The Impact of Nutrition on Aviation Mental Health
Have you ever had trouble remembering something really important?
Do you have times where you feel discouraged, sad and lonely?
Your lifestyle and what you eat can have a direct impact on your mental health.
It may not be a surprise to know that science has been unraveling more and more about the nature of the brain, what keeps it healthier for longer, and what contributes to cognitive decline (reduced ability to think and remember). While feeding your brain the right foods is certainly essential, nutrition is but one of the six pillars of brain health. The other five include exercise, stress reduction, sleep and relaxation, socialization, and medication and supplements. We know that due to the regulations around flying, many professionals in the industry are unable to take medications for mental health. Today, I will teach you how to improve your mood through food!
Are brain health and mental health the same thing?
Your brain is sometimes referred to as the “control center” of your body. Beyond helping you to think and remember clearly, your brain helps to regulate the rest of your body, like your breathing, temperature, hunger, and hormones. It’s important to keep your brain as healthy as possible for as long as possible to stave off chronic—often incurable—diseases like Alzheimer’s, and science shows us how to do this.
The 6 Pillars of Mental & Brain Health
Your brain’s health is influenced by six fundamental pillars:
- Exercise
- Stress reduction
- Sleep and relaxation
- Socialization
- Medications and supplements
- Food and nutrition
In this article, I will go through each one of these pillars of brain health before diving deeper into specific and actionable strategies surrounding food and nutrition.
Exercise for brain health
Exercise is incredibly beneficial for physical and mental fitness, to de-stress, improve sleep, as well as keep your heart, lungs, and muscles healthy. What’s more, being physically active is a fundamental pillar of brain health. There are several types of exercise and all are beneficial.
Aerobic exercise, also known as “cardio” or “endurance” exercise, helps to get your heart rate up and your muscles warm. Examples of aerobic exercises include biking, swimming, running, walking and climbing stairs. This type of exercise benefits your brain because it helps to preserve existing brain cells and also promotes the growth of new ones.
Another type of exercise is strength or “resistance” training such as pushing or pulling weights or other heavy objects (like suitcases). This is known to help build and maintain strong bones. Strength training also helps your brain by enhancing your concentration and improving your decision-making skills.
Stress reduction for brain health
Aviation professionals experience a high level of stress. The environment in which you work often has delays, maintenance issues and various schedule changes that are not something you can plan for. The stress of these events leads passengers and crew to become very stressed at times. Afterall, when someone boards a plane, they are looking to get to a destination at a specific time. Schedule changes increase stress for all!
Stress is how the body and brain react to a threat or demand (or “stressor”). These reactions are often called “fight or flight.” They include increased heart rate and breathing and a heightened sense of focus. All of these physiological reactions are initiated by the brain when it detects the threat.
Once the threat is gone, the stress response relaxes and your body and brain can regain their normal (“low/no stress”) balance. However, sometimes that stress lingers on for days, weeks, and months (or longer) and becomes long-term or “chronic” stress. It’s this chronic stress that can negatively impact your brain. Chronic stress can effectively shrink the part of your brain responsible for memory and learning (your “prefrontal cortex”) and can increase the part of your brain that is receptive to stress (your “amygdala”).
While stress cannot be eliminated entirely, you can learn effective techniques to better manage it and preserve your brain health. One very practical strategy to reduce stress is to focus on the specific problem at hand in the present moment. This can help you see the current situation more clearly and make better decisions, to avoid turning it into an unmanageably large issue or perceiving the situation to be more difficult than it has to be.
Finally, calming the mind through guided imagery can help reduce the feelings of stress by refocusing your attention on something positive and soothing, like a child or a cute puppy on the boarded airplane! Conversing with others often takes your mind off the present situation.
Sleep for brain health
Getting your 7-9 hours of sleep each night helps your mood and ability to manage stress. Sleep also allows you to be better able to plan and run your busy life and ensure that you can have the energy to do what you need to do to maintain and improve your well-being (including the five other pillars of brain health).
Unfortunately, sleep is one of the hardest pillars to master as an aviation professional. Schedules are often not conducive to routine sleep. Therefore, here is a strategy to help you get more sleep and create a relaxing bedtime routine. Your sleep routine can start an hour (or more) before you need to sleep and can include things like dimming lights, putting your screens away (no more TV, internet, or smartphones), listening to soothing music or reading a book, or having a warm relaxing bath. For many of my clients, I recommend a simple carbohydrate snack like a shelf stable milk box and 1 or 2 palm size cookies. The sugar in the milk and cookies often soothes your body and brain and sends you off to sleep land!
Socialization for mental health
Staying connected to a network of people you care about can help reduce stress, improve mood, and help to feel more supported in life. Your social network can include your spouse and/or partner, immediate and extended family members, friends, and colleagues.
You can socialize informally or spontaneously (like walking or chatting with a crew member) or you can join organized activities like an overnight meal with friends in the city you’re overnighting at. Plan ahead and reach out to someone you’ve not seen in a while!
One strategy I do here locally in CLT and BNA is offer a Facebook group for pilot spouses. We meet a few times a month to have lunch or dinner, go for a walk or meet at a craft hub. This month we went to a local flower farm and visited with baby farm animals! The brain benefits of socializing even extend beyond people to pets. Studies show that pets can help you feel calm, improve your health, and enhance your social life, all of which can benefit your brain. Ever consider fostering a pet or pet sitting for a friend when you have a few days off in a row?
Medications and supplements for brain health
Depending on your personal health situation, you may be advised to take medications or supplements. Before you make a decision to take any medication or supplement you first need to check the Federal Aviation Administration website to determine if that medication or supplement is approved to be taken.
The following are links to verify if your medication or over the counter supplement is approved:
https://www.faa.gov/sites/faa.gov/files/licenses_certificates/medical_certification/medications/OTCMedicationsforPilots.pdf
https://www.faa.gov/ame_guide/pharm
Additionally, many supplements are not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration. Before taking a protein powder or any form of supplement, I recommend you check the NSF website to see if the product is third party tested and passed regulations. NSF is an independent board that looks at products safe for the consumption of athletes. Athletes are tested for various supplements, medications and drugs. My own belief is that as an aviation professional, you should treat your own body just like we treat our athletes. Check your supplements at the link below! And if you have questions, send me an email or schedule a free discovery call and ask me questions!
https://www.nsfsport.com/certified-products/
Food and nutrition for brain health
There are several foods and nutrients that promote a healthy brain by slowing cognitive decline and reducing your risk of Alzheimer’s disease. The following recommendations emphasize foods that are rich in antioxidants and critical brain nutrients such as vitamins and other plant-based phytochemicals.
Let’s go through a few of the key foods and nutrients to boost your brain health.
Omega-3 fatty acids
Omega-3 fatty acids are a group of essential fats that promote heart and brain health. Some of the best sources of omega-3s are fatty fish such as salmon, herring, and sardines. I recommend aviation professionals consume at least one serving of fatty fish each week, like herring, sardines or salmon. If you don’t love fish, omega-3s are also found in nuts and seeds such as flax, chia, walnuts, and soy, and algae.
Once you’ve determined if your medication or supplement is approved, be sure to take them as directed and go for routine monitoring or testing as required.
More plants
Plants contain more than vitamins and minerals, they’re also a source of fiber and antioxidant phytochemicals. Eating more plants helps more than only your brain, it’s also associated with better heart health and weight maintenance.
Some of the top plants for brain health are deeply-colored fruits and vegetables like berries, leafy greens, and broccoli. I recommend 3 to 5 half cup servings of fruits and vegetables every day.
Spices and chocolate
Spices and dark chocolate contain antioxidants called flavonoids. These compounds can help improve blood flow to the brain and reduce inflammation. These can be found in high amounts in turmeric, cinnamon, ginger, and dark and 80% or higher dark chocolate.
Coffee and teas
Did you know that coffee can help to improve your memory and ward off dementia? Up to three cups of black coffee per day is recommended. When it comes to teas, black and green teas contain antioxidants for brain health.
Moderate consumption of red wine
Resveratrol is a compound found in red wine and the skin of red grapes. It is also an antioxidant and is thought to be able to reduce cell damage and protect against the formation of plaques in the brain. Too much alcohol is not good for your brain either, so it’s important not to overdo it. Try to stick with no more than one glass of red wine per day. You can also consume resveratrol from drinking red grape juice, which has the added benefit of being alcohol-free.
Whole grains
Whole grains like oats and quinoa are rich in brain-healthy B-vitamins and fiber, making them an important part of the aviation professional’s diet. B-vitamins are essential so that the brain can create energy, repair DNA, maintain the proper structure of neurons (nerve/brain cells), and create essential neurochemicals for optimal function. B-vitamins also act as antioxidants to reduce the harmful effects of free radicals that can damage brain cells (or any cells).
Vitamin D
Vitamin D is also known as the “sunshine” vitamin because your skin makes it when it’s exposed to the sun. Low levels of vitamin D are associated with increased risks for brain disorders such as Alzheimer’s. Because aviation professionals spend the majority of their time behind windows or indoors, I recommend Vitamin D supplementation. Schedule a free consultation call with me if you would like to learn more about Vitamin D testing and supplementation. I can help you choose the right supplement and dosage for you.
Saturated fat
Consuming too many foods high in saturated fats is linked with an increased risk for heart disease and Alzheimer’s disease. I recommend reading food labels and trying to keep your daily intake of saturated fat around 20%. When choosing red meat stick to sirloin or less fatty steaks, purchase 85% or higher lean ground meats. Use your thumb as a measurement for a tablespoon serving of butter and at all costs avoid palm and coconut oils and margarine. When consuming dairy I recommend full fat. Full fat dairy products help to protect your veins and arteries, proven by several studies over the years! And these products are natural meaning they don’t contain all the whacky fillers the non fat products do these days!
There are many things you can do to bolster your brain health. They include a number of healthy habits such as getting exercise, reducing stress, getting enough sleep, socializing with others (or with pets), and analyzing whether you need a medication or supplements. This is where I come in! I’ve been working with aviation professionals more than 5 years. I have the knowledge to share with you on foods that will help you boost your mood, improve your mental health and keep you flying for many years to come! If you’re interested in learning more about how you can implement essential brian health strategies into your life, schedule a free consultation call with me. I work 1:1 with airline transport pilots, flight attendants, air traffic controllers and aircraft maintainers!
