The 4 best vitamins and supplements for brain fog
If you’re tired of feeling so, well, tired, you might be dealing with a case of brain fog.
We all deal with “off days” every once in a while: days where you just can’t seem to buckle down and focus no matter how pressing your to-do list is. But if you’ve been fighting an extended bout of brain fog that’s been getting in the way of all your daily tasks, it may be an indication that there’s something more serious going on like a nutrition deficiency or a hormone imbalance.
In some cases, vitamins and other supplements can help you meet your nutritional needs, which can then help you sharpen your focus, restore your energy, and help you perform at one hundred percent once again. Read on to better understand the predicament and learn about all the vitamins you might need to cut through that foggy feeling once and for all.
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What is brain fog?
The term “brain fog” is exactly what it sounds like: going through your day in a cloudy, foggy haze. Dealing with brain fog can leave you staring blankly at your computer screen and struggling to comprehend what you’re supposed to be doing. It can make you feel like you’re running on autopilot and not really present, no matter how much you try to wrangle your attention back to where it needs to be. It can leave you unfocused and unproductive, and it can persist no matter how much coffee you chug.
And when you have a ton of stuff that requires your energy and brainpower to get through, it can be very, very frustrating.
”Brain fog” isn’t a medical term per se, but it refers to a general collection of symptoms that affect your cognition and productivity. Some symptoms that could indicate that you’re dealing with brain fog include:
- Being unable to focus or concentrate on the task at hand
- Poor memory recall
- Troubling learning or comprehending new information
- Random mood swings or irritability
- A sudden lack of motivation
While it may not be a medical condition, anyone who deals with chronic brain fog can agree that it can have very real consequences for your work and personal life.
Most common causes of brain fog
Because your brainpower is dependent on so many different things — and because the symptoms of brain fog can be so vague and nonspecific — it can be hard to determine exactly what the root cause behind your hazy state is. However, there are certain common culprits that you can check for first like your hormones, diet, stress, and sleep quality.
Hormone imbalances
Hormones are chemical messengers that facilitate communication between the different systems in your body, including your brain. You have a ton of different hormones, and they all have various roles ranging from regulating your reproductive system to coordinating your metabolism. Some hormones, like your thyroid hormones, can also play a role in how your body uses energy. So subpar levels of thyroid hormones (or hypothyroidism), have been found to be linked to symptoms of brain fog like decreased attention, memory, and executive function.
On a related note, brain fog could also indicate that your body is going through natural hormonal changes. Many pregnant and premenopausal women report experiencing brain fog; this is likely due to the dramatic changes in estrogen levels that occur during these periods.
Stress
It’s become almost a given for many of us living and working in the 21st century, but those high levels of chronic stress and constant fight-or-flight feelings may come at the price of clear thinking.
When you’re faced with constant stressful situations, your adrenal glands release excess amounts of the “stress hormone” cortisol. Over time, your adrenal glands could struggle to keep up with the demand, leading to low cortisol levels that leave you feeling sluggish and foggy. We call it “burnout,” but you might also recognize this by a different name: “adrenal fatigue.”
Lack of sleep
If you’re ever tossed and turned through a sleepless night, you’re probably familiar with the cognitive consequences that follow. A solid night’s sleep — which means good quality sleep, not just hours — helps your brain cells recover from the hard work that they put in during the day. If you’re constantly sleep-deprived, it can impair the way that your brain cells interact and lead to slower cognitive performance.
Inadequate diet
Consistent brain fog could also be a sign that your diet patterns could use a refresh.
Good nutrition involves more than just paying attention to your calories. Eating right also means making sure that you’re getting the right macronutrients (carbs, proteins, and fats) and micronutrients (vitamins, minerals, and fiber) that your cells and systems need to function at their best. Deficiencies of certain nutrients like vitamins and minerals have been linked to brain fog and poor cognition. So if you aren’t eating a nutrient-dense and varied diet, it could mean that you’re cheating your brain and body out of nutrients that they need to function at their best.
Medical issues
Persistent brain fog could also be a sign that you’re dealing with an underlying medical condition or a mood disorder like depression or anxiety. You might also be experiencing a side effect from a medication that you are taking. If you suspect that an underlying medical condition might be the cause of your brain fog, it’s best to consult with your doctor.
Can vitamins or supplements improve brain fog and concentration?
Because brain fog is such a persistent and debilitating issue for many people, it could leave you wondering whether taking a supplement can help. It’s spawned the increasing popularity of nootropics, which are supplements and dietary supplements that are thought to help give you a cognitive edge.
Whether or not nootropics can work for you and your brain fog ultimately depends on what’s causing it in the first place. But if you’re dealing with a nutrient deficiency or hormone imbalance, making the right changes to your diet by supplementing could be a good first step. It may not always be possible or realistic to get all of your vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients from your food intake alone, which is where taking dietary supplements can help bridge the gap and help you meet your needs.
Vitamins and minerals aren’t the only supplements that people take in an attempt to sharpen their focus. Adaptogenic herbs like ashwagandha, Lion’s mane mushrooms, and ginseng are also often used with the intent of busting through brain fog. Adaptogens are thought to help mitigate your stress response, lower your cortisol levels, and increase the efficacy of your adrenal glands, which can be very helpful if your brain fog stems from chronic stress and/or adrenal fatigue.
Best vitamins for brain fog:
B-Complex Vitamins
The B vitamins are a group of different water-soluble vitamins that play a huge role in your metabolism and your overall health. Certain B Vitamins are also thought to play important roles in your brain health and cognition, which is why taking a Vitamin B complex supplement could help if you’re experiencing nutrition-related brain fog.
Vitamin B-12 is particularly important here: there’s evidence that low B-12 levels are often correlated with poorer cognitive function. This is especially relevant for vegetarians, vegans, and other plant-based eaters since Vitamin B-12 is found mostly in animal products like meat and dairy.
Vitamin D
There’s also evidence that the “sunshine vitamin” could be helpful in letting you break through that oppressive brain fog.
Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin and hormone that your body can synthesize when your skin is in direct contact with sunlight. Unfortunately, many people are Vitamin D-deficient, especially because it is not found naturally in very many foods. Even more unfortunately, studies have shown that low Vitamin D levels are associated with cognitive impairment, as well as with cognitive decline disorders like Alzheimer’s and dementia.
Vitamin C
You might think of Vitamin C supplements for your insurance against sniffles and sore throats, but it turns out that this immune-boosting vitamin also plays a significant role in your brain and mental health. A systematic review of nine different studies on Vitamin C deficiencies found that falling short on this nutrient has been linked to both depression and cognitive impairment.
Vitamin E
Your cells, including your brain cells, start taking damage from oxidative stress as you grow older: that’s the bitter truth behind aging. But you may be able to slow down the damage to your brain cells by increasing your intake of powerful antioxidants like Vitamin E.
Other tips for improving brain fog
- Evaluate your overall diet. Your vitamin levels aren’t the only thing in your diet that could be leading to brain fog. Your carbohydrate intake and your hydration levels could also be playing a role, and other essential nutrients like omega-3 fatty acids and magnesium are all thought to help keep your brain functioning at its best. To beat brain fog, first, make sure that you’re getting all the nutrients you need from your food choices.
- Check in with your hormones. Any hormone imbalance can leave you feeling distinctly “off,” but it’s not always clear which hormone levels are at fault. Your hormones are also intricately linked to your diet and can give you a push in the right direction for finding an informed solution. Base’s Energy Testing Plan allows you to test your hormone levels at home so that you can get real metrics on what’s causing your brain fog and figure out your next steps for improving it.
- Exercise your brain. Keeping your brain active and engaged is essential for keeping it at its sharpest. Instead of passively scrolling through your social feeds and passively consuming the content you see, try incorporating activities in your downtime that actively engage your brain: work on puzzles, learn a new language, read a good book, or take an online course on something that you’ve been wanting to learn.
- Manage stress. Brain fog from stress can feel like an endless cycle: you have a stressful job/life, you feel too foggy to get everything done, you stress out more from your lack of productivity, and the cycle continues. Figure out healthy ways to disconnect from the stressful stimuli in your life when you can: gentle exercise like yoga is a great option, as is meditation, unplugging the screens, and/or finding time to enjoy fresh air and sunshine in the great outdoors.
Conclusion
The consequences of brain fog can range from mildly annoying to completely life-altering, and getting to the root cause of it is the first step. From there, you can determine whether it’s stemming from diet and hormones, or something more serious, and make the appropriate changes so that you can think clearly once again.
Struggling with brain fog?
Take our quiz to build a bespoke testing plan that will help you break through your brain fog.
