Oct 12, 2020
Most people tend to focus on how diet and exercise can help with weight loss. However, more research supports diet and physical activity can have a significant positive effect on brain function and brain health. Nicola Gates shares what years of research have taught her about our brains, her favorite brain foods, and what we can do now to have a healthier mind, body, and brain!
In this episode, Cathy and Nicola discuss:
- Why Nicola decided to research how lifestyle factors impact brain health
- How what we eat is related to brain function and brain health
- Nicola’s favorite brain foods
- How diet impacts intelligence
- Why Nicola focuses on how physical activity impacts the brain vs. exercise
- The power of letting go of comparison
- How mental wellbeing and brain health are related
Memorable Quotes:
- “Rather than asking ‘Why?’, the question to really investigate is ‘What do we do now?’—so it’s that resilient tilting toward the future and what can be done rather than looking at what has already happened.”
- “What we eat in mid-life affects our late-life health and that’s because the brain has very high dietary demands.”
- “For your brain, it’s about what you do eat as much as what you don’t eat.”
- “What’s good for your brain is good for your health and your body.”
- “If we always start from a position of kindness, towards self and others, then we can all go forward positively.”
Dr Nicola Gates, neuropsychologist, presenter and author, wrote the best-sellers A Brain for Life and The Feel Good Guide to Menopause, published by HarperCollins. She has promoted adult health and wellbeing for over twenty-five years and has internationally recognized neuroscientific research.
Mentioned In This Episode:
Links to resources: