Here's another number you shouldn’t forget: 71 percent. That’s the percentage of people who are concerned about memory loss, according to the National Marketing Institute’s health and wellness trends database. (Remarkably, that’s the same percentage of people who are concerned about cancer.)

Baby Boomers—76 million of them—are fueling the demand for better memory. Fortunately, the field of natural medicine offers their best hope for enjoying sharp active minds throughout their lives.

Around age 40 or 45, you start to realize that you have to take care of your brain. You must do everything possible to keep your mind healthy because it is your consciousness. Fortunately, numerous studies have shown that omega- 3s play an important role in the health of the brain. Omega-3s, particularly docosahexaenoic acid (also called DHA), have the ability to enhance the cell membranes in the brain. DHA is the most abundant fat in the brain, and a loss in DHA concentrations in brain cell membranes is directly related to a loss in structural and functional integrity of the tissue.

But there’s more: new epidemiological studies associate omega-3 consumption with improved emotional well-being and lower rates of depression. So just for your mere happiness, take them. They make happiness possible.

THE GOOD NEWS ON OMEGA-3s AND BRAIN FUNCTION

Several epidemiological studies have shown that a high dietary intake of linoleic acid and a low intake of fish oils (eicosapentaenoic acid [EPA] and docosahexaenoic acid [DHA]) are associated with cognitive impairment and an increased risk of dementia. French researchers now report that the fatty acid composition in erythrocytes (red blood cells) is an indicator of the risk of cognitive function decline (ability to learn, think and remember).

According to these researchers in their 2003 study in theAmerican Journal of Clinical Nutrition, the omega-3 fatty acids EPA and especially DHA help keep the membranes of brain cells more fluid while saturated and omega-6 fatty acids tend to “harden” them.

Omega-3s tamp down inflammation and help your circulation system to perform as nature intended: they maintain healthy blood flow, including clotting and sticking to the inner layers of your arteries and vessels. All of this should add up to a big boost in long-term cognitive and neurological health.

So definitely take your omega-3s.

Meanwhile, antioxidants also play a role in brain health. Antioxidants combat oxidative stress by eliminating free radicals. The brain is highly susceptible to oxidative stress due to its high metabolic activity as well as the significant presence of fat in the brain, which is the target of an oxidative process known as lipid peroxidation. Additionally, the oxidative damage that accompanies stress or aging can result in the loss of DHA concentrations, resulting in cognitive impairment.

Garden of Life’s Jordan Rubin developed one of the most amazing high-potency fish oils today called OmegaXanthin, combining three of Mother Sea’s most important sources of nutrients—pure omega-3s with astaxanthin and fuocoxanthin. OmegaXanthin is a synergistic complex of three health-promoting compounds from the ocean.

OmegaXanthin provides all the benefits of a high-potency omega-3 supplement plus two ocean-based antioxidants astaxanthin and fucoxanthin. The combination of highly purified and high-potency omega-3 fatty acids plus the added benefits of astaxanthin especially make this a truly better brain formula. Astaxanthin is one of the few antioxidants that crosses the blood-brain barrier. The astaxanthin found in Oceans 3™ Better Brain from Garden of Life is 500 times more powerful than vitamin E and 800 times more powerful than CoQ10, potent antioxidants in their own right. Fucoxanthin is a dynamic antioxidant carotenoid from brown seaweed noted for its ability to fight free radicals that can cause damage at the cellular level, exerting its protective effects directly in fat cells.

BETTER BRAIN BEST

With just those three ingredients alone, Oceans 3 Better Brain would make a good brain health formula. However, Garden of Life founder Jordan Rubin has never wanted his products to be just “good.” When he began to formulate Oceans 3 Better Brain, he wanted to make it the most innovative brain health formula available. For inspiration, he married the sea and the land and looked toward traditional medicines used for thousands of years to combat the cognitive aging process.

A TRULY BETTER BRAIN FORMULA

For the Better Brain formula, Rubin chose a trio of ingredients to support neurological and brain function. In keeping with the Garden of Life product formulation philosophy, all three have been clinically studied. They also have a long history of use in traditional medicines of India and Eastern Europe.

Vinpocetine

The first ingredient, vinpocetine, is an extract from the ground-hugging delicately purpleand- yel low- f lowered periwinkle. It has long been used to enhance cognitive ability and neurological function.

Of particular interest, where vinpocetine is concerned, is its ability to “get where it’s going.” Several studies have shown that this unique ingredient has the ability to cross the blood-brain barrier (like astaxanthin). Within minutes of ingestion, it enters the brain, where it is free to exert its positive effect on brain health.

Furthermore, vinpocetine increases overall blood flow to the brain. The brain requires more oxygen than any other organ in the body, so it follows that increasing blood flow to the brain has a positive effect on brain health.

By 1976, vinpocetine was being introduced into clinical practice throughout Europe for the treatment of cerebrovascular disorders and related symptoms. Today, based on more than 100 clinical trials involving some 30,000 patients, we know vinpocetine is a powerful natural health promoter. This is just one of those nutraceuticals that you know is working right away.

Bacopa, the Brahmi Herb

The second ingredient is the herbal extract Bacopa monnieri, which has a long history of use in Ayurvedic medicine in India for its ability to enhance memory. In traditional Ayurveda, bacopa is known as brahmi, meaning it belongs to a category of herbs that aid both mind and spirit and improve the intellect and consciousness. A perennial creeping herb found in wetlands and muddy shores, bacopa has excellent clinical support and was recently featured in Prevention magazine.

While it has been used for thousands of years, in the last decade, the positive effects of bacopa have been confirmed through clinical study. Research shows that use of bacopa helps especially with the retention of new information.

In the August 2002 issue of Neuropsychopharmacology, researchers examined bacopa’s effects on memory. Seventy-six adults between the ages of 40 and 65 took part in a double-blind randomized, placebo-control study in which various memory functions were tested and levels of anxiety measured. “The results show a significant effect of the brahmi on a test for the retention of new information,” noted the researchers. “Followup tests showed…that brahmi decreases the rate of forgetting of newly acquired information.”

In a second study, published in the August 2001 issue of Psychopharmacology, researchers at the Neuropsychology Laboratory, School of Biophysical Science and Electrical Engineering, Victoria, Australia, examined the effects of an extract of bacopa on cognitive function in healthy human subjects in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Bacopa significantly improved speed of visual-information processing, learning rate and memory consolidation with maximal effects evident after 12 weeks. “These findings suggest that Bacopa monnieri may improve higher-order cognitive processes that are critically dependent on the input of information from our environment such as learning and memory,” the researchers said.

Phosphatidylserine

The final ingredient is phosphatidylserine (PS), a phospholipid normally found in high concentrations in the cell membranes of neurons. Over the past few decades, it has been subject to numerous studies that confirm its positive effect on both cognitive function and mood.

PS promotes membrane fluidity, which is crucial for cellular responsiveness and for processing of nutrients and information by the cells. Of all brain and body cells, membranes are the main working surfaces. Membranes are the fatty barriers that surround every cell and many structures within cells. With age, the membranes tend to get stiffer and more resistant to the normal movement of molecules. Less movement of molecules means decreased function in brain cells. PS “unstiffens” membranes, allowing for more normal function.

Given orally, PS readily and rapidly crosses the protective blood-brain barrier to reach the brain. It has been shown to offer healthy support to mild Alzheimer’s sufferers (though it is not an Alzheimer's drug) and to also aid people suffering from age-related memory decline, particularly improved learning and remembering, matching of faces with names, maintaining concentration, remembering phone numbers, and recalling locations of misplaced objects. European researchers have reported that PS induces “consistent improvement of depressive symptoms, memory and behavior” in older patients with depression.

PS is another example of the synergy of the Oceans 3 brand. Studies have also shown that the benefits of PS are enhanced when consumed with omega-3 fatty acids. In fact, two of the best dietary sources of PS, Atlantic mackerel and Atlantic herring, are also good sources of omega- 3 fatty acids.

OCEANS OF VALUE

If you were to take a stroll down the supplement aisle of your local health food store, you would find fish oils, astaxanthin and fucoxanthin sold separately, and for good reason. All three ingredients have unique selling points that justify a standalone product.

But with Oceans 3 Better Brain, you get an omega-3 fish oil of the highest quality and purity from eco-harvested fishers with the added benefits of extraordinary antioxidants. The truly incredible part? This is done without sacrificing the level of omega-3 fats in the product.

A comparison to the number-one selling fish oil in health food stores shows Oceans 3 Better Brain has 675 mg of EPA and 450 mg of DHA versus 650 mg of EPA and 450 mg of DHA in the leading brand.

The price is comparable as well. For about ten cents a day more, you can also get the amplified benefits of a synergistic combination of highly purified omega-3 fish oil, astaxanthin and fucoxanthin.

Additionally, stand-alone astaxanthin products containing 4 mg of astaxanthin per serving, the same amount you receive in the Oceans 3 Better Brain formula, retail for anywhere between $19.99 to $24.99. When you add in the fucoxanthin, you are getting an omega-3 fish oil product with more value than any other product, period.

This represents a sea change in omega-3 supplements where consumers get more value and quality and a deeper approach to what it means to supplement for health.

So if you’re looking for those car keys or trying to remember what you just read in this article, there’s one thing you must not forget: go to your health food store and purchase the Oceans 3 Better Brain formula today. Tie a string around your finger just to be sure!

Resources

Oceans 3 Better Brain and all of Garden of Life’s nutritional treasures can be found at health food stores and wherever the very best nutritional supplements are sold. Be sure to visit www.gardenoflife.com for more information. To find a retailer in your area, call toll-free 866-465-0051.

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