in contrast- insufficient.

Curcumin (used as well in Ayurveda and the biohacking community) on the other hand is a great supplement against inflammation and anxiety.

The use of Q10, PQQ, OPC, ALS, L-Theanine, probiotica and NAC can be furthermore beneficial in enhancing personal resilience through supplements.

Special supplements for anxiety/ depression

SAM-e( S-denosylmethionine) as well as Acetyl-L-Carnitine (ALC) have shown in scientific studies the ability to lighten depressive moods and help against anxiety and therefore increase the cognitive performance and resilience of individuals.

Herbal Treatment

Herbal medicine as an approach to the established modern medical system is based on a thousands of years longing practice.
Whereas the use of some herbs is scientifically well proven- other herbs are fairly new to the pharmaceutical community.
The following described and named herbs have scientifically proven benefits for decreasing symptoms of stress and hence help to enhance the (cognitive) performance and resilience of individuals.

German chamomile is a commonly used as a medicinally herb for improving sleep due to its calming effect. The long-term use of chamomile can significantly reduce moderate-to-severe symptoms in the anxiety disorder.

Furthermore passionflower is used as a herbal treatment and support for insomnia, stress at even ADHD due to its calming effects as well.

Additional herbs for decreasing stress are rose, lavender, mint, linden and barley.

Tip:

Whereas German chamomile, passionflower, mint and linden are culinary better enjoyed as single herb teas- a mixture of rose and lavender (50/50 mixture) is rather advisable.
Barley Tea is often enjoyed in Asian countries. You may already know the tea under the Japanese name of mugicha or its Korean name boricha. You can easily prepare this tea at home by brewing roasted barely seeds.

Resume

While the described supplements can enhance your well-being and your resilience, you should consult with your physician before taking them, whether the use is individually safe and advisable for you.

This document is neither a focused nutritional nor medical writing and doesn’t attempt to be.

It should only be a source of inspiration for you to further research this issue on your own and get the necessary advise and information to make an informed decision about taking supplements of any kind.

Keeping your body healthy is an expression of gratitude to the whole cosmos- the trees, the clouds, everything.

Thich Nhat Hanh

Resources and further reading material:

• Amen, D.(2017), Memory Rescue, Carol Stream, Tyndale
• Bredesen, D.(2017) The End of Alzheimers, New York, Vermillon
• Finlayson, J.(2020) You Are What Your Grandparents Ate, Toronto, Robert Rose
• Frates, B. (2019)The Lifestyle Medicine Handbook, Monterey, Healthy Learning
• Huberman,A. (2021) Podcast: Huberman Lab
• Lugavere, M. (2018) Genius Food- Become Smarter, Happier, and More Productive,New York, Harper Wave
• Lustig, R. (2014) Fat Chance- The Hidden Truth About Sugar, Obesity and Disease, New York, Forth Estate
• Nestle, M. (2017) What to Eat, New York, North Point
• Naidoo, U.(2020) This is Your Brain on Food, New York, Little Brown Spark
• Prince, J. (2013) Almost depressed, Minesota, Hazelden
• Pursell, J.J. (2016) The herbal apothecary, new York, Timber
• Spector, T. (2020) Spoon-Fed- Why almost everything we’ve been told about food is wrong, new York, Jonathan Cape
• Warner, A. (2019) The Truth About Fat, New York, One World
• Willett, W. (2017)Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy: – The Harvard Medical School Guide to Healthy Eating, New York, Free Press
• How nutrition affects productivity
• Mental health and Food
• 470g of Fruits and Vegetables