Happy May everyone! Cognitive performance has been on my mind recently as it is substantial to my day-to-day. The products I am talking about this month have to do with stress and the endocannabinoid system, adaptogens and nootropics, and finally electrolytes. These categories and the products within them support my Dasein and enhance my effectiveness as a healthcare sherpa.
1. Queen Hemp Cannabis Company
The advent of using cannabis derived bioactive molecules for various healthcare related concerns has brought on a new age of plant-based medicine. As the legislation and political environment soften towards the Devil’s Lettuce, numerous tools have become mainstream and made a substantial impact in areas of pain management, mood disorders, and sleep optimization.
In my practice and in my own Dasein, the use of cannabidiol (CBD), full spectrum cannabis extracts with various bioactive terpenes, THC extracts like delta 8 and delta 9, and even just hemp extracts without THC have produced profound changes. The company I trust to provide these products is the Queen Hemp Company, where every batch is tested for purity and potency and formulated to be Farm Bill compliant. They even have cool formulations with nootropics and adaptogenic mushrooms to augment particular systems like cognition and immunity.
Note that I do not have an affiliation with this company – these recommendations are based solely on their clinical utility.
Nootropics, a word derived from the Greek root noos, and trope that collectively means ‘mind turning’, have been used for many years as a means of improving neurophysiologic capacities like working memory, attention, and motivation. Many of the tools that I recommend in this space are modulators of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, which is responsible for coordinating stress responses and alertness to match the demands made upon the mind to do work. Optimizing context dependent arousal is really what it all boils down to. When that’s taken care of, you’re prepared to maximize your environmental sensitivity to threats and opportunities. Some of my favorites are Shoden ashwagandha, rosavin-heavy rhodiola rosea (more on the relaxing side as opposed to salidroside-heavy), and shilajit.
Other nootropics that I recommend from this manufacturer are the fruiting body extracts of Lion’s Mane mushroom, alpha GPC, and the racetam family of AMPA receptor agonists.
Last but not least for my Dasein this month is electrolyte optimization. This isn’t actually new for me but on the topic of cognitive performance, I can’t leave them out here. Everyone is familiar with the importance of electrolytes for hydration and sports performance, but it’s actually an under-appreciated cornerstone of cognitive and general neurophysiologic health. While the mainstream conventional advice is to restrict sodium out of fear of cardiovascular complications, the data is actually clear that there is a sweet spot to be had in terms of balancing salt intake. It’s a bit of a Goldilocks scenario where too little can be just as bad as too much, but being in the middle is perfect. The golden range for the average individual seems to be between 4-6g of sodium per day, which sounds like a lot but it needs some context. Firstly, intake of fluids needs to be set in tandem with electrolytes to the degree that they are lost in sweat and other biological activities. Plasma sodium concentrations are optimal at around 140mOsm/L, which supports neuronal activity, muscular contractions, intracellular hydration, blood pressure and optimal kidney-brain cross communication.
In my practice I see so many individuals drinking far too much water and not replacing electrolytes, which is a recipe for poor cognition, concentration, and focus. Without diving too deep into the osmotic implications, suffice it to say that if you add ½ a teaspoon of sea salt or one of these LMNT packets with each 16-20oz fluid intake, you will likely notice a large difference in your mental performance.
No posts
Comments
Nothing yet. Say the first thing.
Sign in to join the conversation.