Marijuana and Coffee are good for the Brain

[Jah]

Marijuana and Coffee are Good for the Brain - YouTube


Neuroprotective and rejuvinating compounds it seems.

Note that this refers to Marijuana in very small doses (about one puff of a joint per day... not a justification for becoming a full blown Stoner, no pun intended.)


Coffee protects the brain from many of the effects of aging. (most of us probably knew this)

And a small addition to the end; for cognitive longevity (and longevity in general) Eat Less Calories.

 

[Moocow]

4-5 cups a day, holy shit! I would lose my mind! I can barely handle one cup of coffee as it is without my mood being swung around like a Russian infant.

Matcha tea is a fantastic alternative (or complement) to coffee that comes with the added benefit of high levels of theanine. Theanine is extremely relaxing and improves my concentration dramatically, which is probably why green tea was always consumed for meditative / ceremonial purposes in Japan. It takes the edge off the caffeine, including the anxiety and jitters.

 

[snafupants]

In Japan the average female life expectancy used to be eighty seven, which is absolutely staggering. They drink a lot of tea there, and are also fond of herbs like Reishi mushroom.

 

[Plain Jane]

I love to drink anything hot, I find it relaxing. I especially like coffee, but it's not too good for my digestion.

Moocow: theanine is interesting. I found this on wikipedia:

Effects on the brain
Able to cross the blood-brain barrier, theanine has psychoactive properties.[6] Theanine has been shown to reduce mental and physical stress,[7] and improves cognition and mood in a synergistic manner with caffeine.[8][9]
While structurally related to the excitatory neurotransmitter glutamate, theanine only has weak affinity for the glutamate receptor on postsynaptic cells.[10] Rather, its primary effect seems to increase the overall level of the brain inhibitory transmitter GABA. Theanine also increases brain dopamine levels and has a low affinity for AMPA, kainate and NMDA receptors.[11] Its effect on serotonin is still a matter of debate in the scientific community, with studies showing increases and decreases in brain serotonin levels using similar experimental protocols.[12][13] It has also been found that injecting spontaneously hypertensive mice with theanine significantly lowered levels of 5-hydroxyindoles in the brain.[14] Researchers also speculate it may inhibit glutamic acid excitotoxicity.[11] Theanine also promotes alpha wave production in the brain.[6]
Studies on test rats have shown even repeated, extremely high doses of theanine cause little to no harmful psychological or physical effects.[15] Theanine showed neuroprotective effects in one rat study.[16]
A placebo-controlled trial has shown adding theanine to ongoing antipsychotic medication is helpful in reducing some symptoms of schizophrenia.[17]
Several beverage manufacturers are selling drinks containing theanine and are marketing them as drinks to help people focus and concentrate,[18] while other manufacturers claim relaxing and tranquillizing properties.[17]
L-Theanine has been shown to both reduce the time that it takes a person to fall asleep as well as decrease the number of nighttime awakenings.[19]

This tea seems to help the immune system better than coffee also:

Immune system benefits
L-Theanine may help the body's immune response to infection by boosting the disease-fighting capacity of gamma delta T cells. The study, published in 2003 by the Brigham and Women's Hospital, included a four-week trial with 11 coffee drinkers and 10 tea drinkers, who consumed 600 milliliters of coffee or black tea daily. Blood sample analysis found the production of antibacterial proteins was up to five times higher in the tea drinkers, an indicator of a stronger immune response.[20]

Cool.

 

[Moocow]

Yeah, and it tastes good!

You can find it in all green tea specifically, but not black tea. The best source is matcha because of how matcha means consuming the entire leaf rather than just what dissolves in the water. Most asian markets carry it and it can be ordered on Amazon, but otherwise it's pretty hard to find.
I think I'll go make myself a cup of it now actually. If you're a student, it's fucking amazing for studying and taking exams.

 

[Dimensional Transition]

This is why I drink a lot of green tea. It's also helpful for burning extra fat when working out. I only drink green tea and water. And milk or chamomile tea before bed.

 

[Minuend]

This I must try. When you speak if leaves; did you mean that the leaves are whole? I didn't quite understand that part.

 

[Moocow]

You buy a fine green powder comprised of ground up, specially grown tea leaves, then use a fine whisk to quickly blend about a teaspoon of said powder into a cup of steaming hot water. It's best if the water is not boiling hot as not to burn it... different temperatures yield slightly different tastes and I prefer water that's had about 2 minutes in the microwave.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=matcha&x=0&y=0

Make sure you're buying the fine green powder! Anything that is tea bags or whole leaves is not what you're looking for.

 

[Moocow]

Also the bamboo whisks are only like $6-10 on amazon, but they're a good idea if you want it to have a really smooth, even texture and taste. I'm sure there are youtube tutorials on how to do the whole thing properly.

It's become sort of a morning ritual for me- microwaving the water, whisking the tea, then drinking it while I sit down to meditate or study.


Uh.. sorry if this is all counts for highjacking the thread. I could probably start a new thread for matcha if you'd prefer.

 

[Minuend]

Thanks

 

[Jah]

Here's a massive list on why Coffee is good for you:

http://primalmd.tumblr.com/post/6397186790/evidence-based-practice-coffee


(Though I must say I'm really curious about matcha tea, it's just that Coffee is a more readily available drug, and most likely one of the worlds top five most traded commodities/fresh produce, so you can get it almost anywhere in the world.)

 

[Moocow]

Jah, indeed, although because it is a huge industry I tend to remain somewhat skeptical of the legitimacy of health claims. I'll have to look into the studies done...

Another thing that should be clarified is much of these benefits come from drinking what I suppose are 5-6 cups of plain black coffee a day. Adding sugar and cream to that much coffee would just negate some of the health benefits, and using artificial sweeteners is usually rather dubious especially in large quantities like that.

I only see two cons on that list though: diminished bone density (unless you get plenty of calcium) and potential birth defects if a lot is consumed by pregnant women.

The site also doesn't mention that caffeine can induce generalized anxiety and even panic. I've experienced both, only to realize it was from having just TWO cups prior to even a minimally stressful event. The withdrawl from caffeine can be so hard it triggers depression, feeling ill, and apparently in some people varying degrees of psychosis.

 

[Jah]

Hmm.. the diminished bone density is why adequate calcium is recommended, and occasional resistance exercise (which is proven to increase bone density... much more than large amounts of coffee degenerates it.)
Just lift something heavy a couple of times a month.



Sugar is as always...

but yeah, black coffee is better (and much much easier)


(also get good coffee (for the taste. I recommend light roast.))



The anxiety/panic stuff I haven't noticed/read any articles about.

The "Huge industry" consists of lots of small farms, with different coffee-beans, different climates and different tastes, which compete for quality etc. (kinda like with wine, so You would thereby also doubt the health-claims of the wine-industry.)

At least if you're half-interested, there's lots of opportunities to choose from.

edit: look up e.g. Cup Of Excellence.

 

[Plain Jane]

Just drank some green tea . Yeah I'm returning to school next fall. I have completed 82 credits. I need all the help I can get.

 

[nanook]

caffeine messes with blood sugar. it induces temporary insulin resistance. so blood-sugar is raised. depending on original blood-sugar this can be helpful or a problem. then there is a crash. nothing that messes with blood sugar is good for my brain. i am susceptible to insulin resistance and alzheimers, or an aspects of it, is also known as diabetes type 3 - that's insulin resistance which is particular to area of the brain, afaik. sometimes one ill can counteract another ill, so you can't predict what a substance does, in end effect, in one individual with his habits, based on knowing just one of its effects. but i am not interested in making my system more complicated, adding layers on layers of counteraction, constantly fixing one symptom with the next substance, thereby inducing another symptom. what's good for the brain is optimal nutrition, not further random manipulation of it's regulatory system.

 

[Jah]

That's strange nanook, aber interesting.

given that strange effect of insulin, I would guess you'll be avoiding sugars etc. ( or following some GI diet of some kind.)


Perhaps keeping coffee around meal-times can help ?

 

[Jah]

hm... first study I read about it suggests increased insulin sensitivity from both coffee and tea:
http://jama.ama-assn.org/content/291/10/1199.2.full

edit: and another one,
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1365-2796.2004.01331.x/full
pretty much same result; coffee seems to benefit insulin sensitivity in positive directions.