Introduction
The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) has had a devastating impact on the world, and it’s not just physical. Mental health experts are now warning that even mild cases of COVID-19 can have a lasting effect on the brain. From memory loss to anxiety and depression, the virus can cause a range of psychological issues. To help protect your mental health, it’s important to make sure you’re eating the right foods. In this article, we’ll look at some of the best foods to eat to help protect your brain from the effects of COVID-19, as well as some of the foods you should avoid.
Even Mild COVID Can Do This To Your Brain, Experts Say — Eat This Not That
COVID-19 has been linked to a wide range of neurological symptoms, from headaches and dizziness to confusion and memory loss. But now, experts are warning that even mild cases of the virus can have a lasting impact on the brain.
A recent study published in the journal Neurology found that people who had mild cases of COVID-19 were more likely to experience cognitive impairment than those who had no symptoms at all. The study looked at more than 1,000 people who had tested positive for the virus and found that those with mild symptoms were more likely to have difficulty with memory, concentration, and problem-solving.
The findings suggest that even mild cases of COVID-19 can have a lasting impact on the brain, and that people should take steps to protect their cognitive health. Eating a healthy diet is one of the best ways to do this. Eating a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins can help keep your brain healthy and functioning at its best.
In particular, experts recommend eating foods that are high in omega-3 fatty acids, such as salmon, tuna, and walnuts. These fatty acids are essential for brain health and can help protect against cognitive decline. Eating foods that are high in antioxidants, such as blueberries, can also help protect the brain from damage caused by free radicals.
In addition to eating a healthy diet, experts also recommend getting plenty of exercise and getting enough sleep. Exercise can help improve cognitive function and reduce stress, while getting enough sleep can help the brain rest and recover. Taking steps to reduce stress, such as practicing mindfulness or meditation, can also help protect the brain from the effects of COVID-19.
COVID-19 can have a lasting impact on the brain, even in mild cases. Eating a healthy diet, getting enough exercise and sleep, and reducing stress can help protect your brain from the effects of the virus.
More than two years into the COVID-19 pandemic, “Long COVID” continues to perplex the experts. The chronic syndrome some people develop following a bout with the coronavirus can involve a variety of symptoms, can be debilitating, and as of yet has no clear cause or effective treatment. What doctors know is that Long COVID is very real, and even people with mild cases of the illness can see these destructive effects on the brain. Read on to find out more—and to ensure your health and the health of others, don’t miss these Sure Signs You’ve Already Had COVID.
According to a new study from the University of Oxford, even mild cases of COVID are associated with damage to brain tissue, shrinkage in brain regions that influence the sense of smell, a loss in the brain’s overall volume, and a deficit in cognitive function lasting for at least the first few months after a coronavirus infection.
For the study, researchers looked at brain scans taken both before and after participants contracted the novel coronavirus. Most subjects of the study had mild cases of COVID-19.
That loss of brain volume is equivalent to at least one year of normal aging, said Gwenaëlle
Douaud, an associate professor of neurosciences at Oxford and the paper’s lead author. “It is brain damage, but it is possible that it is reversible,” she said. “But it is still relatively scary because it was in mildly infected people.”
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Utilizing health data from the United Kingdom Biobank—which included tens of thousands of brain MRIs of British residents, along with lifestyle information and cognitive function test results—the scientists looked at 401 people between 51 and 81 years old who had tested positive for COVID. Only 15 had been hospitalized with the disease.
Those people got a second brain scan, performed an average of five months after contracting COVID. The scans were compared to a control group of people who hadn’t gotten COVID, but who matched other health risk factors like obesity, blood pressure, smoking, and diabetes.
The researchers found that people who’d had COVID had less gray matter and more abnormalities in their brain tissue, and scored lower on cognitive function tests. Older people experienced greater rates of decline in all those areas.
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Researchers aren’t sure if the damage is permanent. The brain is can heal and rebuild itself, even in older people. But the study results suggest that COVID can cause damage to the nervous system.
“This study provides the most definitive clinical data available to date that SARS-CoV-2 directly or indirectly damages nerves and that this, in turn, can have systemic effects, including changes in the brain,” Dr. Steven Deeks, a veteran HIV researcher at the University of California, San Francisco, told NBC News. “It contributes to an emerging theme that nerve damage was common during the first few waves of the pandemic.”
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Follow the fundamentals and help end this pandemic, no matter where you live—get vaccinated ASAP; if you live in an area with low vaccination rates, wear an N95 face mask, don’t travel, social distance, avoid large crowds, don’t go indoors with people you’re not sheltering with (especially in bars), practice good hand hygiene, and to protect your life and the lives of others, don’t visit any of these 35 Places You’re Most Likely to Catch COVID.