Is your brain working at its highest ability? For most of us, the answer is no. From high stress, inflammatory diets, social isolation, and our daily TV dose our brains could use a little extra help from time to time.

When it comes to supporting our brain health it takes more than just the right nutrition. Our minds require extra help in the form of numerous outlets. On the bright side, when there are a variety of ways to support an aspect of our health we have the ability to be a little more flexible in how we go about it. As far as our brain health goes the more we can do the better. Here are six ways to improve your brain health today.

Power of Anti-Inflammatory Diet

One of the biggest changes you can make that will improve your overall health is swapping over to an anti-inflammatory diet. An anti-inflammatory diet helps remove any excess inflammation throughout your body while inflammation is our first response to an infection prolonged exposure to inflammation can prevent our synapsis from firing and thus slow down our cognitive function. Excess inflammation can reduce circulation throughout our bodies. This means we have less oxygen and blood flow making it to our brains. Making it even more difficult for our bodies to function at their highest ability.

The next best thing you can do for your health is to reduce as much stress as possible from your life. Now, I realize that is easier said than done. But at the end of the day, stress naturally increases inflammation throughout our bodies which affects our brain’s ability to complete daily tasks. The more stress you can remove from your daily routine the better off you will be. Personally, I love to check more than one box off at a time. Luckily, each of these tips works together. That means you can check off one while also taking care of the other five tips. An anti-inflammatory diet will help naturally lower your stress levels.

Get Everything Moving

Another simple tip you can easily incorporate into your daily routine is exercise. Exercise is an easy way to improve your daily health. It can be as easy as taking a fifteen-minute walk outside each day. Again, this is something that will help lower your stress levels and improve your circulation. But the best part is that it improves your oxygen flow to the brain making it easier for your brain to function. As an added bonus it also helps increase your metabolic rate.

The next tip would be to get better quality sleep. Propper sleep can be one of the best things for your health. Too often we overlook the importance of sleep and what happens to our health when we fail to get enough. Losing just nighty minutes of sleep results in a verbal disconnect and brain fog throughout the day. But wait, there’s more, it also increases how many calories we need to consume each day. While it also increases your stress levels. 

Keep Things Flowing

Most people don’t realize how much of a role hydration plays in our health let alone how important it is for our brain health. As we age our brains start to dehydrate our ability to process thoughts becomes even more difficult. We are made of more than half water. In fact, the younger you are the higher the percentage of water content we have. Water is imperative to our overall health especially when it comes to our brainpower. Our brains require water and electrical impulses they cannot interact with each other. The end result is we are unable to process thoughts.

For the last tip, it is not something that should be taken lightly. Socialization is an absolute must for our health especially when it comes to our mental health. Our minds thrive on interactions between ourselves and others. When we fail to meet our social needs we neglect to sharpen our intellect as such we fail to keep the synapsis firing and engaged. We need to actively engage our neurons because it creates pathways for recall and thought processes. 

Spinach Artichoke Quiche

Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Serves 8

• 1 Frozen Gluten-Free Pie Crust (not thawed)
• 5 large Eggs
• 1 cup Full Fat Coconut Milk
• 1/2 cup Vegan Parmesan Cheese
• 1 cup Vegan Cheddar Cheese
• 5 ounces Frozen Spinach rinsed and drained
• 1/2 tsp Sea Salt
• 14 oz Artichoke Hearts Marinaded
• 1/2 tsp fresh cracked Black Pepper

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Whisk together the eggs and milk in a large bowl. Then slowly whisk in the cheese until well combined. Drain any access liquid from the artichokes, chop them loosely, and add to the egg mixture. Repeat this process with the spinach and mix everything well. Add in seasoning, giving one final mix before pouring batter into frozen pie crust. Bake for about 50 minutes, or until golden brown and risen in the center. It should be soft with a bit of wobble in the center. Once done, remove from the oven, let cool for 5 minutes and serve.

Chicken Asparagus Pesto Pasta

Gluten-free, Dairy-free, Serves 4

• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning
• 12 oz gluten-free pasta of choice
• 1 pound asparagus cleaned and tried
• 1/3 cup pesto
• 1/2 lemon juiced and zested
• 3 Tbsp Vegan parmesan cheese
• 2 Tbsp pine nuts toasted
• Fresh basil chopped
• Olive oil, salt, and pepper to taste

Directions:

Cook the pasta as directed on the packaging. Drain and place into a large serving bowl (make sure to drizzle with olive oil to prevent sticking). While the pasta cooks preheat the grill and season the chicken. On a baking sheet lined with foil prep the asparagus with oil and seasoning. Lightly toss and evenly coat the asparagus. Grill the chicken for 4-6 minutes on each side or until the chicken reaches 160-165 degrees F. Remove the chicken and allow it to rest for 5 minutes. In the meantime grill the asparagus for 2 minutes on each side. Chop the chicken into cubes or sliced if you prefer. Cut the asparagus into 1-2 inch pieces. Toss the chicken, asparagus, pesto, lemon, and cheese into the bowl with the pasta. Season with salt and pepper and toss everything together until evenly coated. Top with basil, nuts, and more cheese.

Lemon Lime Pie Bars

Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Serves 16

• 2 sleeves Gluten-Free Gram Crackers
• 8 Tbsp Vegan Butter
• 2 Tbsp brown coconut sugar
• 3 tsp Pure Vanilla
• 5 large egg yolks
• 1 3/4 cup condensed coconut milk
• 3 Tbsp lemon juice
• 1 Tbsp lime zest
• 2/3 cup lime juice
• 1/4 tsp Sea Salt
• 1 cup coconut cream
• 2 Tbsp honey

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9-inch pan with parchment paper. Pulse crackers and sugar into crumbs in a food processor. Add in the butter and 2 tsp vanilla. Pulse to combine and press into the pan. Bake until golden brown, about 18 minutes. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, whisk together egg yolks until smooth. Add in the condensed milk, juice, zest, honey, and salt. Whisk until combined and pour batter into the crust. Bake for an additional 15 minutes or until the top is just set. Let cool to room temperature before covering and resting in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours. Before serving combine the remaining ingredients to make coconut whipped cream to top the bars with. You can also add more zest as a garnish.

Get Started Today

Our brain’s health can help improve our overall health and as such should be a priority. Keeping your body free of toxins and free radicals is necessary to maintain a healthy life and a healthy mind. There are tons of foods you can add to your regular diet to help your body with its critical detoxifying processes. If you are looking for a safe and all-natural way to detox your body at home be sure to check out my Balancing Abundance Program. Because detoxing is so important and realistically everyone should be doing it on at least a seasonal basis I have taken the time to put together a program to help you do just that. Here’s the thing, I know working with me one-on-one can seem difficult to get into (due to limited space) and I wanted to be able to give everyone an additional solution that has no limits. You deserve to be happy, healthy, and successful at everything you do so here are some recipes to help set you up for success!

 Need A Hand?

A happy and healthy life is closer than you may think. We all have to deal with our health daily, and when we don’t feel our best, it shows. If you are tired of just making it through your day, you NEED to start investing in your health today! You are not alone on this journey. If you ever need any help, I am always here to do just that. Even if it is something as small as acting as a sounding board, do you have any questions or concerns I can help you with? Feel free to contact me directly at [email protected], or you can even book a one-on-one call with me. Be sure to subscribe to gain access to tons of free goodies and check back daily for more great recipes and information!