Newpharmablog. Health News

The exact biochemical pathways that mediate the effect of food on brain cells are still a subject of controversy among scientists. However, scientists generally agree on the following:

1. Allergies can target the brain cells as readily as they can target the skin, nose, joint and bronchial cells of the body.

The histamine released into a brain cell during an allergic reaction can significantly disrupt the function of that cell. Some authorities maintain the swelling (localised fluid retention) that accompanies allergic reactions puts undue physical pressure on the cell, slowing down its release of waste products while at the same time reducing the flow of oxygen, water and nutrients into it. Others maintain that the histamine revs up the metabolism of the cell to the point where it fatigues very quickly and that symptoms of brain allergy are symptoms of brain fatigue.

All seem to agree that the brain cells are the most sophisticated of all the body’s cells. They are not unlike the engine of a high performance motor car, very delicate and finely tuned. The more complicated and sophisticated a motor car engine, the more likely it is to break down. In other words, the more parts there are to it, the more there is to go wrong with it—high performance motor cars are more temperamental. If moisture gets into them on a rainy day and they stall at the lights it usually takes a mechanic in a workshop to get them fully operational again. A spray of WD40 will often get a standard car going but not the sophisticated one. In like manner, allergies tend to upset the delicate and finely tuned brain cells more profoundly than they do the less sophisticated body cells.

Because allergies can target different parts of the brain in different people we can get a variance in symptoms. Some people become emotionally disturbed yet remain fully functional intellectually. Some remain emotionally balanced and content yet intellectually impaired. Some become both emotionally and intellectually affected.

2. Vitamin and mineral supplementation improves and increases the body’s ability to make neurotransmitters. Neurotransmitters are the chemicals that form a bridge between individual brain cells. Over this bridge pass the nerve impulses that are the communication medium of the brain cells. It is the travelling around from brain cell to brain cell of these nerve impulses that allows a group of brain cells to co-ordinate their functions to produce thoughts, feelings, memories, decisions, etc. These neurotransmitters are made from proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals and nucleic acids. One neurotransmitter called acetylcholine is made almost entirely from the B vitamin called choline. Nucleic acids are found abundantly in fish which gives some credence to the old wives’ tale that fish is brain food.

On this point it’s interesting to note that in 1929 a survey was done to ascertain why there were a disproportionately high number of Scottish graduates from English universities. The survey concluded that the only major difference between the Scots and English was that the Scots ate more fish and more porridge. This is not as far fetched as it may seem. The cold water fish of Scotland are rich in marine oils that keep cholesterol down as well as the nucleic acids and vitamins and minerals needed to build neurotransmitters. The oats the Scots used for porridge in 1929 were unprocessed. Being rich in oat bran, porridge helped keep the cholesterol down and the blood vessel walls clean, allowing good passage of oxygen and nutrients into the brain cells. Oats are among the most nutritious of all the herbs, being rich in a broad spectrum of vitamins and minerals. Oats are herbal calmatives (not to be confused with the full blown, sedative effect of other herbs) and help produce a state of mind that is conducive to study and learning. European and Nordic cultures have for thousands of years used oat straw tea and various tinctures of oat as nerve tonics and anti-depressants.

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Tags: Allergies . This entry was posted on Monday, April 6th, 2009 at 11:19 pm and is filed under Allergies. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.