Change Your Brain Every Day - How to Grow New Brain Cells TODAY ! Interview with Dr. David Perlmutter

Episode Date: January 5, 2017

There have been many studies that show us how the brain cells degenerate or slowly die in a variety of scenarios. It's probably a quest that modern medicine has long sought to resolve.  So in today's episode, we're joined by Dr. David Perlmutter in our continuing discussion about brain health, and in particular, we'll talk about our quests and questions on how we can regenerate or grow new brain cells. 

Hi, I'm Donnie Osmond, and welcome to The Brain Warrior's Way, hosted by my friends Daniel and Tana Amon. Now, in this podcast, you're going to learn that the war for your health is one between your ears. That's right. If you're ready to be sharper and have better memory, mood, energy, and focus, well then stay with us. Here are Daniel and Tana Amen.

Well, welcome back. We are here with our good friend, world-leading neurologist, teacher, New York Times bestseller, Dr. David Perlmutter. David, you know, it's just such a joy to spend time with you. We've been talking a lot about things that hurt the brain, things that we ingest. But, you know, I think probably one of the most exciting things in my life as a psychiatrist and a neuroscientist and what we learn from doing brain spec imaging is you're not stuck with the brain you have. You can make it better. And we've been able to prove it with, you know, I mean, literally thousands of before and after scans. Yes, there are things you can do today that hurt your brain, drugs, alcohol. We just published a new study on marijuana, head trauma, sleep apnea. but there are also lots of things you can do to help your brain. Talk to us your experience with neurogenesis and actually growing the brain. Well, I will. And let me just say that, as you well pointed out, early on in our days, this was not felt to happen.

We were told we were given a certain number of brain cells, and that was it. About age 18, we were on skids after that. And every time you drank a beer, you'd kill off 30,000 brain cells or some number. I can't remember what the number was now for whatever reason. But that said, what a notion that we can engage in stem cell therapy, that our bodies are involved in stem cell therapy right now. Everybody's talking about, let's have stem cell therapy for this and that. Well, it's happening in everyone's body right now, in their brain of all places, and most importantly, in the brain's memory center, the hippocampus. Wow. So what can you do to amplify that process is certainly what everyone is wanting to know

right now. And I think that that's a very important concept because we can amplify the process of neurogenesis of growing new brain cells in the brain's memory center. And this has been associated with a reduction in the risk of Alzheimer's disease. It's a lot to take in. So I think by far and away, the most important supplement that you can add to your regimen to help grow new brain cells is a supplement called aerobic exercise. Dr. Amy Moore Love that. Dr. Tim Jackson Buy a pair of sneakers. And it turns out that

this is a powerful what we call epigenetic event, meaning it changes the gene expression in a person's body to create a particular chemical called BDNF, brain derived neurotrophic factor. BDNF is what regulates the growth of new brain cells. It regulates what is called synaptic plasticity. That's a technical term, which means how one nerve cell talks to the next nerve cell, which is obviously fundamental as it relates to learning. It also regulates the ability of neurons to withstand trauma. Those individuals with higher levels of BDNF, when they are exposed to this particular type of trauma, their brains are more resilient. Now, the Journal of the American Medical Association in 2014 published a really important study that demonstrated a very strong correlation between lower levels of BDNF and higher levels of becoming demented, as you might expect. So we really need to do everything we can to amp up our growth of

new brain cells by increasing BDNF, and we can do it. We can do it starting today. And this is, in my opinion, a powerful way to reduce a person's risk for Alzheimer's. And by far and away, the most important way of bumping up BDNF, enhancing the growth of new brain cells, is aerobic exercise. But we know that other important things that we can choose to do will also amplify the body's production of BDNF. For example, the nutritional supplement, DHA, which is also found as a part of the food we eat, as in eating grass-fed beef or wild fish, is a powerful upregulator of BDNF. The spiced turmeric will do it as well. A whole coffee fruit extract does it.

And in new research, very exciting, we're seeing that even dietary fiber, by changing the gut bacteria, will also augment the growth of the increase in BDNF and therefore enhance the growth of new brain cells. So study after study is now revealing that when we increase this BDNF, increase the growth of new brain cells, it makes the brain more resistant to decline. And it also now has been demonstrated to actually improve and increase the size of the brain's MRI scan, a hippocampus, a brain, the part of the brain that deals with memory getting smaller, as you would expect. But those who engaged in 20 minutes of aerobics each day is all I'm asking. Their hippocampus actually grew

as opposed to declining in size. Their memory function improved, and their blood BDNF levels increased. What are you waiting for? That's why we're telling people you've got to get aerobic exercise every day. When people ask me what they can do so they don't end up like mom or dad, I say, step one, you got to exercise. And that's not proprietary. Nobody owns that. We're not pitching a product here. You got to get out and get some aerobics. So, hey, my dad, I've mentioned this before, he passed away, a brilliant brain surgeon, he passed away from Alzheimer's. And as rough as that was, it helped solidify me in terms of getting out there and getting this message out that

that is the path he went down. That doesn't have to be your path. The risk of Alzheimer's, if you live to be age 85, it's a flip of a coin. It's 50-50. Let's do whatever we can to change those odds. And let me just mention one more thing about this neurogenesis. We now understand that neurogenesis is a fundamental player in mood regulation as well, that when there's decreased BDNF, it correlates with depression and that we need to think about that in terms of why is exercise helpful for depression. Yeah, I was just thinking that. It regenerates the hippocampus. So we also know, and this isn't a pitch for the SSRI drugs because I'm not pitching them, but we do know that SSRI drugs are somewhat helpful, if not minimally helpful for depression. And one of the things that they do as well is they also augment the

growth of new brain cells in the brain's memory center. So the hippocampus is fundamental for memory, but also fundamental for mood. So everything I mentioned, the turmeric, the DHA, the whole coffee fruit extract, and certainly exercise, all are relevant as it relates to mood regulation as well, not just declining memory function. So I know a lot of people, we try to get them to exercise as well. And I know when I was a kid, I figured out I didn't feel right without exercise. I just never felt right. And to this day, if I don't exercise, I mean, it's like a thing with us. He's like, you need to get out and exercise because it makes me feel sad and grumpy and not right. And I mean, I didn't know about the BDNF part. I knew about all of the endorphins and, you know, the serotonin and all that stuff. I didn't realize the BDNF piece of that. So that's really important to know. I would simply Google exercise and BDNF

or exercise and neurogenesis. The other important thing about exercise that we've just learned is that it increases or is associated with increased diversity of the gut bacteria. As we've talked about before, that's really something that you want to do. So there's really no good reason not to exercise. It's the most powerful drug we have in every area. People say, well, I'm not going to be able to go out and run four miles a day. And I'm not asking that. I'm saying if you can only walk from your living room to the mailbox. Yep.

I have a treadmill desk because this is so important for me that if I have to sit at my computer for too long, I get really irritable. So I have a treadmill desk when I'm answering emails or whatever. I'm just moving at, at least moving. You know, my exercise routine is separate, but at least I'm not sitting still. So I want to push on coffee a little bit because it's the number one, after sugar, I suppose, it's the number one drug Americans use. in it, artificial sweeteners and dairy products that have things in it that you can't pronounce, is early on when I first started doing SPECT, there were a number of studies that showed caffeine constricted blood flow up to 30%. And so the process we have at Amen Clinics is the morning you're going to have your spec scan,

we don't want you to have caffeine. And so I always tell my patients, if you have a cup or two a day, it's not a problem. And there's research that shows it may help with things like diabetes and Parkinson's disease. But there's all sorts of other things you can do to help diabetes and Parkinson's disease. So I have to admit, I like coffee, and I was really happy when I heard that it had kahawal in it, and it was like, I got all these benefits.

I try not to drink too much because of the blood flow issue, but... But given that Starbucks is everywhere, and we are, as a society, sleep-deprived. So on average, we got nine hours of sleep in 1900. And now we get six hours and 43 minutes on average that people are using coffee as a way to manage their tiredness. So I have these ideas competing in my head. Talk to us about how you think about it. Well, like every decision,

you're going to weigh the pros and cons until you make that decision. And let me just say, when I had breakfast with you in California a couple of months ago, I noticed that you had herbal tea while I had my coffee. So I know where you stand on that. And again, like everything, there are upsides and downsides. And I think the blood flow issue is interesting. Those studies, I think, were both laboratory animals, and there is some human evidence that it happens in us as well. Pretty whopping dosages of caffeine, though. I mean, I know it can happen at low levels, but I think the typical 35 milligrams that you might get in an espresso, and people need to realize the espresso

actually has less caffeine than drink coffee, is probably not done to me. I mean, this is self-serving because I drink coffee. It's a big issue. I think the upsides of coffee stem first from its role in regulating a pathway in the body called the MRF2 pathway. It is on the top of the list, a head of turmeric, a head of rosemary, a head of green tea extract. I heard this too. I was happy. A powerful pathway that amplifies the production of antioxidants, that reduces the activation of something called NF-kappa-beta, which means it reduces inflammation and happens to bump up the production of glutathione peroxidase. So it reduces the formation of peroxide and helps with detoxification as well.

So we really want to do what we can to amplify the NRF2 path when coffee does that. It also contains polyphenols, which are antioxidants in and of themselves, but also are nurturing for our gut bacteria. But your point is well taken. Any colored packet that you would put in your coffee is devastating, whether it's pink, blue, or white. The new research demonstrates that these artificial sweeteners are devastating towards the gut bacteria. And people think that they're doing the right thing because they're not using sugar. And your other point about what is in, you know, typical, the creamer that you get at the restaurant, who knows what's in that. But I think, you know, like anything else, there are two sides to the issue. So I want to offer a tip here because I actually have several coffee drinks in the new cookbook for this reason.

I try to watch the caffeine intake. So we actually get a 70%, it's 70% lower acid, organic, half-calf coffee, which I brew and put some coconut oil or something like that in it to minimize those effects. But it's very tasty and I get less caffeine, but still get those benefits. Because I heard all of those statistics that you talked about.

I want those benefits. I like the idea of something comforting in the morning, but I don't want the effects of too much caffeine either. So, so I'm with you. Um, and I'll be the first to admit that I find caffeine, uh, to be a mood lifter. I, I am, especially if you have ADD, like better after my coffee, my wife and I have a cup every morning and and then we do a reading or two together with our coffee. And it's a habit, but I like it. I just think it's a great way to start the day. Right.

Well, it's absolutely a mood elevator. And yeah, I mean, it will no matter when you do it. My concern is if you do it on a regular basis, you will then need to do it. And that leads me to the last thing I want to push on a regular basis, you will then need to do it. And that leads me to the last thing I want to push on a little bit, which is alcohol. Because many people drink it thinking it's a health food. And based on my experience with SPECT, it's not a health food.

It decreases globally perfusion in the brain. And then what I didn't know until last year, it actually increases the risk of seven different kinds of cancer. So the idea that it's a health food, but like coffee, it has polyphenols in it. And there are studies that basically say moderate drinking is associated with less heart disease. But doesn't alcohol also kill gut bacteria? Well, so that's interesting because, you know, Tana's a nurse and it's like, why does the nurse put an alcohol swab on your arm before she gives you a shot? It's to kill bacteria. And so I would love your thoughts on that for our audience. I think that by and large, we get back to a description of quality

and quantity. And as I mentioned before, studies, for example, that say we shouldn't eat meat, don't take into account the difference between grass-fed, organically raised meat and what you might typically find. There's a big difference in a study of alcohol consumption based upon the fact that this person was either drinking a couple shots of Jack Daniels or had a glass of Merlot. Those are not comparable. There are too many variables here that need to be taken into consideration. So a study saying, we looked at alcohol consumption, and in that study, we included scotch, gin, vodka,

and red wine, and we came to the following conclusion. So I think by and large, hard liquor has no redeeming value. I think that there are very powerful redeeming values in red wine to a degree that could be exceeded when you go to the other side of the bell curve. In other words, a glass of wine for men, one to two, rather one to two for men and one glass for women seems, as you mentioned, to be associated with reduced risk of Alzheimer's and cardiovascular disease. That means that there might be some upsides that may be purely emotional, but may

be biochemical as well, and may relate to certain things like resveratrol and the polyphenols that are contained in that glass of wine. But again, this is a bell-shaped curve because on the left side of that curve, when you're not drinking alcohol, your risk is increased. And certainly on the right side of that curve, when you're drinking more than your two or three or four glasses now, you're in trouble because you've raised this to a level that it becomes threatening. And whether that's because the alcohol is damaging the bacteria, which we know it does, when we override our compensatory ability to deal with alcohol, because we can break it down significantly, but if it's too much and kills bacteria, then that may set us up for problems.

It's important to understand there's been alcohol in the human diet for a long, long time as a byproduct of the fermentation process that occurs even in nature, even before we actually actively fermented fruit to make beverages. So we have mechanisms to deal with alcohol. But like anything else, I think we have to be so selective in terms of what is it we are talking about here. Are we talking about red wine from a vineyard in California where they've sprayed the vineyard with glyphosate and other issues that are threatening? Or is this an organic red wine that we're going to have one glass or two glasses

a day of? So again, like the coffee, I think you can argue both sides of the equation. I don't drink enough red wine. I think I you know, you can argue both sides of the equation. I don't drink enough red wine. I think I should probably drink more. The problem, you know, because I generally do, I stay academically involved until the evening time. So I can't, you know, once I've had a glass of wine, my day is over. I would never think about going and writing papers and doing research once I've had that glass of wine because it's time to turn it all off. And probably that's actually a good thing. Right. So we tell people a couple glasses of wine a week is not going to harm you for the reasons you just said. Your body has the ability to detoxify and it's not going to be that threatening. But for people who are

drinking, like you said, more than a certain amount, that's where their risk is increased. And again, it's about balance. I mean, truthfully, I think watching the evening news now is bad for your body. I mean, you can only imagine what your cortisol level is doing when you're right now watching what's on the evening news. People are going to do it because they, on the other hand, want to be informed so that they can make decisions. So, you know, it's weighing whether you should do it or not agree so many interesting things we are so grateful for your time

i'm just delighted to chat with you guys that's wonderful i just want to make sure dr pearlmutter dr pearlmutter.com so he is the author of grain brain massive bestseller, along with Brain Maker, The Grain-Bearing Cookbook, the new book, The Grain-Brain Whole Life Plan. He has been a star on public television. And I think one of the most important things he does is he teaches physicians how to have a completely new look at optimizing and healing their patients. Thank you, my friend. So much fun. Oh, thank you guys for having me. I sure appreciate it. Thanks for listening to today's show, The Brain Warrior's Way. Why don't you head over to

brainwarriorswaypodcast.com. That's brainwarriorswaypodcast.com, where Daniel and Tana have a gift for you just for subscribing to the show. And when you post your review on iTunes, you'll be entered into a drawing where you can win a VIP visit to one of the Amen clinics. I'm Donnie Osmond, and I invite you to step up your brain game by joining us in the next episode.