Nutrition For Your Nervous System

The Nervous system is extremely complex and vital for our survival and functioning of every day life. Broken down into its sub parts, the nervous system is a complex collection of nerves that transmit signals and messages between different parts of the body.

Your sense of touch, smell, taste, site and sound are all tools that are used to help send messages of information to your brain. These sensory tools are part of what sends these messages to the brain for further evaluation. Once the brain or spinal cord has decided what to do in response to the information that was collected from the sensory input, it sends out signals via motor neurons, which trigger you to move your body in response.

Take a spider that lands on your head, as an example scenario. The spider touches your skin, and this information gathered from your sense of touch travels to the brain. The brain will register this as a foreign, scary object on your head, and it will react by sending signals via motor neurons to your body parts, causing you to jump, scream and throw it away.

In order to maintain a healthy, fully functioning nervous system, there are certain foods that can be eaten;

• Green leafy vegetables — Containing Vitamin B, C, E & Magnesium. Specifically, Vitamin B aids in the circulation of neurotransmitters, the chemical messengers that get passed on throughout the brain and body.
• Fish — Omega 3 fatty acid helps with the healing and repair of nerve cells.
• Dark Chocolate — Contains flavonols which have anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties.
• Broccoli — Rich in a compound called glucosinolates which can slow the breakdown of the neurotransmitter, acetylcholine, which the central nervous system needs to perform its function properly.
• Eggs — Rich in choline. When eaten, the choline is used by the brain to make acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter important for memory and communication among nerve cells.
• Salmon — High in Omega 3 fatty acids, which help in healing and repair of nerves.
• Nuts are high in anti-oxidants and Vitamin E, which helps shield cell membranes from free radical damage.