I met someone last week who told me they'd tried every nootropic on the market. Lion's mane, alpha-GPC, racetams - the whole catalogue. They wanted to know what I thought about brain supplements.
I asked what they'd eaten that morning.
Toast. Black coffee.
No eggs. No fish in the past two weeks. Maybe some walnuts a month ago, they weren't sure.
The thing is, most people think of their brain like an engine that just needs the right fuel. Premium petrol, high octane, maybe some additives. But before we can even talk about fuel, we need to talk about structure. What your brain is actually made of. Because if the engine itself is falling apart, the quality of the petrol doesn't matter much.
And that brings us to fat.
Your Brain Is Fat (And That's Not an Insult)
Excluding water, about 60% of your brain's dry weight is fat. Not the kind that sits around your midsection - structural fat. The membranes that wrap around every single neuron, forming a boundary that controls how electrical signals pass through, how neurons fire, how thoughts happen.
These aren't storage deposits. They're architecture.
The membranes are made primarily of phospholipids - essentially fat molecules with a phosphate group attached - and maintaining their integrity is what keeps neurons functional. When these membranes degrade, neurons start misfiring. Communication breaks down. Things get foggy.
Which means the first question isn't "what fuels my brain?" It's "what maintains the structure of my brain?"
And the answer is: essential fatty acids. Specifically, omega-3s.
The Omega-3 Problem (Or: Why Fish Keeps Coming Up)
Omega-3 fatty acids - EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) - are called "essential" because your body can't make them. You have to eat them. And most people don't.
The evidence is fairly clear: EPA and DHA support cognitive function, both short-term (focus, mood, processing speed) and long-term (memory preservation, reduced dementia risk). The standard recommendation sits around 1.5 to 3 grams per day of EPA.
Most people get maybe a third of that.
The richest source is fish. Salmon, mackerel, sardines. But I'm not naive about human behaviour. Very few people are eating fish daily. I don't. I see plenty of others who don't. Which is why supplementation becomes relevant - not as a bandaid, but as a practical acknowledgment that modern diets don't naturally deliver what the brain needs.
The other sources - chia seeds, walnuts, flaxseed, soybeans - contain ALA (alpha-linolenic acid), which the body converts to EPA and DHA, but inefficiently. Maybe 5-10% conversion. So if you're relying purely on plant sources, you'd need a lot.
There's no moral judgment here. Just biology. If you're not eating fish regularly and you're not supplementing, your neurons probably aren't getting the fats they need to stay structurally sound.
I think about this sometimes when someone tells me they're taking seven different supplements for focus. And none of them are EPA.
Phosphatidylserine: The Other Structural Player
The second lipid worth mentioning is phosphatidylserine - a phospholipid that makes up a significant portion of neuronal membranes, particularly in areas involved in memory and learning.
Studies show it helps with cognitive decline, particularly in older adults. It also seems to dampen cortisol - the stress hormone - after intense physical or mental exertion, which indirectly supports brain resilience.
It's abundant in meat and fish. For those who don't eat animal products, supplementation becomes more relevant. It's relatively inexpensive and well-tolerated.
I don't think everyone needs it. But if you're noticing memory lapses, brain fog, or you're under sustained stress, it's worth considering.
Actually - before I go on, let me clarify something. When I say "brain fog," I mean that vague inability to hold thoughts clearly, like trying to think through gauze. Not a medical term, but everyone seems to know what it feels like.
Choline: The Acetylcholine Precursor (Or: Why Eggs Keep Winning)
Choline is where things get interesting.
Your brain uses choline to synthesise acetylcholine - a neuromodulator (not quite a neurotransmitter, more of an amplifier) that underlies focus and attention. Acetylcholine is like a highlighter for your thoughts. It tells your brain, "This information matters. Pay attention to this."
Without adequate choline, acetylcholine production drops. Focus wavers. Learning becomes harder. Memory consolidation - moving information from short-term to long-term storage - suffers.
Which is why many Alzheimer's treatments target acetylcholine pathways. The disease involves significant acetylcholine deficiency, among other things.
The richest dietary source of choline? Egg yolks.
One large egg contains about 150mg of choline. The recommended daily intake is 425-550mg, depending on who you are. So two or three eggs get you most of the way there.
Other sources exist - potatoes, nuts, seeds, grains, some fruits - but none come close to the density you find in eggs. Which is why, when someone tells me they're skipping breakfast or only eating egg whites, I quietly wonder about their acetylcholine levels.
You can supplement choline directly - choline bitartrate, alpha-GPC, CDP-choline (citicoline). These work. But eggs are cheaper and come with a dozen other nutrients.
I used to think eggs were just protein. Then I looked at the choline content and realised we've been underselling them.
Creatine: Not Just for Muscles
Most people associate creatine with gym culture. Bodybuilders, powerlifters, teenage boys trying to bulk up.
But creatine isn't just a muscle supplement. It's a brain fuel.
Your brain stores creatine as phosphocreatine - a rapid-access energy reserve that helps neurons generate ATP (adenosine triphosphate, the cellular energy currency) during intense activity. Think of it as a backup battery for when glucose metabolism alone isn't enough.
Studies show creatine supplementation improves frontal cortical function - executive function, working memory, decision-making. It also seems to support mood regulation and motivation, possibly through dopamine pathways.
The standard dose is 5 grams daily. Creatine monohydrate, the most studied form, is inexpensive and widely available.
One caveat: if you eat a lot of meat, you're already getting some dietary creatine. But if you don't - vegetarians, vegans, or just people who don't eat much animal protein - creatine supplementation becomes particularly relevant.
I find it odd how many people dismiss creatine as "gym stuff" when the neurological literature is fairly robust. Maybe it's the branding. Or maybe we just don't think of the brain as needing fuel reserves the way muscles do.
But it does.
The Three Signals That Drive What You Eat (And Why You Don't Know About One of Them)
Here's where it gets stranger.
You think you choose food based on taste, hunger, maybe nutrition labels if you're diligent. But there are three signals at work, and only two of them are conscious.
First signal: your gut neurons.
Your gut is lined with sensory neurons that detect the nutrient content of food - fat, protein, carbohydrate, micronutrients - and send signals directly to your brain via the vagus nerve. You're not aware of this happening. It's entirely subconscious.
These neurons essentially "taste" food independent of flavour. They're assessing metabolic value in real time and adjusting your cravings, satiety, and food-seeking behaviour accordingly.
Which means your gut "knows" what's in the food before your brain consciously registers it. And it's shaping your preferences beneath awareness.
Second signal: metabolic accessibility.
Not all foods convert to brain-usable energy at the same rate. Glucose is the brain's primary fuel, but how quickly that glucose becomes available - and how stable the supply is - varies wildly.
Simple carbohydrates spike blood sugar fast, then crash. Complex carbs and fats provide slower, steadier energy. Your brain tracks this. Over time, it learns which foods deliver reliable fuel and which ones cause volatility.
You might not consciously think, "This meal will cause an energy crash in two hours," but your brain remembers. And it adjusts your cravings.
Third signal: belief.
This one surprised me when I first read the research.
What you believe a food contains - independent of what it actually contains - influences how your body responds to it.
There are studies showing that if you tell someone a milkshake is high-calorie, their ghrelin (hunger hormone) drops more than if you tell them the same milkshake is low-calorie. Even though it's identical.
Your brain isn't just passively receiving nutrients. It's interpreting them through the lens of expectation. Which means the stories you tell yourself about food - healthy, indulgent, clean, processed - actually shape your metabolic response.
I'm still thinking about that.
What Does This Mean for You?
Here's what I'd suggest, if you asked me.
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Get omega-3s. Either from fish (ideally 2-3 servings per week) or from a supplement delivering 1.5-3g of EPA daily. This is foundational. Your neurons need structural fat.
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Eat eggs. Two or three daily, if you can. The choline content alone justifies it, but you're also getting a dozen other micronutrients that support brain function.
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Consider creatine. Especially if you don't eat much meat. 5g daily, creatine monohydrate. It's cheap, well-studied, and the cognitive benefits are underrated.
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Don't overthink the rest. Most of the "brain-boosting" supplements on the market are marginal at best. Focus on the basics: fat structure (omega-3s, phospholipids), acetylcholine support (choline), and energy reserves (creatine).
The rest is noise.
A Final Thought
I think we've overcomplicated nutrition. There's an entire industry built on complexity - exotic compounds, proprietary blends, bio-hacking protocols that require spreadsheets.
But the brain doesn't care about trends. It cares about structure and fuel.
Most of what your brain needs comes from a handful of foods that humans have been eating for millennia. Fish. Eggs. Meat. Nuts. Seeds.
The problem isn't that we don't know what to eat. The problem is that most of us aren't eating it.
I'm still figuring out how to say that without sounding preachy. Because I don't think it's a moral failure. It's just hard. Modern life makes it hard.
But the biology doesn't change. Your neurons need fat. Your synapses need choline. Your frontal cortex needs creatine.
You can ignore that, or you can work with it.
What do you think?
