The source of many illnesses – Stress.

In explaining to me the nature of stress, a medical doctor friend of mine gave me the following example as I sat is his office about to have blood drawn. ‘Chris’ he said ‘stress is a matter of stimulus and response. You for example are sitting here with a lady putting a needle in your forearm and we are having a conversation. On the other hand we spent most of this morning reviving a strapping man who drop, bapse, on the ground when he saw the needle. Same stimulus, different response.’

Stress can only effectively be dealt with when we fully understand and address what our stimuli are and how we choose our responses. Here, I want to deal briefly with the nutritional aspect.

For sure there is a chemical component to stress. Some years ago I was heading to a major event to make a speech. This was in the midst of the usual assortment of business and health challenges which life routinely serves up. As many speeches as I make to as many people as I make them to you would think it would be easy. The truth is I’m a nervous wreck in these situations. Normally I would breathe and carry on but I was not doing well this day. So a friend of mine broke off a half of a Xanax and gave it to me. All was good. The world started to move in slow motion

Olive Oil

and I was ready to jump out of planes and run into flaming buildings. I spoke without barely a heart flutter and slept like a baby that night. Aware of my suspected genetic disposition to various addictions I shortly thereafter began to explore a more holistic approach to attaining that same state of mellowness.

Bananas, peanut butter, sesame seeds, oats and milk are all sources of tryptophan which produces chemicals in the brain that support relaxation and improved mood. The B vitamins which are so effective in improving cognitive performance are also helpful in combating symptoms of stress and anxiety. Almonds, beans, whole grains, and kelp are good sources of B vitamins.

Reduced levels of Omega-3 fatty acids in the brain are related to a variety of cognitive disorders. Adding oily fishes, flaxseed, nuts, and my favorite, olive oil, to your diet can help relieve the symptoms of anxiety. If you know anyone who starts to shake once they get hungry then you would have seen the effects of low blood sugar on the nervous system. Adequate and timely

Stress impacts heart health

intake of complex carbohydrates can improve the levels of glucose needed to prevent these and other anxiety type symptoms. Complex carbohydrates also improves serotonin levels which leads to a feeling of relaxation and calm. Good sources of complex carbohydrates include whole grains, fruits and vegetables.

Eating high-protein snacks can be particularly helpful to individuals who tend to experience low energy and high anxiety during the day.

As important as eating foods that help relieve the symptoms of anxiety is avoiding foods that enhance these symptoms such as fried food, high glycemic carbs, unrefined sugars, and alcohol.

So let me end with some quite pleasing information, chocolate, particularly pure dark chocolate is a great anti-stress snack as it reduces the so called stress hormone, cortisol, in the body. You may want to consider using that next time you are looking for a reason to rationalize eating the chunk of chocolate that is in front of you.

Bon apetit

Conclusion

Sustaining high performance for the executive and entrepreneur involves complex psychological and physiological processes. To be truly successful in this endeavor requires a holistic approach. What we have covered here is one aspect, and an often overlooked aspect, nutrition. Athletes have always understood, and executives and entrepreneurs should too, that what you eat can give you more energy, help you think better and manage your stress. Don’t just think about eating, but think about eating your way to success.

Brainpower can make all the difference

Your brain is only about 2% of your body weight but uses about 20% of your calories to power itself. It is an energy hog. The brain functions by passing signals from one neuron to the next, between billions of neurons via neurotransmitters. Seratonin, dopamine and acetycholine are among the more common neurotransmitters. The chemistry of this process requires specific nutrients to work.   Any deficiency in these can lead to mood swings, disturbances in sleep patterns, mental dullness and confusion. Taken at its worst, it may be manifested as depression. So what should a brain powering diet look like?

Your level of glucose sugar available to the brain will significantly impact your cognitive abilities. Glucose is the brains sole source of energy. The same carbohydrates recommended to improve your energy levels will also power your brain. The low glycemic index carbohydrates such as those provided by fruits including bananas, oranges and apples are most efficient at fueling the brain. A mix of fruits at breakfast will provide the brain power to start the day right and to sustain focus. Low glycemic index foods do not create the peaks and crashes that high glycemic carbohydrate intake, such as from energy drinks, create.

While glucose will produce immediate benefits to the brain, we should also concern ourselves with eating for its long term health. Omega-3 fatty acids are essential to brain health and improved mental sharpness and concentration. They help to regulate serotonin levels and prevent depression, mood swings and a feeling of lethargy. The primary source of Omega-3 is

Salmon, an excellent source of Omega 3 fatty acids

actually marine microalgae and diatoms, but a more accessible source is fresh oily fish like salmon, herring, trout and tuna. Non-meat foods high in omega-3 include, flax seeds, walnuts, olive oil, green leafy vegetables, strawberries and avocados.

Mental stamina and memory are supported by an adequate intake of B-vitamins. Vegetables like cabbage, cauliflower and broccoli or high protein foods, like meat, egg yolk or peanuts are excellent sources of B-vitamins. Whole grain foods are rich in vitamin B6, which plays an important part in synthesising some of the neurotransmitters. Bananas are often labeled as brain food because they are high in vitamin B6, contain potassium and provide glucose. Brown rice and bananas in addition to providing the carbs necessary for energy also supply B-vitamins to support brain function.

Antioxidants help the body guard against free radicals and hence the effects of aging. Memory and general cognitive ability may be improved by eating foods rich in antioxidants such as spinach, tomatoes, broccoli, strawberries, raisins, plums, pecans, sunflower seeds, dates, red kidney beans and the cocoa bean.

By way of practical advice, invest in a juicer or become a regular at your nearby juice bar. Juiced fruits and vegetables provide the water, antioxidants and other micronutrients critical to your cognitive functions. While I am on the subject of what you should drink, this may be a good time to say what you should not drink particularly as it impacts mental acuity. Alcohol is widely derided as impairing judgment. I know that if I smell a vodka I can’t see straight and the rest of the day is best spent at home in bed; but the body of research on the subject actually supports a moderate degree of alcohol consumption to improve cognitive function. A study on alcohol consumption and cognitive performance carried on at the Johns Hopkins School of Hygiene and Public Health reports that ‘Women who drank moderately (2-4 drinks/day) showed superior performance in many cognitive domains relative to abstainers. For men, superior performance was found within the range of 4-8 drinks/day, although fewer significant relations were observed.’ In all cases ‘heavy drinking’ degenerated cognitive capacity.

I pass on to you two of the more salient pieces of advice I have gotten in my life on the subject of drinking; first from my grandfather: ‘If you are going to drink, make sure you can hold your liquor’ and second from a mentor ‘never ever invest in a business whose active Founder or CEO is an alcoholic.’

Introduction

Athletes have always understood the importance of nutrition

As an athlete, first in track and field and then in bobsledding, my intense physical training was complemented by an equally structured program of nutrition. Food and supplements, the conventional wisdom went, would enhance my ability to train and to perform at a high level. This started from as early as Port Maria Primary school, where I was given nutmeg to suck because it would supposedly give me ‘donkey breath’, and reached its apogee with the various concoctions of oils and minerals preferred by Sam Bock, an outstanding and innovative bobsleigh coach who led Jamaica to its best Winter Olympic finish in that sport.

While there is considerable divergence on what diets and supplements lead to peak athletic performance, it is generally accepted that both, properly used, will yield significant positive results.

In a research paper, Nutrition for the Sprinter (Journal of Sports Science. 2009 Apr;27(6):667), the authors write that ‘Several supplements potentially influence sprint training or performance’. Training for sports involves a variety of routines to develop strength, endurance, explosiveness and sport specific skills, each of which places different physiological demands on the athlete. Elite sport athletes have high training intensities and volumes for most of the training season, so energy intake must be sufficient to support recovery and adaptation. The efficacy of these exertions have been shown to be enhanced by a multi-faceted nutritional strategy to support both general training needs–tailored to specific training phases–as well as the acute demands of competition.

Commenting on a recent Tweet by five time Olympic Gold Medalist Ryan Lochte, implying that he consumed 10,000 calories per day, Lewis James, a lecturer in nutrition at the UK’sLoughborough University said “Everyone should be working hard to make sure they have got the appropriate diet for their sport or their event, making sure they are well fed and have consumed the right nutrients at the right times so that we can really maximize performance…..Messing your diet up or not eating properly in a lot of events can really impair your performance.”

Having ‘hung up my spikes’ and on pursuing, first, my banking career and then my entrepreneurial life choice, I left behind any commitment to a nutritional program to support my various exertions. it was not evident to me that nutrition was as important in these fields as in athletic performance and perhaps even more so.

Problem

Executives and entrepreneurs need to choose how to eat.

Executives and Entrepreneurs face demands for high performance which outweigh in scope, duration and consequence demands faced by athletes. The stakes are entirely different. Even in the high stakes world of professional sports, soccer, football and basketball, not considering the outliers, athletes compete at this level for a relatively short time. For example, the average career length for an NBA player is 4.8 years, 3.3 years for an NFL player, and a player in the English Premier League can expect to be active at that level for about 8 years. Now with life expectancy in the Caribbean in the 70s and increasing, we will all spend the majority of our days in some sort of professional or entrepreneurial endeavor.

The executive or entrepreneur will not perform for a few hours a day, for some months each year, for a relatively short number of years like her professional athlete colleague, she must perform on demand, 12-14 hours or more per day, without an off season for 40-50 years. She needs all the help she can get. If nutrition is important to the athlete it is critical to this group of people.

For convenience it is useful to consider the impact of nutrition for executives and entrepreneurs on three areas; energy levels, mental acuity and stress management.

The table below provides a useful reference point for what kinds of food can help improve performance.

Eating the right foods supports energy levels, mental sharpness and stress management