Diet and Brain Function: Eating Your Way to Higher Function

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This sounds much worse than my allergies, but I'm increasingly sensitive to chemicals and industrialized food products. What happens to me is that I gain weight really quickly (inflammation/water retention), get rashes, get yeast infections, and my AS symptoms get much, much worse. What I eat has more impact on my level of functioning from week to week than any other environmental condition -- at I didn't realize this fact for most of my life, because it takes a few days for the effect to appear and it's very gradual.



Sounds a lot like me. I've never been fond of candy and sweets, and my family never ate dessert, etc. In the past few years I've gone more and more to eating organic, fresh foods because the taste & texture is so much better and I was eating a lot of raw foods instead of cooking. What's happened is that I've noticed in the past few years that when I fall off my diet of organic, fresh vegetables and fruits and other unprocessed, natural food, that I get really sick, gain weight and I get lower-functioning and my intellectual function drops. So I gradually build up in a good diet habit whenever my lifestyle was stable, but whenever I moved or started working or something that disrupted my schedule, my diet shifted back to convenience and processed foods, and I got "sick" (went downhill dramatically).

This food effect has become really obvious to me in the past year since we started visiting the in-laws in Cape Cod a lot. They are totally refined-starch, sugar crazy, vegetable-hating typical American diet eaters, and I spent weeks after each visit sick. Now it's obvious to me that I've had this all my life, just never realized that much of my fluctuations in functioning were related to something as simple as diet and allergens.



I'm just now learning these things. Along with biochemistry and physiology, I've been reading natural healing and Ayurvedic medicine and Traditional Chinese Medicine. I'm totally amazed at how powerful foods are in impacting our health.

That taste balance thing of Ayurvedic diet makes a lot of sense. The different tastes (sweet, sour, bitter, pungent, astringent, salty) map onto different families of molecules that the taste buds are designed to sense. I mean, you know that when you want something citrusy and tangy that you're craving vitamin C, right? At first, the Ayurvedic system seemed arbitrary and bizarre to me, then it started to make a lot of sense, when you look at biochemistry and see that families of organic compounds in our bodies have definite organic and aromatic properties. Like the organic acids that have net alkalizing effect in our blood, that correct some metabolism problems.



That sounds really tough. I've told my in-laws that I'm not going to eat any more of their food, ever. I still don't know how well that will go over, or if I'll be ostracized or punished. I can't imagine having to deal with so much environmental contaminant stress, beyond processed foods.

One thing that helps me is that I eat a lot of anti-inflammatory foods and chelating agents. These help reduce allergic response that is excessive, since a lot of that has to do with inflammation. Also, the chelation agents, which I eat/take every day, tend to bind with chemical compounds and metals and help the liver filter them out of blood. The anti-inflammatories are turmeric, pineapple and a lot of vegetables and spices. The chelation foods/supplements are cilantro, lemon, Alpha Lipoic Acid (ALA), glutathione (have to take sublinqually b/c it will get denatured if you swallow it), and N-Acetyle-Cysteine (NAC).

I wonder whether the reason why so many people don't realise or understand how diet affects their physical and mental health, aren't even interested, is because the body is a very complex system, like a computer, but a thousand times more so, and until it crashes people bumble along with a small range of activities and responses to problems.

I don't understand computers, and feel helpless incomprehension in the face of anything but the most obvious, and simple, problems. And I know, as a result of twice paying for a "computer-doctor" to sort something out, that not only do I not use the computer for even a tenth of the things that it could do, but that the computer itself is suffering from my ignorant use of it, functioning at half-health/half-speed, because I fail to protect it, organise it, update it, and spring-clean it, etc, etc.

I suddenly realised that if many/most people are as baffled by the complex system of the body as most people are by computers it is no wonder that so many carry on eating anything which keeps them going, fail to see a connection between their mental state or mood and what they eat, think that they are doing alright, until increasing "lag"/"glitches"/errors make it difficult to function, or the whole system collapses.

The problem is that whereas computers are recent inventions and most people recognise that they don't understand them very well, the body is ancient, and most people think they've got the hang of it, despite the fact that cutting-edge scientific research admits that science does not fully understand how the immune system, digestion, and the gut-brain connection function, ( among many other things ).

And our bodies still have far more impact on our lives than computers.

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I believe proper, natural diet is essential for everyone...and even more essential for us on the spectrum. Some food is just really bad for all and the more of that food you eat, the more likely it will cause you to get sick....either directly from creating a toxic burden or indirectly from weaking the immune system. People are different, though, and they are different in what they need from their diet. So we each need to find what makes our biological vehicle function optimally. Anything less is foolish IMO.

I shop almost exclusively at health food stores and my diet consists of organic everything--whole grains, vegetables, legumes, fruit, nuts, seeds, dairy, eggs, good quality oils and sweeteners, from time to time a small expensive piece of quality salmon, cod, or salad shrimp, lots of turmeric, dill, parsley and some garlic. I use tinctures, herbs, homeopathic remedies and Bach flower remedies. However, I'm a fairly well seasoned traveler and sometimes in a foreign country I don't have access to health food. Then I just do the best I can. It's getting hard for me to travel abroad because I used to bring most of the food I required with me...in the form of crackers, bread, fruit, nuts, seeds, and cheese...as well as my homeopathic remedies and herbs. Now it's difficult bringing any food to another country but food with an unbroken seal is sometimes accepted.

Marijuana is both good and bad for me, although if I could keep my use of it in moderation [which I can't], the good would outweigh the bad. So I just don't. But if I lived in Holland or somewhere it is legal, I would. I drink a little but it always makes me feel yukky.

For the past few years I have been more aware of how mental and physical health is tied into the food eaten and the supplements used. I grew up on a farm and am aware of what animals are fed to increase size, production of milk or quickness to market. Most of it is nauseating to say the least. I have been telling my father that I prefer to have meat from his farm as appossed to what is in the store as I have no idea how the animals have been raised or what they have been shot up with ect. My family and I are increasingly freezing garden produce for reasons due to health and cost.

For those who do the gluten, chemical, dairy free diet how hard is it to switch as an individual/family? How costly is it in straight food and supplement purchases? And any other helpful info you would like to post or pm me as I don't want to overtake the op's thread. Here is a site I often read www.naturalnews.com I find it quite informative and helpful.

I absolutely share the typical Autistic sensitivity to wheat, gluten, dairy and yeast. But avoiding them does not impact my autism/Aspergers one way or the other.

As a kid, I was manifestly allergic to everything, and had two or three close calls with anaphylactic reactions.

I outgrew all of that.

My basic tendancy is not to eat anything. In parts of my life where I was only responsible for myself, like in college, I sometimes would realize I had not eaten for days. Other times, I would choose not to eat for days.

These days I eat at least twice a day, and maintain a weight of about 170 instead of 135 (I'm 6'3"). This helps with a lot of neurological things that are worse when i am malnourished or underweight.

Interesting old thread. But it was long ago, so the research was still lacking.

While there was talk about the affect of food on mental condition, it was not yet aware of, and it didn’t talk about, what connects the two? .. The Gut Microbiome.

“I” is actually made up of “We”. There is trillions of bacteria living around us, on us, and inside us, in our intestines is a complex Microbiome, or colony of bacteria that is determined by what foods we eat, and these bacteria can affect our physical and mental condition.

Simply put, if you eat the wrong foods, you make more bad bacteria grow, which negatively affects your health..

But you eat the right foods, and more good bacteria will grow instead, which positively affects the mind & body.


Our Gut Microbiome


Microbiome affect on Brain


Probiotics and Mental Health



Eat healthy food. Feel better mood.

Broccoli Sprouts contain Sulforaphane, which shows a positive effect on Autism.


Best Foods for Autism

Well I'll give it a try.

Sulforaphane treatment of autism spectrum disorder (ASD)
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD), encompassing impaired communication and social interaction, and repetitive stereotypic behavior and language, affects 1–2% of predominantly male individuals and is an enormous medical and economic problem for which there is no documented, mechanism-based treatment. In a placebo-controlled, randomized, double-blind clinical trial, daily oral administration for 18 wk of the phytochemical sulforaphane (derived from broccoli sprouts) to 29 young men with ASD substantially (and reversibly) improved behavior compared with 15 placebo recipients. Behavior was quantified by both parents/caregivers and physicians by three widely accepted measures. Sulforaphane, which showed negligible toxicity, was selected because it upregulates genes that protect aerobic cells against oxidative stress, inflammation, and DNA-damage, all of which are prominent and possibly mechanistic characteristics of ASD.

https://www.pnas.org/content/111/43/15550.short

I wish you the best.

I think it’s better to eat the actual whole Broccoli Sprouts, than any pills form.

Also, all the Cruciferous Family of vegetables: broccoli, cabbage, kale, collards, mustard greens, brussel sprouts, etc, contain sulforaphane, though sprouts have higher amounts. I don’t take any drugs, I just eat Broccoli and The Cruciferous Family, steamed, blanched, in curries or soups, or raw in salads or smoothies. It really works for me.

Eat Food to fight 4 factors causing Autism:
1. Synaptic dysfunction
2. Oxidative stress
3. Mitochondrial dysfunction
4. Neuro-Inflammation

Fighting Autism Brain Inflammation with Food



Eat Broccoli & Cruciferous Vegetables everyday.

A connection between Fevers and Autism, and which food actually helps?

Fever Benefits for Autism in a Food


News Report On Broccoli

Any slightest deviation from the model diet, and emotionally drained and physically weak

Too much sugar, fat, chocolate, msg

Pretty much has to be perfect

Some people eat whatever they want , Energizer bunny

Bought a bag of broccoli today. Look forward to being cured by the weekend.

Yes, correct. So I wouldn’t simply call it just a “diet”, but it’s a truly complete Lifestyle change. You have to stick to this type of food, honestly, for the rest of your life.. If we live until 100, then it’s a long time. But much better than a lifetime of drugs and pills.

Self-Discipline is extremely important. Don’t fall for easy temptations to eat Inflammation-causing foods, such as meats, sweets, gluten, milk and dairy products. And keep eating broccoli and Cruciferous Vegetables everyday, to reduce the symptoms of ASD.

I wish you all the best.

But remember, this isn’t exactly a “cure” such as: You eat broccoli once now and your ASD will be gone forever tomorrow... Nope, that’s not how it works. You should give your Gut Microbiome a couple of months to adjust, so the bad bacteria will die, and new good bacteria will grow, and you keep going.. If you stop or interrupt the diet protocols, you will regress and the ASD symptoms return.

You have to be doing this continuously, for the rest of your life.. But of course I’d rather be eating lots of Cruciferous Vegetables (Sulforaphane) regularly, rather than taking lots of Pharmaceutical Drugs regularly.

And it’s not just the Broccoli & Cruciferous part, but you also should get rid of all Gluten and Casein in your foods. That basically means no more typical wheat products, and no more milk & dairy. But there’s now Gluten-free breads, and Dairy-free ice cream, Soy-milk and Almond-milk available.. Personally, I also avoid all Meats, Eggs, and Sweets (Sugars) since they cause Inflammation. Of course it may not be so easy to do. But at least now you know what to look for, and what to avoid.

*Avoid Food with Gluten (wheats) and Casein (cows milk) to Fight Autism




So to sum it up simply:

1. NO Casein (dairy)
2. NO Gluten (wheats)
3. YES Cruciferous (broccoli, cabbage, kale, brussel sprouts, collard greens, mustard greens, mizuna, komatsuna, etc)


Happy eating! Literally.

Last edited by MannyBoo on 21 Feb 2019, 8:31 pm, edited 1 time in total.