The modern way of life gives you a headache and reduced consciousness. People living in cities often feel dizzy and have a reduced ability to focus. That is the syndrome called brain fog since it creates a cloudy condition in your brain, where your memory and cognitive functions deteriorate.
Although brain fog is not a medical condition, it is a syndrome that can bring stress to your daily life.
It combines cognitive fatigue problems, lack of correct judgment, and memory function impairment that have a chronic appearance.
Brain fog mental syndrome also includes:
- Chronic inability to store new information in your brain or recall the older ones
- Partial impairment in the use and understanding of language
- Problems with planning and organizing the weekly schedule as you used to
- Loss of ability to make calculations and resolve problems quickly
- Mental confusion and lack of concentration
- Sleeping disorders that vary from oversleeping to insomnia
These are some of the frequent mental and body problems that describe brain fog syndrome. The changes in your body become gradually overwhelming, until one day you feel like you need medical attention.
Symptoms of brain fog
Brain fog can have various symptoms that affect both your physical and mental health.
Physical symptoms
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Chronic tiredness
People feel as if they have no energy to execute their daily chores.
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Eye disorders
Persons who suffer from brain fog may face difficulties distinguishing items when viewing them from a long distance.
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Gastrointestinal dysfunction
Some people mention having intestinal or stomach pain symptoms through their brain fog situation. It can interfere with their regular nutrient body supply.
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Metabolism decrease
Brain fog can affect your ability to metabolize nutrients and may end in weight loss disorders.
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Headaches
When you have a headache caused by brain fog, you feel like you can’t work and need to stay home.
Mental symptoms
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Irritable behavior
Everyone that has brain fog experiences a personality change and gets irritated from social interference with other persons.
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Sleeping disorders
Brain fog can give you symptoms of insomnia or sleepiness that also affect your personal and professional life.
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Forgetfulness
It is common for people with brain fog to lack memory and constantly forget appointments and other important information.
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Focus and concentration issues
Brain fog can also ban your concentration and impose barriers to completing any intellectual task you may have.
How to cure brain fog?
1. Take a real break
A 2016 study suggested that stepping away from a task and taking a break can substantially improve your performance, focus, and degree of self-control.
2. Eat and drink to feel good
Treats like candy and chips can provide an immediate brain boost but sticking to a balanced diet will help you perform more consistently throughout the day.
Instead of removing the “unhealthy” foods you regularly eat, start by making nutritious additions to your meals and snack times.
Foods high in antioxidants — such as blueberries, oranges, and nuts — help reduce oxidative stress in the body, which can have a positive effect on the brain and body.
3. Be active
Your brain and body are intimately connected. So, if your mind’s feeling off, it might be helpful to get moving.
A 2016 study found that exercise promotes the expression of proteins in the brain that enhance brain function and reduce instances of anxiety and depression.
You can try walking, yoga, high-intensity exercise, stretching, gardening, etc.
4. Prioritize sleep
Hormones in your brain stay at the right levels when you get a good night’s sleep.
Poor sleep affects your ability to make decisions, solve problems, and control your emotions. And what’s more, experts say that sleep deprivation can increase your risk for chronic health problems such as high blood pressure, obesity, and heart disease.
Read our article about how to sleep better.
5. Reduce stress
Adopt a healthy lifestyle that promotes peacefulness in your relations with other people. Anxiety and stress can increase cortisol levels increase your blood pressure and worsen the cognitive fatigue symptoms and the memory loss you experience with brain fog.
6. Avoid alcohol and caffeine
We know that alcohol and caffeine can negatively impact the chemical balance in your brain cells. When you limit their consumption, you can feel more energetic and restore all your cognitive functions to normal.
If you’re trying to cope with drinking too much, talk with your healthcare professional.
7. Include more vegetables and fruits in your diet
Fruits and vegetables offer your body the right mixture of substances to restore the balance in your brain. They give you a healthy body that leads to an operating mind.
8. Meditate
Practicing yoga or other eastern meditation practices like Ayurveda, could take away your stress and release relaxing hormones to your nervous system.
9. Engage in mindless activities
People who like to think all the time, should take a break and have some mindless activities throughout their busy day. Play a game with some friends and even sing something you like. Activities that don’t require deep thinking can make you feel a lot better.
10. Spend less time in front of a screen
Even if your job requires you to look at a screen for many hours during the day, make sure you take some breaks every one or two hours. It could refresh your brain and take away all the cognitive failure symptoms.
11. Spend time in nature
Regular excursions in nature can give you more energy to cope with your busy daily life and remove the foggy curtain from your brain. Not to mention, that nature can better oxygenate your brain cells to work smoothly for another busy week.
The bottom line:
Brain fog is a brief condition that can make it challenging for you to think, review or hold data, and complete undertakings.
Adding creativity to your day-to-day life, changing your diet and sleeping habits, and taking proper (phoneless!) breaks in the middle of the day.
The majority of us experience brain fog because of our lifestyle or temporary stressors. However, if your fogginess is accompanied by other symptoms and has a significant impact on your ability to function, you should consult your doctor to rule out any underlying conditions.