It’s official: I’m obsessed with the brain.

I spent the first 15 years of my career learning as much as I could about how the brain and body communicate with each other. So many health problems begin with a breakdown in the communication from the body to the brain.

Then I became fascinated by the gut. Especially in how the gut communicates with the brain.

Many of the neurotransmitters that make the brain function correctly are made in the gut. If your gut has damage, these neurotransmitters will not be properly made. The end result? Cloudy thinking, depression, anxiety, and insomnia.

Now I am fascinated by the brain.

In this toxic world we are living in, the brain is taking a beating. Toxins love to settle into two areas of our bodies: nervous tissue and fat. The brain is made up of both.

How do you know if you have toxins building up in your brain?

Here are the classic signs:

• Insomnia
• Anxiety
• Depression for no real reason
• Paranoia
• Trouble retrieving words
• Short term memory loss
• Hormonal imbalances such as hot flashes, trouble losing weight, and mood swings.
• Brain fog

What can you do to detox your brain? Here are my top suggestions:

1. Load up on good fat

The brain is made up of 60% fat. The worst thing you can do to your brain is eat a low fat diet. Your brain needs fat to function well.

2. Fertilize your microbiome

Think of the microbiome of your gut like a garden. It’s not enough to simply plant new healthy plants, you need to add fertilizer to the soil.

That’s what a probiotic will do. Unfortunately, it’s not as simple as just taking one probiotic. You need to commit to eating probiotic rich foods as well. Unpasteurized sauerkraut and kefir are my two favorite probiotic foods.

3. Fix your leaky gut

A leaky gut will allow toxins your liver is trying to eliminate to be reabsorbed back into the body and settle in your brain. Leaky gut equals leaky brain.

GMO and non-organic foods are the biggest contributors to a leaky gut. If you follow me on Facebook, you most likely have seen the FB Live I did about this topic. If not, I have included it below.

There are many ways to fix a leaky gut, but the most important first step is to stop eating GMO and non-organic foods. Commit to eating organic, non-GMO foods whenever possible.

4. Know your toxic load

It is crazy important to know if toxins are building up in your brain. There are two really easy tests you can do to get a general assessment.

The first test is called a meta-oxy test. It’s a urine test that gives us an indication as to whether or not you have a leaky gut.

Second test is a visual contrast test. This test tells us if toxins have settled into the brain and optic nerve.

These tests are so helpful that I run them on all my patients. They help me advise the patient where they should put their focus: gut repair, brain detox, or both.

If you have not had these tests and need help with any of the symptoms above, reach out.

If you are a current patient of mine and are experiencing any of the symptoms I mentioned above, please let me know. I want to make sure we are giving you the right tools to get your brain back on track.

Hope that helps!

Have an awesome day.