No. 8

Concussion

Recovering From Concussion—

Anytime there is an injury to the head, usually the thalamus is not injured, at least not directly.  Above the brain stem is the hypothalamus.  On top of the very small hypothalamus gland, sits the thalamus.  The thalamus is a large dual-lobed mass of grey matter.  It is responsible to regulate motor functions and sensory perception.  As a sensory regulator, it controls consciousness and sleep.  The thalamus is your subconscious brain’s control center where orders are relayed, such as pain response.  The injury may not be to the thalamus, but the thalamus releases something called substance P.  This surges in injuries and induces the release of excess glutamate.

When prolonged exposure to the pain signal of substance P is released, it activates excitotoxic glutamate which causes the development or formation of new brain circuits.  These circuits are chaotically structured and inferior in their ability to coordinate information.  When lingering symptoms continue after a concussion occur, this indicates that the brain circuits are malfunctioning. Nutrition can help remove the problem brain circuitry.  The bad news is that this generally takes several months.

Newer research has found that the thalamus can build healthy new circuits by increasing the amount of stem cell activity in the brain which increases the levels of BDNF.  When negative symptoms linger past a reasonable healing time, usually the thalamus is not functioning properly and the ratio of substance P to BDNF is out of balance.  Substance P will be in excess to BDNF which will be deficient.

Substance P is released naturally within the thalamus, and in normal conditions, substance P helps to regulate brain routine function.  When there is trauma such as concussion or traumatic pain in the body, even when pain is not physical but emotional, the thalamus will release high amounts of substance P.  The response is registered in the subconscious brain and at the site of injury.  The release of substance P establishes inflammation at the site of injury in order to protect the body from invasion of germs to the tissue.

If the thalamus has been damaged during the injury, it will be proportionate to the quantity and severity of symptoms experienced.  When this occurs, new brain circuits form which are chaotically organized.  These chaotic circuits slow the restoration to normal function, sometimes quite significantly.

Immediately following injury or concussion, 12 hours per day of sleep is generally recommended to help the brain heal and reduce the formation of chaotically structured circuits and the release of excess substance P.  Once the imbalance has been established, nutritional support will be needed to quicken recovery and restore proper balance of substance P to BDNF.

The following nutrients may be of benefit; 

Note:  These nutrients are equally beneficial to those individuals suffering from fibromyalgia, PTSD, and in some cases of MS; 

Reduce Substance P–  To overcome this obstacle in recovery from concussion, specific nutrients are needed to reduce substance P which are;

• Calcium AEP
• Magnesium
• ALC (acetyl-l-carnitine)
• Quercetin

Build BDNF–  Supplements are needed to build BDNF which include;

• ALC (acetyl-l-carnitine)
• DHA (in fish oil)
• DHEA (natural steroid which reduces inflammation and moderates hormones)
• Pantethine
• Zinc
• Niacin, flushing
• Curcumin (found in turmeric, a prime ingredient in curry blends)
• Blueberries

Nutrients Important to Healing Head Injury & Concussion

• Glucosamine
• Protein
• Hyaluronic Acid
• Organic Sulfur- either DMSO2 or MSM
• Zinc

Nutrients Essential to Reduce Inflammation in Brain Injury 

• Grape Seed Extract
• Bromelain
• Serrapeptase
• Curcumin
• Quercetin
• DHA
• Refracted ALA (alpha lipoic acid)
• Vitamin E tocotrienols
• Vitamin C
• Blueberries
• Coconut Water
• Bone Broth
• Frankincense Essential Oil (sacred being most effective)

Recovery Time

If the injury is a mild concussion, the average recovery with the use of sleep and supplements is 2-4 weeks.  The more serious the injury, the longer the recovery.  If lingering effects are not experienced, this generally implies that the thalamus was not injured by the process. If symptoms however are persistent, the substance P and BDNF nutrients need to be taken consistently, ongoing, and in an adequate dosage to yield results with time.  The goal with supplements is to promote a healing response and prevent adverse changes in the thalamus.  With lingering symptoms, sometimes it will take 3-6 months of recovery time.  This period of time should include aerobic exercise.  This exercise will facilitate improvement more significantly and quickly when combined with the diet and nutrients.

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