Brain fog has many causes, but one of the main ones is an intense lifestyle. Recently, post-COVID patients appear prone to suffering brain fog after recovering, making it difficult for them to return to their routine.
Understanding Brain Fog
Brain fog is that fuzzy feeling in the head accompanied by headaches, reduced awareness, and difficulty in focusing. The cloudiness leads to decreased memory and cognitive function.
Addressing brain fog is vital because it can severely affect a person’s daily routine, especially performance at work. Not a medical condition, brain fog can be a result of one and causes reduced cognitive issues lead to emotional problems like reduced self-esteem, lack of motivation, forgetfulness, and mental confusion. Its physical side-effects include fatigue and the inability to store new information, plan, resolve issues, and use language correctly.
Other physical symptoms of brain fog are low energy levels, headaches, decreased metabolism, eye disorders, and gastrointestinal problems.
Causes of Brain Fog
Eating too many refined carbohydrates, vitamin deficiencies, lack of sleep, and stress and anxiety can cause brain fog. Some medical problems that lead to brain fog include an underactive thyroid, cancer treatments, medications for used chronic health issues, and hormonal changes.
Things like unhealthy diets, infections, nutrient deficiencies, and lack of sleep lead to neuroinflammation and oxidative stress. These things also lead to mitochondrial dysfunction, leading to faster aging.
The brain requires energy to function, lots of it, and sugar level fluctuations affect it adversely. Even if a person does not have diabetes, they still need to maintain a steady blood sugar level by eating healthy.
Finally, findings show that one in three people who have suffered COVID-19 have persistent symptoms after recovery. These symptoms of long covid include shortness of breath, coughing, lightheadedness, sleep problems, and headaches. Brain fog seems to be more common after the coronavirus than after suffering other viral infections.
Clearing Post- Covid Induced Brain Fog
Scientists are intensely studying this lingering post-COVID symptom to see how they can help patients.
Neuroplasticity Therapies
There are several ongoing trials to find a treatment for patients with brain fog. Treatments that work on the brain’s neuroplasticity that allow the brain to bounce back have successfully helped treat people after other viral infections.
One technique called shaping uses repeated practicing of tasks to re-transfer skills that the brain has forgotten. This technique has shown improved structural changes in patients with physical impairments like strokes and brain injuries, according to the researchers working on it, including patients with brain fog. Increasing the brain’s gray matter gives patients more movement control, says Dr. Edward Taub, one of the researchers. He also stresses that communication between white and grey matter improves, helping patients progress with memory and emotional issues.
Other Research on COVID-19 Brain Fog
Other scientists feel that the virus is less likely to invade the neurons and other cells of the brain. They think that this coronavirus changes the way the brain signals. These changes result from the inflammation that affects many of the body’s organs and immune systems. According to Dr. Anna Nordvig, a research fellow at Columbia University Vagelos College, the changes are not necessarily caused by an infection of the brain cells.
A report by UCLA Health on COVID-19 suggests brain fog is a lingering post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) caused by the virus.
Nootropics and the Brain
The supplements and compounds that boost mental function or moods are known as nootropics. They are particularly effective against brain fog, mainly associated with chronic illness. Some better-known nootropics that don’t require a prescription include omega-3 fatty acids, magnesium, St John’s Wort, and caffeine.
Nootropics work much in the same way as caffeine, but each has a different mechanism. Just like caffeine, nootropics inhibit the receptors that slow brain activity.
There are many natural nootropics to help clear brain fog. Other nootropics based on compounds may require a prescription.
The body can become dependent or tolerant of nootropics, even the natural ones; occasional cycling off them is a good idea.
Last Word
Everyone should look after their brain health by taking good care of it. Natural nootropic supplements consist of brain-specific nutrients that help relieve one of the most persistent symptoms of long COVID, brain fog. These include antioxidants and anti-inflammatories that can help reduce the symptoms and protect against Alzheimer’s disease.
Other ways to help the body are to exercise, meditate, get some sunlight, plenty of rest, and drink plenty of water.