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Grab some GABA – and your invitation! + Easter recipes

April 7, 2023 1 Comment

Annabel’s post a couple of weeks ago about how interrupted sleep may benefit our brains struck a chord with so many readers who experience broken nights. Sleep becomes increasingly elusive as we age, so the idea that night waking benefits cognition is extremely reassuring.

Our reproductive hormones can shoulder some of the blame for this age-related sleep disturbance. The hormone progesterone is particularly linked to sleep, and it dwindles to nothing during the menopause transition. Progesterone has a calming effect and increases production of a neurotransmitter, gamma-aminobutyric acid (know by the acronym GABA), which helps us sleep by calming neural activity. Lower levels of progesterone, and GABA, can lead to symptoms like anxiety and disturbed sleep, particularly frequent waking. Research by the University of Florida, published a couple of years ago, revealed that levels of GABA decline naturally with age for everyone, so this isn’t just an issue for post-menopausal women.

I hadn’t heard of GABA until I started researching The Power Decade, but I now understand its vital role. One recent study claimed, ‘The clinical significance of GABA cannot be underestimated’. This is why: GABA works by quietening the constant communication between our cells, lessening the ‘noise’ that keeps us alert, awake and – potentially – anxious. People who suffer depression, brain fog and insomnia may have less GABA in their brains.

Getting more GABA

GABA supplements are available – and I’ve even seen it in a ‘feelgood non-alcoholic drink’ –  but the body is able to produce it naturally. Beneficial bacteria in the gut, like Lactobacillus​ and ​Bifidobacterium​, produce GABA. Keeping these bacteria happy with fermented foods like kimchi, kefir, kombucha and tempeh is one way to work towards a plentiful supply of GABA.  Green leafy vegetables, soy beans, mushrooms, tomatoes, buckwheat, peas, brown rice and sweet potatoes also help. The brain uses another neurotransmitter, glutamate, to create GABA, so we need to ensure we’re getting enough glutamate precursors (building blocks the body uses to make it). We can find these in exactly the same places we get our protein – meat, fish, eggs, dairy and beans/pulses. Please make sure you’re getting enough protein!

Moving for GABA

Food isn’t the only way to get more GABA, aerobic exercise also ramps up production. It doesn’t matter what the intensity is, just something that’s do-able for you. And research has shown that the beneficial effects on mood and sleep from yoga result from GABA activation. One study compared the effects of yoga and walking on mood, anxiety and GABA levels in the brain. Study participants were randomly assigned an hour of yoga, or walking, three times a week. After three months, the yogis reported greater improvement in mood, and lower anxiety, than the walkers. Scans revealed that they also had more GABA in their brains. Now we love a good walk here at the Age-Well Project, so we’re surprised to find anything trumps a satisfying yomp in the feelgood stakes! What makes you feel better, yoga or walking? Or do you love both? Let us know in the comments.

CATCH UP WITH THE ONLINE LAUNCH PARTY FOR THE POWER DECADE

Annabel and I hosted an Age-Well conversation about my new book The Power Decade: How to Thrive after Menopause and shared tips on good health post-menopause. You can catch up with the recording here:

Join the online launch party here!

FAVOURITE EASTER RECIPES FROM THE BLOG

As is customary at this time of year, I’m sharing some of our favourite Easter-time recipes from the archives – chocolate, eggs and lamb, of course. Also some hearty salads to suit changeable weather, and a couple of picnic-ish recipes for the optimists.

Kimchi stir-fried rice with jammy eggs

Farro salad with eggs and smoked mackerel

Kale shakshuka

Roast vegetable frittata with walnut salsa

Vegetable and turmeric muffins

Buckwheat tabbouleh and coconut roasted vegetables

Warm chicken liver salad

Easter lamb with tahini salsa verde

Chocolate peanut squares

Chocolate chestnut orange cake

Susan

 

 

Photo by Gábor Juhász on Unsplash

 

« IS WAKING AT NIGHT GOOD FOR THE BRAIN?
KEEP COOL AND EAT FAVA BEANS »

Comments

  1. rosa jones says

    April 8, 2023 at 9:03 pm

    significance of GABA cannot be overestimated. If you say underestimated it is a double negative. Very common mistake.

    Reply

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Welcome to The Age-Well Project

Welcome to The Age-Well Project!
Here you’ll find easy changes for a longer, happier life. We’ve immersed ourselves in the science of longevity and distilled the research to make it work in our everyday lives. You can change the way you age: here’s how.

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WHY I’VE THROWN OUT ALL MY BEAUTY PRODUCTS (nearly…)

Why Alzheimer’s Is A Women’s Issue

HOW HAVING A DOG CHANGED MY LIFE

GREEN SPACE IS GOOD FOR YOUR HEALTH

SUGAR, CHOCOLATE, SADNESS AND BRAIN-BOOSTING BISCUITS

WHY ‘INFLAMM-AGEING’ COULD START IN THE GUT AND HARISSA-ROASTED VEGETABLE SALAD

POLYAMINES – THE NEW SECRET WEAPON FOR AGEING WELL & MOROCCAN SPINACH AND CHICKPEAS.

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Susan was lucky enough to spend a day at the olive Susan was lucky enough to spend a day at the olive harvest at Bidni Extra Virgin Olive Oil @bidni_evoo in Malta in late September. Fresh from the press, the oil was pretty peppery! That’s the polyphenols at work.

Polyphenol levels in olive oil also play a vital role in its brain boosting properties. They help reduce neuroinflammation and slow cognitive decline.

A study presented at a conference this summer by Harvard School of Public Health looked at the cognition of more than 90,000 people over 30 years. It found that those who consumed half a tablespoon of olive oil each day, as opposed to mayonnaise or margarine, had a 28%  lower risk of dying from dementia. Interestingly, this research found that the brain benefits of olive oil held up, regardless of the quality of the rest of the participants’ diet. So even those who didn’t adhere to other guidelines of the Mediterranean diet still got the benefits from the oil.

There’s more on the blog - link in bio

#womenover50 #over50andfit #womenover60 #postmenopause #postmenopausalwomen #postmenopausalhealth 
#brainhealth #alzheimers #reducedementiarisk #cognitivehealth  #agewell #longevity #ageingwell #agingwell #longevity #EVOO
Two new pieces of research you need to know about Two new pieces of research you need to know about if you want to age well: 

1️⃣ the kynurenine pathway. It’s complicated but high levels of it don’t bode well for ageing well. Several studies have found that older people, those who’ve had hip fractures, the frail, as well as the depressed have higher circulating levels of kynurenine.  Indeed the more kynurenine in your blood, the greater your chances of dying sooner rather than later. High levels of kynurenine also seem to be associated with low levels of melatonin and serotonin – meaning both poorer sleep and a greater risk of depression.

New research has identified a very simple way of blocking the accumulation of kynurenine (and its toxic by-products) in our blood and tissues: regular, heart-beat-raising movement.

2️⃣ Platelet Factor 4 (PF4). This compound appears to keep our brains and memories sharp. And it too is released when we move. Discovered by a team from the University of Queensland Brain Institute, PF4 is a protein secreted by the tiny blood cells that prevent blood clotting (known as platelets). This protein rejuvenates brain cells (neurons) in ageing mice, and researchers now think it may be the reason that exercise  and movement amplify the production of new neurons in the brain.

Want more info? It’s on the blog - link in bio 

#womenover50 #over50andfit #womenover60 #postmenopause #postmenopausalwomen #postmenopausalhealth 
#brainhealth #alzheimers #reducedementiarisk #cognitivehealth  #agewell #longevity #ageingwell #agingwell #longevity
In today’s Observer: Check out our top tips for In today’s Observer: Check out our top tips for caring for ourselves and our parents. Take a multi vit for 50+, persevere with technology and/or try something new every day, walk daily, stay social, consume sufficient protein, supplement with vits D and B12… 

#agewell #healthyaging
Autumn giveaway! 🍂 We’ve got a bundle of two Autumn giveaway! 🍂

We’ve got a bundle of two books to give away here on Insta - one copy of The Age-Well Project and one of 52 Ways to Walk. 

To win, simply leave a comment below letting us know your favorite landscape for autumn and winter walks. Do you like hills, mountains, flatlands, canals, rivers, coastlines, cities, cemeteries, your local park, moorland...? Just a few words to tell us where you’d most like to be walking in the next few months to help you age well. 

The competition closes at midnight BST on 18 October and a winner will be selected at random.

And in case you’re wondering why Annabel’s interested in your favourite landscape, it’s because she’s writing a new book about the places we choose to walk in and how they affect us. So she’d love to get a rough idea of the best-loved locations… all in confidence, of course.

Good luck!

#womenover50 #over50andfit #womenover60 #postmenopause #postmenopausalwomen #postmenopausalhealth 
#brainhealth #alzheimers #reducedementiarisk #cognitivehealth  #agewell #longevity #ageingwell #agingwell #giveaway #womenwhohike #womenwhowalk
Look, we know not many people have round-the-clock Look, we know not many people have round-the-clock access to a sauna. But Susan found one in a hotel she was staying at recently, there’s one in our local gym and Annabel found plenty on her summer holiday in Finland. 

A growing number of studies attest to the longevity-enhancing benefits of routine forays into a sauna. Much of the research has been instigated in Finland where sauna (pronounced to rhyme with downer) has existed forever.

So how does sauna help us age well? The extreme heat activates heat shock proteins which researchers think can maintain the healthy functioning of our cells.  As we get older, the proteins in some of our cells start to misfold and collapse. They then clump together forming plaques, including the plaques thought to cause Alzheimer’s and dementia.

Heat shock proteins – triggered by a sauna stint and possibly by hot baths – appear to prevent the misfolding and collapsing of cellular proteins, as well as clearing out those that have already misfolded. Which is to say they keep our cells in good shape. 

There’s more on the blog - link in bio 

#womenover50 #over50andfit #womenover60 #postmenopause #postmenopausalwomen #postmenopausalhealth 
#brainhealth #alzheimers #reducedementiarisk #cognitivehealth #betterbrainhealth #brainfog  #agewell #longevity #ageingwell #agingwell
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