Nutrition Is The Food To The Soul Following A Traumatic Brain Injury

Whether it is fighting for our freedom in war, falling from a long distance, or getting hit while playing sports, a traumatic brain injury is a serious matter that should not be taken lightly. Every injury has varying degrees of severity, but all need to be treated cautiously. While there are several treatment options depending on the circumstances, new reports suggest nutrition may be the key to a revitalized lifestyle.

Nutrition appears to be a key component to improving the outcome of a traumatic brain injury. According to the Institute of Medicine, this is particularly true if it is administered as soon as possible following the injury.

The Department of Defense has begun encouraging military to make infusions of calories and protein part of their standard care immediately after an injury. The report does not solely single out military though, as it says the civilian population should take the same protocol into consideration.

A traumatic brain injury can occur to anyone at any time. From the battlefields to kids on the soccer field, and from a car accident to a motorbike accident, recovery from such an injury is not a quick process. Believe it or not, the proper amount of nutrition can speed up the recovery to get you back on the right track.

Within the U.S. military, there have been more than 200,000 cases of traumatic brain injury diagnosed since 2000. In response, a combination of food and nutrition specialists, neurologists and many other experts put their minds together to try to link nutrition to brain injury outcomes. A lot what discovered, but it is still a relatively new field.

After going through a great deal of cases and studies, the researchers were able to conclude that infusions of calories and protein begun within the first 24 hours of the injury and continued for the following two weeks can significantly reduce inflammation in the brain. It was also found to have drastically aided the recovery process.

The long-term impact of nutrition has not been studied yet, but the report did identify a plethora of nutrients that have shown preliminary promise while adding the situation. Some of the key nutrients to consider include choline, creatine, n-3 fatty acids and zinc.

The findings of nutrition linked with traumatic brain injury are extremely promising, but there is still a great deal of work to be done. Researchers, scientists, food and nutrition specialists and other experts will now begin searching for answers on the affects nutrition has in the long-run.