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BRAIN HEALTH #5: ACTIVATE YOUR BRAIN- Whenever you think, imagine, read, speak, sing, listen to words or music, or exercise, you are activating your brain cells called neurons. There are 100 billion neurons in your brain and they are connected to each other by 100 trillion connections called synapses. The neuron cell bodies send out thin thread-like projections in all directions called axons. The axons have a core of cellular materials from the neurons surrounded by insulation from a sheath made of specialized brain fatty tissue called myelin. The myelin acts like the insulation on an electrical wire and allows the axon to carry its message a long way to the synapse which faces the neuron that is to receive the signal. As shown in the slide, the nerve sending the signal has packets of neurotransmitters like dopamine and serotonin which get released and travel across the synapse to the receiving neuron which then sends the signal further. We cannot visualize individual neurons but we can see patterns of activity using a PET scan that lights up when glucose is used by groups of brain cells . PET stands for Positron Emission Tomography. Positron is a type of radiation emitted by a glucose molecule with a positron-emitting nitrogen atom attached to it. In the scans you see different areas of the brain activated when you hear a word, read a word, think about a word, or speak a word. With many brain activities more than one area is activated. As you use your brain, you form new connections between brain cells. Since the total number of brain cells goes down beginning in your 20’s and 30’s, it is important to nourish your brain through Balanced Nutrition including protein which contains amino acids used to make the neurotransmitters and to follow a Healthy Active Lifestyle which improves blood flow to the brain to carry oxygen and glucose needed by the brain which accounts for about 20% of the calories you burn each day. So when it comes to the brain just as with your muscles – Use it or lose it!! #drdavidheber #brain #nutrition #exercise #thinking #memory #mood #attention to learn more go to www.drdavidheber.com and www.herbalifenutritioninstitute.comp

A post shared by Dr. David Heber (@drdavidheber) on Mar 16, 2018 at 3:48am PDT