Nutrition for the Brain | Patrick Schwarzenegger & Jim Kwik

Welcome back to the Kwik Brain Podcast. I am your brain coach and your host for today, Jim Kwik. And your question for today are, what are the best brain nutrients and brain foods? How do you make it very easy and convenient to eat the right things? And I'm excited to be on set here in, in the Mosh office here with actor Patrick Schwarzenegger and media icon Maria Sharper. Thanks for joining us.

Thank you for all that you do. All that you've done for the women's Alzheimer's movement, what you're doing for MASH, and what you're doing to bring attention to our brains.

I'm so excited about this. Now, we're going to talk about MASH a little bit here, about the brain brand, which the two of you are founders of. So I'm really excited about that and how to make eating for your brain just simple and convenient. And we'll talk about some of my favorite foods and some of the ingredients that are in your bars. I encourage everyone to actually try the bars. We have a new flavor, which I'm really excited about, around blueberries.

Blueberry and almond, yep.

Yes, a blueberry almond crunch. And people know that I like to refer to them as brain berries for years. It was one of my very favorite brain snacks. And let's talk about what Masha is first and why the two of you— I know you have a family member similar to my family.

Yeah, so we share that. My dad had Alzheimer's, and that became a— became a journey for me to try to understand what Alzheimer's was.

Yeah.

What starts it? When does it start? What one could do to try to either prevent it and/or delay it. And so I obviously did a lot of things, but one of the big things that we now know are lifestyle has a big impact on the brain and food has a big impact on the brain. So Patrick and I got together. with everything that we know about what's good for the brain and tried to put it into this bar. And we're trying to create a brain brand company. We started with bars 'cause I'm a brain bar— I'm a bar fanatic. And we wanted to do a brain bar 'cause there wasn't one. And Patrick's area of expertise, he enabled this to come to life.

Yeah. And I think the most important thing, kind of from what I've learned, you know, my mom's worked on brain health and research and specifically in Alzheimer's for the past, what, 20 years?

Yeah.

And I think one of the main things you've found out with your research with the Cleveland Clinic is that we're in the driver's seat. You know, you always talk about this. There are things that you can do today that impact your brain health tomorrow. And diet is one of those, those main factors, right? Sugar being one of the number one culprits towards degenerative brain health. And so my mom really wanted to create a company and really wanted to educate consumers out there that you can do things today. There are things that you can eat that will help your brain health. And she really wanted to create a product that had all these different superfoods and nutrients and vitamins and ingredients that are good for the brain all into one. And that's how kind of Mosh was born. And I think the most important thing is that it raises money for Alzheimer's. Every time you buy it, we donate back to the Women's Alzheimer's Movement. So yeah, it's been really interesting to really learn about what is good for your brain.

Yeah.

I think what's exciting also is coming out of COVID I think people have become a lot more aware of their brain. You hear now terms brain fog. People are talking about mood. They're talking about memory at all ages.

And stages.

Right? And ages and stages. And I'm just looking at a poll that said half of all adults in America today consider themselves caregivers. That's a huge number, right? So it behooves everybody, especially I think Patrick's age, people in their 20s, their 30s, their 40s, to adopt a brain-healthy lifestyle. And that's what this company wants to do. We want to put out food that's delicious and nutritious. We want to put out content that educates you that it's about how you manage stress, right? How you stay in community, how you continue to learn, how you prioritize your sleep, how you continue to engage your brain.

Mm-hmm.

It's not just something you go to school for and then just let it sit there and then do nothing with it, but you want to keep continuing to engage it. We ran a piece in our Sunday paper about the benefits of brain games. I know you talk a lot about that, to keep kind of challenging your brain. I'm terrible at that. And so I find it super irritating, but every time I try to do it, it kind of pushes my brain a little bit.

Yeah. And your brain controls everything, right?

Yeah.

You change your brain, you change your world. And I appreciate talking about being the driver of your brain because I always say you should be the pilot and not the passenger.

Oh yeah.

That we actually could direct it. And a lot of it with our choices that we make, including whether we move and who we spend time with, and also what we nourish, because what we nourish flourishes. So what are some of your very favorite— I noticed there are a number of ingredients here which I want to talk about. What are some of your favorite ingredients when you were considering putting together this bar, this line of bars?

Well, I think one of the things we did was really we utilized a lot of your brain health experts and doctors, right?

Yes.

I mean, she started the Women's Alzheimer's Movement, which is now partnered with the Cleveland Clinic. And we've utilized people from all different walks of the doctor life and nutritionists and Dr. Uma Naidoo, who I know has been on your show and loves berries. I mean, I think she also says that they're called brain berries. But really, it's all about— we started with no added sugar, right?

Yeah.

That was really big and important for us. Each bar is 12 grams of protein, no added sugar, like I said, and really some brain-healthy nutrients inside it like lion's mane and ashwagandha, which are functional kind of mushrooms, flaxseeds, which provide omegas, Almonds are the number one ingredient and tons of other vitamins like B12, D3, and so on and so forth.

And I think one of the great things is that in formulating this bar, first we went and did dates and to— because you want it to be delicious, right? Otherwise people won't buy it. And my reaction to so many of the bars that are out on the market is I got a stomachache, I got a headache from them. And the one that we had spent a lot of time developing, had a lot of dates in it, and it had— I had an adverse reaction to it. It tasted good, but it was like really sweet.

Too high in sugar.

Too high in sugar. And Patrick came to me, and we were like at the very end of the formulation, and he said, Mommy, if you don't love this, we should scrap it and start all over again. And I was like, oh my God, I don't want to start all over again. It's going to be terrible. We've just wasted all this money, all this time. And he said, you've got to love this, and it has to be true to the mission. And He actually gave me the confidence to scrap it and start all over again, which we did, which I'm so proud of this. And every aspect of this company from the packaging, which we took from a brain scan, uh, to everything we put in it, uh, the story behind it, why we fund gender-based research, what we're trying to build, the content that we put out, it's all very deliberate, intentional, and mission-focused. And which is why we get up every day excited—

Yes.

To work on this. It's a big vision to try to prevent, delay, or eradicate Alzheimer's and other brain diseases. But it's one that's really immediate because if you look at half of the population being caregivers, if you look at people developing Alzheimer's every 65 seconds, and 2/3 of those are women, these numbers are staggering. So it's personal. This is a, you know, public service in a way. To me, it's giving back. For me, it's a passion project.

Yes.

I think one of the main things also is that, and I think you talk a lot about this, is you can't just focus on your food. That's one of the big elements, but you need to do other things in your daily life and in routine that can help your brain and body. And you always talk about that with your different kind of memory tactics and tricks to remember the foods to eat or things to get at the grocery store, or to enhance and improve your memory, but also working out, socializing. I mean, there's a bunch of different pillars that all speak towards brain health, but, you know, we're big believers that it's not just about, you know, eating this or something. That's not gonna prevent Alzheimer's or, you know, anything like that, so.

Yeah, and I think what's interesting, I think you probably talk a lot about this, so we're really focused on food, but also on the content to try to kind of educate people how you manage stress.

Right, right, right.

How do you prioritize your sleep? Because what happens for the brain while you sleep is it's able to eliminate kind of the trash that's up there, right? Having a meditation practice has been invaluable for me and so many other people, and it allows the brain to kind of recharge. And we now know so much. We can look at the brain now in ways we couldn't when I first got into this space, which is so exciting. And in this generation, my hope is that people who are in their 20s today in their 30s, when they get to be my age, the landscape will be dramatically different for them.

Yeah.

So I used to think that when I started 20 years ago, I thought, oh, we'll find a cure for Alzheimer's in the next 5 years or 10 years. And I don't know whether it's gonna come in my lifetime, but I do know that the whole landscape has changed to focus on lifestyle. We call it a brain-healthy lifestyle, a mind-style lifestyle, that you can do these things because many of the cases are preventable if you take control now of your brain health.

Yeah, and it's so important to know that we could direct it with the choices that we make every single day. There's this acronym called MEDS, right? And the M stands for, when we talk about the different things that we could do, M stands for meditation, E stands for exercise, the D is diet, and the S is sleep.

Yeah, so take your meds, but take those meds.

Well, that's what we're advocating for. And we're advocating also for people who are caregivers to take care of themselves. We're advocating for young people to notice what's going on with their parents. You know, my kids, Patrick is on me all the time about what I'm eating, reading labels. I didn't grow up reading labels. So many people who might be listening to your podcast, they have to remember their parents didn't grow up—

Right.

Reading labels. Their parents didn't grow up with many of the things that are available to them now. So they can come in and gently move things out of their parents' pantries or their parents' plates.

Right.

Because this is multigenerational. This company does well with 20-year-olds, 30, 40, 50, and 60 and 70-year-olds, right? And 80-year-olds. So my goal is to continue to age independently and to age well.

Yes.

And I think that's really everybody who's a boomer. That's their goal too.

Our mutual friend, Dr. Mark Hyman, talks about junk food, and that junk food isn't one thing. There's junk, and then there's food.

Right.

Those are 2 separate things.

Right.

And, you know, the challenges with high-sugar diets, the amount of sugar the average person is consuming, it leads to higher levels of inflammation, which could be very dangerous to your brain.

Right.

And a lot of—

Processed foods, we now know, but yet Americans in particular are addicted to processed foods. foods, right?

Mm-hmm.

And those foods have properties that make you addicted to them. So Mark Hyman has been great about the entire food industry as, and, and what's exciting is to watch so many doctors and researchers and scientists getting in on this kind of revolution, really.

Right.

It's, it's a food revolution. It's a medical revolution. It's a lifestyle revolution. And we're really glad to be a part of it. We're glad to be building a company that stands in its own space with its own mission, and that I think is owning that space and has integrity and intention.

No, I love that. We talked about some of the ingredients that are in the bars, and people could find this. I encourage people to try the bars. They could go to Kwik Berry, and this is referring to the new flavor, which is Blueberry Almond Crunch.

Yeah.

Which I'm really excited. Blueberries are my favorite. You know, they're high in fiber, they're high in antioxidants. which encourages blood flow to the brain, helps with memory and focus. Talked a lot about neuro nutrition on our podcast. But also when we're talking about the ingredients, we talk about lion's mane. Some people use it, approach it as a nootropic. We talk about it has high levels of omega-3s, has your D3, your B12, your omegas.

Yeah, I think people have become more familiar now with B12 levels, vitamin D, the importance of vitamin D. Ashwagandha. Yeah, and ashwagandha. And so if you go to MASH Life, where we have all of this laid out, why it's important, what it does, what it is. So if you have, you know, under frequently asked questions or— and we've tried to make the website bright, inviting, fun, and non-threatening. As you well know, you know, people often say like they can't see their brain, they can't visualize, or some people are like grossed out about their brain, right?

And it's convenient as well, you know, with, with bars.

That's for sure.

Sometimes when you're— I know a lot of people who are watching and listening, they're on the go, and it's not always easy to eat a solid meal, right? And so here, be able to, to be able to travel, to be able to have access to something that's very convenient, it's amazing.

Yeah.

And I think having these bars in your purse, in your pocket, in your backpack, it'll keep you from then running to that processed To grab a bag of candy. A candy bar, yeah. Yeah, that sort of thing. So, you know, you have to be prepared, right?

Right.

You have to be prepared. So I find myself, like, in the afternoon, like, oh, I'm, you know, lagging.

Lagging, right.

And then I, I think about, I could go get— and then I grab my Mosh Bar.

Right, right.

You know, so.

And the protein helps to stave off that hunger.

Right.

You can take it. It's great to, to have at the office, a great post-workout. It has collagen in it.

Right. So we want to be in every office kitchen. Right? Every kind of startup, every company, and in every home kitchen.

One day we'll be there.

No, not one day. Now.

It's happening right now. So where do people find out more? We actually— you created a site. We created an easy link. People go to kwikberry.com. We'll forward it there. We'll also put all the links to the show notes as well so people could try a mix of the bars. Do you have a favorite flavor?

Yeah, everybody always asks that.

It's like your favorite— who's your favorite kid?

My favorite is actually the new one, the blueberry almond crunch. I mean, I think that it's like Sometimes for me in the morning, I like to take these on the go kind of with my coffee in the morning for breakfast. And I like to have something that's not so chocolatey right away when I wake up. So blueberry almond, it feels kind of like refreshing, almost like a blueberry muffin with my coffee. So it's nice without the sugar inside of it. So that's my new favorite.

Yeah, I have blueberry in the morning and I have cookie dough in the afternoon.

Right.

And then sometimes in between I eat peanut butter. People say to me, how many bars do you eat a day? I'm like, oh God, don't tell me.

And a number of the bars also have, you know, you have chocolate crunch, chocolate Yeah, dark chocolate.

Yeah.

Yeah.

But we also wanted to make this, as people say to me, how many do you eat a day? Because we wanted to make them 150, 160 calories.

Right.

Because, you know, a lot of people I know, and I put myself in that category, look at a lot of the bars you go in, 260 calories, 280 calories, and I'm like, well, forget it, you know? Or they're full of sugar.

Right.

Or, you know, they're steeped in coatings and stuff like that. We really wanted to make sure that we controlled the number of calories, the size.

Yeah.

And because half the other people would say, you know, I took a bar and I ate one quarter of it or something. And so we want you to have a bar that you can eat the whole thing.

And not feel guilty about it.

Yeah, not feel guilty about it. You should feel proud to eat this bar. Our hope is that you feel proud to be a Mosh community member.

Yeah.

And we're building a community of brain warriors, of people who want to give back, who want to help one another. And who want to take care of their most important asset.

Yeah, building better, brighter brains.

Yeah.

There you go.

There you go. Wow, look at you with all of that, building alliteration, building better, brighter, bigger brains.

Yes. No brain left behind. Well, I want to thank you both, not only for your time and your talent, but also your commitment to bringing with integrity high level of ingredients to people who need it now more than ever.

Yeah.

Right? And with a world full of mental fatigue, we were talking about this before we started recording, mental fatigue and forgetfulness, people feel overloaded and overwhelmed. Some simple things that people could do to, uh, to be able to develop some resilience, right? To have better focus, to be better armed, to be able to go. I believe there's a version of ourselves we haven't met yet, and the goal is we show up every single day with the choices that we make. And I think one of the things that we can control easiest is what, what we're gonna put in our mouth, right?

Amen. Yeah, this is a great thing to also bring when you're going over to somebody's house, right? You know, instead of bringing a candle or a bottle of wine, bring a box of Mosh.

Yes.

There you go.

There you go.

Yeah, because what you eat matters, especially for your gray matter. Everyone, I encourage you to, if you're interested in finding out more, to go to kwikberry.com. That's kwikberry.com. We'll put the links in the show notes at jimkwik.com/notes, as we always do. And we appreciate you listening to this and sharing it. And thank you both.

Thank you.

Thank you, Jim.