Live (Feb 9, 2021) - Food/Diet & Concussion Recovery

How should you be eating for optimal concussion recovery? It's honestly not as complicated as "pop nutrition" would make you believe. We'll cover:
2 plausible diets in recovery
A couple of key tips after acute injury
Possible testing to tailor your diet further

[@arjun63]

Thank you Mark - love your kindness & intelligent comments

[@drmarkheisig]

Appreciate the kind words!

[@vanvanbbboy]

Dr. Mark Heisig,
Really appreciate the content you are putting out for concussions. You have easily become one of my favorite sources for concussion knowledge, especially since your videos are both comprehensive and informative.
Unsure if this will reach you, but I suppose someone may see it and have the answers. Here are some questions I have after researching anti-inflammatory diets after some time:
-What proteins do you recommend the most other than fish? I have heard mixed reviews surrounding chicken, pork, and grass-fed beef. Chicken seems to be the most popular, with only mild warnings regarding the omega-3 to omega-6 ratios. I’ve heard that pork can do more for your brain, and that beef has many benefits for concussion patients, even though we have been cautioned away from red meats?
-You mention that nuts and seeds are okay. There are many websites that disagree with this sentiment, perhaps because they are a common allergen. What are your thoughts on this?
-Most importantly, why should we stay away from soy/soybeans? There are so many anti-inflammatory compounds that are found inside of foods like tofu. Perhaps I am missing something here…
Thank you kindly. Hopefully this clarifying information can help other concussion patients.

[@drmarkheisig]

Hi there! Thank you so much for the kind words. Let me simplify nutrition based on mountains of research: eat mostly whole, minimally processed foods most of the time. Seriously, that's it. The more dogmatic and strict the nutrition advice, the more you know it's probably only partly true, some of the time, in some people.
1) Protein. I like and eat everything you listed, and would recommend patients (who eat meat) do the same. A good balance of those are fine. To worry about w3:w6 ratios in meats is somewhat silly. Eating meat for omega-3s is like eating nuts for protein. Generally, consider getting 0.7-1g of protein per pound of body weight each day (from all your foods). This typically normalizes (across all kinds of dietary patterns) into 20% of your daily calories.
2) Nuts and seeds are okay. Again, try to consume things in whole/minimally processed forms. Eat your walnuts, cashews, etc... as they are. You can soak them if you struggle with digestion. If you are allergic - obviously, take caution.
3) Soy/Tofu. Same game - minimally processed. Tofu/tempeh are great sources of protein for folks who don't eat meat. BUT THE PHYTOESTROGENS?! Take a breath. Phytoestrogens do exist in soy products, but they are very weak binders of your estrogen receptors & may actually do some good for folks. Additionally, most folks would do better to cut out fragrances in their skin products, air fresheners, and candles (i.e., strongly binding xenoestrogens) before they cut tofu/tempeh.

[@vanvanbbboy]

@@drmarkheisig
Dr. Mark Heisig,
Thank you very much for the thoughtful reply.
Dieting is complex, even without the added stress of needing to choose healthy foods for an injured brain/neck. The videos that I have watched from other specialists have not been as comprehensive or straight-forward as a lot of concussion patients require. Many of them focus on the nutrients that we need, which is very interesting to note, but severely lack on how those can be attained through our foods. Now that you mention it, I suppose the only real thing you need to keep track of after starting an anti-inflammatory/elimination diet is whether reintroduced foods start to trigger inflammation, and make your choices on that basis.
What is your opinion about apple cider vinegar being brain-healthy? I’ve been trying to figure that out as I suffer with bad nightly GERD. Sleep is good for the brain, and it is making it difficult, so I thought ACV may be helpful to me and others. But, I wanted to ask someone because I have little knowledge about ACV in relation to the brain and before trying something that has been fermented, as you mention the negative consequences of alcohol.
I think your suggestion for an IGG/IGE is fantastic, and I hope to get to a doctor who will be able to perform one for me. I have never had an allergen test even before my injury, so I have been having more trouble recognizing what foods I am susceptible towards. Knowing that most doctors are unequipped to handle the complexity that is a concussion, it is still hard to believe that more obvious treatments such as a IGG/IGE are not even recommended. It might also answer some questions about tree nuts, as I have this sneaking suspicion I may be allergic.
Again, thank you for being responsive. I have thought about speaking with a few of the more popular concussion doctors on here, but was unsure how to reach them with these questions.
Do you have a schedule for your lives on Instagram?
Btw - Please do feel free to ignore the second message I left, unless you feel otherwise inclined. I am not sure what video it is on, but it includes some of the same questions, because I sort of forgot I had already made this one! I am still learning how RUclips comments/notifications work.