Brain Fog 101
Do you sometimes feel as though your brain is working in slow motion? No matter how hard you try to focus you just can't push through the fog in your mind? You're sitting behind your desk, but... something just doesn't feel right. Your problem might be brain fog.
It's a clinical symptom that is generally characterized by a lack of focus, memory loss, and trouble trying to learn how to carry out new tasks. It's common for you to be left feeling discouraged. The major issue of brain fog is that it's such a common symptom it can make it difficult to determine the root cause.
What Is Causing Your Brain Fog?
There are many different causes of brain fog, but the following are the most common ones.
• A Lack Of Sleep
Failure to get enough sleep comes with a whole host of issues, and it should come as no surprise that brain fog is one of them. If you are often experiencing brain fog you may need to look at your sleeping patterns. The minimum hours of sleep the average adult needs each night is seven, so if you're getting anything less than that it's time to stop fooling yourself that you can totally survive on four hours a night – your body and brain disagree.
• Diet
You might not literally be what you eat, but your diet does play an important role in your health. If sleep isn't the root cause of your brain fog, it might be down to your diet. So, start keeping a food diary and make notes about how you feel at various stages of the day to see if what you're eating is fighting against you. Consuming a lot of sugar increases your blood sugar levels and ends with a crash. This just creates havoc for your brain – when it dips low you experience irritability, mood swings, tiredness, and... brain fog.
Make sure you eat plenty of healthy fats, like nuts, avocados, fish, and olive oil.
• Allergens
We often assume that if a food doesn't send us into anaphylactic shock then our allergy (or intolerance) can't be that bad. However, not only can a food allergy increase inflammation in your body (thus leaving you in pain), it can also put you in a brain fog. If you know you have certain allergies it is imperative that you avoid those foods, no matter how convinced you are you're fine. You can visit your doctor for allergy testing.
• Dehydration
Your body (and your brain) need plenty of water to thrive and even though you may think you're getting plenty of it, you're probably not. The optimum amount of water to be drinking on a daily basis is half your weight in ounces. You should space it out throughout the day and properly hydrate for the sake of your health. They say if you're properly hydrated you should need to urinate every hour.
• Vitamin Deficiencies
Even in the developed world, the most common vitamin deficiency is the B complex, B12 in particular. So, take a look at your diet and supplements and ask yourself what you're not
getting enough of. It may be the vitamin B family, but it could also be vitamin D. Don't forget to get plenty of Omega-3 fatty acids, too.
• Stress
Finally, stress. If you find your brain fog to be a constant state, stress problem may be the problem. Learning how to manage stress is an important step in protecting your overall health and wellness. Chronic stress can open the door to anxiety and depression, affect your sleep patterns, and of course – lead to memory loss. The more stressed you are the more cortisol your body produces, which leads to the damaging of brain cells.
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