Food For Thought: Concussion Nutrition

Concussions are one of the most intensely studied topics in health right now. Papers are being published in waves in order to better understand what happens to brain tissue and to learn what will promote the greatest healing. Getting all the information from different sources and piecing together how to use this information is a great challenge. I wanted to discuss one specific area needed to help heal your brain after a concussion: diet.

Reducing inflammation in the brain is the first requirement. This will reduce pain intensity and increase the healing speed.

Protein: 1g/kg body weight
Creatine: provides energy to brain cells to improve healing
DHA: an omega-3 fatty acid that is a primary structural component of the human brain
Antioxidants: Alphalipoic acid protects both the fatty and water-soluble part of the cells.
Choline: precursor to acetylcholine, which is a neurotransmitter aiding in memory
Vitamin D
Zinc
Magnesium: decreases inflammation and elevates glutathione
Glutathione: a powerful antioxidant shown to reduce brain tissue damage by an average 67%.
These foods and supplements should begin immediately after the injury to produce the best results.

Call us at Back2Life Chiropractic in Toronto, 416-792-2599 to learn more.

1. Theodore L. Roth et al. “Transcranial amelioration of inflammation and cell death following brain injury,” Nature, December 8, 2013.

2. Hunt T, Asplund C. Concussion assessment and management. Clin Sports Med, 2009:5-17.

3. Sullivan PG, Geiger JD. Dietary supplement creatine protects against traumatic brain injury. Ann Neurol, 2000 Nov;48(5):723-9.

4. Mills JD1, Bailes JE, et al. Omega-3 fatty acid supplementation and reduction of traumatic axonal injury in a rodent head injury model. J Neurosurg, 2011 Jan;114(1):77-84.

5. Belayev L, Khoutorova L, Atkins KD, Bazan NG. Robust docosahexaenoic acid-mediated neuroprotection in a rat model of transient, focal cerebral ischemia, Stroke, 2009;40:3121-3126.

6. King VR, Huang WL, Dyall SC, et al., Omega-3 fatty acids improve recovery, whereas omega-6 fatty acids worsen outcome, after spinal cord injury in the adult rat. J Neurosci, 2006;26:4672-4680.

7. Lewis M, Ghassemi P, Hibbeln J. Therapeutic use of omega-3 fatty acids in severe head trauma. Am J Emerg Med, 2013;31:5-8.

8. Masterson SP, Li J, Bickford ME. Frequency-dependent release of substance P mediates heterosynaptic potentiation of glutamatergic synaptic responses in the rat visual thalamus. J Neurophysiol, 2010 September 104(3):1758-67.

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