Why do I have brain fog? We hear this question so very much.
I’m Dr. Carrie Lam and this is Dr. Michael Lam.
We’re here to talk about what brain fog is and what causes it.
What is actually a definition or what does brain fog actually feel like?
Some people just feel like they have a fog come over them.
It’s hard to do things or hard to concentrate.
Sometimes they go in and out of being able to remember certain phone numbers
or even do simple math problems.
Sometimes it’s worse after you take some supplements.
Sometimes it’s worse after you eat.
It’s just mentally not very clear.
Some of the other definitions would be mild confusion,
sometimes memory loss, but it is something that we see very, very often
and there are many, many causes that we’re going to go through.
One of them is Adrenal Fatigue.
How does Adrenal Fatigue actually cause brain fog?
Well, Adrenal Fatigue is a condition where the body is in the process of trying to slow down
in order to preserve its energy when it’s dealing with stress that is overwhelming.
Now when the body goes through a stressful situation and tries to conserve energy,
it slows down all the metabolic functions,
so the gut slows down, the brain slows down,
the heart beating slows down, the blood pressure becomes dysregulated.
If you think about the food that cause the chemicals in our body,
when the metabolism goes down,
then what happens is that the breakdown pieces becomes accumulating in the body.
I would use an analogy of a garbage disposal under your sink.
It’s supposed to turn 100%, so when you put a chicken bone underneath,
it turns and then it breaks into smaller pieces and they flush out of your system.
However, if this turning process is compromised,
maybe even 90%, it’s not dysfunctional in the sense that it’s not working.
It’s working It’s just kind of slowed down because that is the body’s way of conserving energy,
then therefore you’re going to have pieces of metabolites that’s flowing in the body.
It’s almost like you go to the kitchen
and it looks clean but it kind of stinks
and so it’s this discomfort zone that your body is in and when these metabolites go to the brain,
it causes an inflammatory reaction
because it’s supposed to go to the brain through the blood
and then it comes out through the kidneys and you pee it out from the rest of the fluids,
but it’s not because it’s stuck in the brain, and causes inflammation.
This is what we think is one of the primary etiologies
when it comes to an Adrenal Fatigue situation.
Right, and you’re talking about the metabolites.
I mean, yeast and viral infections are also very prominent causes of brain fog.
Yes, and Candida,
Epstein-Barr virus,
H. Pylori, even Lyme disease.
Some of these are contributing factors
but the important thing to understand is not that these issues or these pathogens
by themselves causes brain fog.
Brain fog is just a symptom of what we understood now is a slowdown in metabolism.
Talking about metabolism, some people, Even when they feel like they have low blood sugar
can feel this fog come over them.
They get a little shaky and jittery and they just feel like
they’re unable to concentrate very well, so that is also another cause.
Sometimes it come and go and sometimes it gets better with food
because once you stabilize the blood sugar,
then the body’s metabolism start to increase
and then instead of slowing down, you feel better.
Another cause of brain fog is if your gut is not healthy
and you have some gut toxicities or nutrient toxicity
and your gut cannot absorb nutrients very well.
Well, the gut is also what we call the second brain because that’s where
a large majority of the neurotransmitters and the precursors are actually made
And then is sent to the brain for the final assembly.
So if your gut is not going to work well, whether you have SIBO or Candida or Dysbiosis
or bloating or gut permeability issues, irritable bowel, I can go on and on.
Invariably, the neurotransmitters are going to be affected
and the metabolites is going to be also affected leading to brain fog.
Right.
A big main cause is also environmental, what you put into your body.
A lot of foods that we eat have a lot of toxins or pesticides in them.
They’re used with artificial sweeteners, they have food chemicals in them
or even plastics and petrochemicals.
So that could also overload your body.
In particular, gluten is a big problem.
Wheat is a big problem.
Corn is a big problem and of course also dairy products if the body is not able to process.
These are some of the main causes of brain fog
and we’ve kind of given you a general definition and what causes of why you might have brain fog.