<div><div><em><strong>Rachna Chhachhi </strong>offers tips for<strong> </strong>staying sharp, focused and youthful (in your brain) while multi-tasking your work, family and social life</em></div><div> </div><div>Some of you who are regular readers have been emailing us and we have received an overwhelming response to the columns. Except for one hate mail, which my therapist hat diagnosed as a lack of calmness and balance in the brain (the gentleman actually wrote to the PM and President complaining against me!), the rest of you have asked questions, been concerned about your health and complimented us for helping with your health issues. Please keep the communication flow going.</div><div> </div><div>So what causes an imbalance in the brain? And how can we stay calm and balanced? Are some people just born with it? Or can you acquire it?</div><div> </div><div>The answer is yes to both. A few issues ago, I had shared tips on keeping the brain calm and nourished through B-vitamins, good fats, pranayams and coffee for that memory boost. However, as we age, the number of neurons decline, leading to fuzziness, memory lapses and finally dementia or Alzheimer’s. So what causes this fuzziness and how can we avoid it? I’m listing down, for the first time, some don’ts so that you can stay sharp, focused and youthful (in your brain) while multi-tasking your work, family and social life. </div><div> </div><div><strong>Nicotine & alcohol mix:</strong> There are many ‘social’ smokers who smoke only on weekends when they have a drink. Alcohol and nicotine (combined with caffeine) are common ‘psychotropic’ drugs that ‘normal’ people consume. The mix results in depression, erratic behaviour and memory loss. Remember the time when you didn’t remember a thing about last night’s party? Well, that’s what the mix does. And neurons, once dead, cannot be regenerated, so stay away from this mix. Alcohol on its own, more than two small drinks at a time, can also cause depression. </div><div> </div><div><strong>Stress & lack of sleep mix: </strong>If you’re stressed, you lie awake thinking. Continuous stress along with lack of sleep raises the risk of high blood pressure and Type 2 diabetes as well as stroke. If you’re stressed, go for a long walk. It will clear your brain, calm it, tire you physically and help you sleep better. A simple solution to avoid so many deadly diseases, right?</div><div> </div><div><strong>The low-fat, no-sugar mix: </strong>So you’re trying to lose weight. No fat, no sugar. But artificial sweeteners like aspartame make their way into your cola, coffee and your brain. This is a sure shot recipe for dementia and short-term memory loss. This is because fat keeps the brain calm, and in its absence, aspartame will harm the brain even more. Eat fat in small quantities, get off sugar, use honey and jaggery instead. You’ll be healthier and not crabby.</div><div> </div><div>Avoid the above three, and feed your brain with the nutrients it needs, and you will stay calm and focused at work, and patient with your better half too.</div><div> </div><div><strong>Question Of The Fortnight</strong></div><div>Send in your questions to askrachnachhachhi@gmail.com</div><div><div> </div><div>I have been taking nutritional supplements as per information on the Internet, but I’m now reading that there could be side-effects. Is that true?</div><div>— Vivek Narain, Pune</div></div><div> </div><div>Dear Vivek,</div><div>Just like you wouldn’t pop an allopathic pill without a doctor’s advice, popping supplements without a nutritionist’s advice is foolhardy. While all of us need certain supplements, please do consult your local nutritionist and get blood tests done to see what you need. While water soluble vitamins like B and C get flushed out, unsupervised intake of oil soluble vitamins like A, D, E can cause toxicity and lead to hair fall, gall bladder stones and increase the risk of bleeding amongst other effects. </div><div> </div><div><em>The author is a certified nutritional therapist and WHO certified in nutrition. She is the writer of Restore, a book on how to fight diseases for working professionals. Order your copy from amazon.in</em></div></div><div> </div><div>(This story was published in BW | Businessworld Issue Dated 19-10-2015)</div>
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