“Brain fog” is a non-medical term that describes persistent symptoms of cognitive fatigue such as the reduced ability to concentrate and recall. Often temporary, this fog may be linked to wide range of conditions including stress, dehydration, infection, inflammation, lack of sleep and more.
Brain fog has been reported by patients recovering from a COVID-19 infection. A 2020 study of 29 patients found a relationship between decreased short term cognitive functions and “inflammatory profiles”. A 2022 study of covid patients found that an outcome of the disease may include a reduction in cerebral blood flow (CBF) and its impact on brain physiology and function. They found a decrease in “CBF in the thalamus, orbitofrontal cortex and regions of the basal ganglia.”
Further research reported by the National Institutes of Health has shown that brain microglia remain active even weeks after a patient recovers from a case of COVID-19: “When the microglia are more reactive, the brain has trouble keeping up with some of its regular tasks, such as making new neurons in the hippocampus, a region of the brain that plays an important role in learning and memory.”
Efforts to reduce inflammation and recover from any illness causing brain fog will include rest, spending less time at the computer, avoiding alcohol and inflammatory foods, regular exercise and sleep. It is well known that the brain’s glymphatic system is activated primarily during sleep:
Discovered in 2012, the glymphatic system, which stands for glial-dependent lymphatic transport, has been categorized as a macroscopic waste clearance system…. The role of sleep in glymphatic clearance has been conclusively demonstrated, and since the vast majority of clearance occurs during sleep, the glymphatic system can simply not be investigated without examining the basic aspects of sleep.
RELATED KITS
Brain Sarcodes (includes signatures for brainwaves)
Glymphatic / Lymphatic Systems (includes a signature for sleep cycle)