Neurogenesis is the process of making new brain cells. It used to be though that the brain stopped making new cells once we’re in our early 20’s or so, and after that it was just one slow death. They discovered that we make new brain cells throughout our entire lifetime, and they didn’t know what the meaning of this was until just a few years ago, but it turns out that your rate of neurogenesis is probably the most important biomarker of brain health. The low rate of neurogenesis is associated with cognitive decline, with memory problems, with anxiety, with stress, and with depression, even lowered immunity. The high rate of neurogenesis is associated with cognitive enhancement, with rapid

Mitochondria and ATP Going back 1.5 billion years. The Earth is covered with a terrible poison which is killing off large swaths of life. There are a few bacteria that have adapted to this toxic poison. They've learned how to use the poison, oxygen, more effectively in generating ATP. These ancient bacteria are engulfed by other bacteria and they developed a symbiotic relationship. This new bacteria will evolve over time to become animals and eventually us. That means all of ourselves have these ancient bacteria that help us generate adenosine triphosphate. Our mitochondria are really bacteria. In the most energy-intensive cells, our brain, our retina, and our heart, we have about 10,

Chapter 4 Detoxifying the Gut-Brain This second brain (the gut) is a network of more than 100 million neurons that communicate directly with the brain in your head. The gut produces 95% of the serotonin ("feel good" hormone/neurotransmitter ) in the body. Serotonin plays a crucial role in developing our forebrain which process our emotions. Serotonin enhances the growth of new neurons in the hippocampus (the part of the limbic brain that regulates the fight-or-flight system. It also enables us to learn from new experiences). Serotonin is converted at nighttime into melatonin to signal the brain that it's time to release ordinary reality and enter the realm of dream. Serotonin is chemicall