smart!

My program for a top memory: eat smart!

Food plays a role and acts on the brain, which is itself connected to our gut. Explanations.

The long underestimated role of food is now better understood. What we eat has the incredible power to change brain organization and psychic life in a matter of hours. You should take advantage!

The brain is in fact connected to the intestine by a large highway, the vagus nerve. The bacterial flora that lines the intestine remotely modulates brain capacity. In other words, when the intestines are good, the brain is better. A so-called "Mediterranean" diet rich in vegetables, fruits, olive oil, fish and low in meat could play a major role.

• Fruits and vegetables, raw garlic ...

A recent study conducted at the University of Louisville, in the United States, shows in elderly mice a link between the consumption of raw garlic, and short and long-term memory.

Raw garlic contains many fibers including inulin which boosts the growth of biobacteria, the "good bacteria" of the intestinal flora, and allyl sulfides, an intestinal balance factor.

Other important foods are fruits and vegetables, fatty fish, vegetable oils and seeds rich in omega 3s. It is a given that a brain deprived of these substances works less well.

However, in humans, over the years, omega 3s are less well assimilated. It is therefore necessary to increase the rations.

• Not too much fat or sugar

In a remarkable documentary broadcast on Arte at the end of 2019, researchers around the world testify to the impact of "junk food" on the brain. Too many fries, quiches, ready-made meals or sodas - that is, too much fat and sugar - acts directly on memory.

The experiment carried out by Professor Margaret Morris in Sydney reveals that rats fed this way not only saw their appetites doubled but their spatial memory altered: their hippocampus was damaged. But this region is essential for the consolidation of memories.

Studies in humans confirm the effect on the hippocampus of an unbalanced diet that is too abundant after four days of "junk food"!

The explanation: the development of the same mechanisms of inflammation as with alcohol and tobacco. 50% of people addicted to alcohol have memory problems, according to a study by Inserm, and tobacco decreases reasoning and memorization skills by 20 to 50%.

At the first trouble, check that you are drinking enough water: the brain is made up of 85%!