Mind Boosters by Ray Sahelian M.D

Author:Ray Sahelian, M.D.
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin

PART V

Staying Smart After School

SIXTEEN

The Mind-Boosting Program for Ages 25 to 40

Memory capacity and thinking abilities are excellent during our twenties and thirties. Thus there would be little need to regularly supplement with mind boosters. However, there are occasions when supplements could prove to be beneficial. During this particular life stage, many individuals are attempting to establish a career. Men and women need to be alert and focused at work in order to maximize performance and reap the rewards of accomplishment and success. The appropriate use of mind boosters can help in this regard.

Natural supplements can be helpful in the therapy of mood and anxiety disorders and insomnia. Mood disorders are common in this age group, and depression can certainly interfere with optimal mental functioning. Many natural mood lifters can provide significant assistance, preventing the need for pharmaceutical antidepressants. Alice, a thirty-one-year-old legal assistant, took frequent sick days off work. “I just couldn’t make myself get up in the morning and go to work,” she lamented. “Even though my boss liked my work, he was about to fire me for being absent so often.” After only three weeks’ therapy with a combination St. John’s wort, B-complex, and CoQ10, Alice’s mood brightened and she has rarely missed work since.

Certain supplements can also be helpful in easing the stress and anxiety associated with work and family. Michael, a respiratory therapist at a university hospital, found the occasional use of kava to be significantly helpful in relieving his stress. “I used to have a lot of arguments with the nurses,” he recounts. “Since I’ve started kava, the nurses have commented that I’m much more cheerful and easy to get along with.”

A third common problem that interferes with cognition and work performance is insomnia. Sleep difficulties can occur due to stress, lack of physical activity, or anxiety. Many have benefited from the proper use of melatonin, 5-HTP, or certain sleep-inducing herbs such as ashwagandha and hops.

This chapter will provide practical suggestions that address the above issues and will recommend routine supplements for optimal mental functioning.

ROUTINE SUPPLEMENTS FOR THE 25-TO-40 AGE GROUP

Walk into a health-food store or any pharmacy or retail outlet that sells supplements, and you will find shelves and shelves of vitamins, herbs, nutrients, and hormones. Most of these supplements have an effect on the mind. If you’re planning to enhance your mental performance, how do you decide which of these supplements are appropriate for you, what dosages you should take, and in what combinations?

There are several factors you need to consider before starting a mind-boosting program. These factors include your age, sex, occupation, lifestyle, diet, medical status, and the potential interaction of these supplements with medicines you may currently be taking.

Please review the top ten mind-boosting principles I discussed in Chapter 2 before you start taking any supplements. I also suggest you follow as many as possible of the dietary and lifestyle recommendations for a healthy mind outlined in Chapter 5. Although it can sometimes be challenging, try to make these recommendations a normal daily habit for the rest of your life.

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