Huberman Lab Essentials: Food & Supplements for Brain Health & Cognitive Performance

Episode Date: September 11, 2025 Host: Dr. Andrew Huberman

Overview

In this Essentials episode, Dr. Andrew Huberman distills key science-based insights about how food and supplementation affect brain health, cognitive performance, and long-term neural protection. The episode highlights specific nutrients critical for neuronal structure and function, evidence-based recommendations for diet and supplements, and the fascinating neuroscience behind food preferences, cravings, and how beliefs can alter both physiology and subjective experience of eating.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Three Major Signals Shaping Food Choices

Timestamp: 01:00–04:50

• Signal 1: Subconscious Gut-Brain Communication: Neurons in the gut send subconscious signals to the brain regarding nutrient content in food.
• Signal 2: Metabolic Accessibility: The brain’s preference for foods that can be quickly converted to neural energy.
• Signal 3: Belief Effect: What you expect a food to do for your health and energy influences physiological responses.

Quote:
"The third signal is perhaps the most interesting... what you perceive and believe the food that you're eating to contain, and what you think it can do for you." — Andrew Huberman (02:26)

Essential Nutrients for Brain Structure & Function

1. Omega-3 Fatty Acids (EPA & DHA)

Timestamp: 05:00–09:00

• Role: Critical for building and preserving neuronal membranes.
• Sources: Fatty fish is best; plant-based alternatives include chia seeds, walnuts, and soybeans.
• Dosage: Aim for 1.5–3 grams of EPA per day (supplement if struggling to meet via diet).

Quote:
"Most people are not getting enough omega 3s in their diet to support healthy brain function in the short and long term." — Andrew Huberman (06:34)

2. Phosphatidylserine

Timestamp: 06:50–07:25

• Role: Supports neuronal function; found in meats and fish.
• Supplementation: Inexpensive, lipid-like, mimics food-derived phosphatidylserine.

3. Choline

Timestamp: 07:30–08:24

• Role: Precursor for acetylcholine, a neuromodulator crucial for focus and memory.
• Sources: Primarily eggs (esp. yolks), but also potatoes, nuts, seeds, grains, fruits.
• Dosage: 500mg–1g per day.

Quote:
"Eggs are an incredibly rich source of nutrients for the brain... because the egg contains all the nutrients that are required in order for an organism to, to grow." — Andrew Huberman (08:07)

4. Creatine

Timestamp: 08:24–09:42

• Role: Brain fuel, supports frontal cortical circuits involved in mood and motivation.
• Sources: Meat; supplement as creatine monohydrate (5g/day for cognitive benefit).

5. Anthocyanins (from Berries)

Timestamp: 09:42–10:32

• Role: Improve brain function, most likely via lowered inflammation.
• Sources: Blueberries, blackberries, black currants, other dark-skinned berries.

6. Glutamine

Timestamp: 10:32–12:40

• Role: Amino acid with potential benefits for immune function and reducing sugar cravings.
• Sources: Cottage cheese, beef, chicken, fish, dairy, eggs, beans, cabbage, spinach, parsley.
• Dosage: 1–10g/day for those choosing to supplement.

Quote:
"We actually have glutamine sensing neurons in our gut... they send signals to the brain that are signals of satiation, of satisfaction, and in doing so, can offset some of the sugar cravings that many people suffer from." — Andrew Huberman (12:17)

Practical Approaches: Food vs. Supplementation

Timestamp: 12:41–14:23

• All nutrients above can be obtained through diet; supplementation is for higher intake, dietary gaps, or preferences.
• Some foods high in these nutrients may not be palatable for everyone (e.g., fish).

The Neuroscience of Food Preference

The Three Channels of Food Reward

Timestamp: 14:40–24:30

1. Taste (Mouth Sensors and Brain Integration)

   • Five basic tastes (sweet, salty, bitter, sour, umami); signals relayed via gustatory nerve to insular cortex.
   • Taste preference is a brain-constructed, deeply integrated process, not just taste-bud driven.

   Quote:
   "Your sense of what tastes good is related to particular things that are occurring in your brain and body and that are likely to give your brain and body the things that it needs." — Andrew Huberman (17:55)

2. Subconscious Gut Sensing (Neuropod Cells)

   • Specialized gut cells sense amino acids, sugars, and fatty acids, sending subconscious signals to the brain via the nodose ganglia. These signals affect dopamine release and motivate further food-seeking behavior.

   Quote:
   "They are providing a subconscious signal about the quality of the food that you're eating, what it contains, and then triggering the release of dopamine ... that leads you to go seek more of those foods." — Andrew Huberman (19:58)

3. Learned Association/Belief Effect

   • How past pairings between taste and nutrient value (e.g., sweetness and blood sugar spike) modify rewards and preferences.
   • Beliefs about foods (what you expect them to do) can modify physiological responses (e.g., insulin release, subjective satisfaction).

   Quote:
   "The physiological response ... and the subjective measures of whether or not people enjoyed something ... were heavily influenced by what they were told were in these milkshakes. So blood glucose would go up ... when people were told it was a high calorie shake ... when in reality it was the identical shake. This is incredible. This is a belief effect." — Andrew Huberman (28:42)

Modifying Food Preferences: Conditioning and Belief

Timestamp: 24:31–33:53

• Both hard-wired and "soft-wired" (learnable) circuits guide food preference.
• Pairing artificial sweeteners with high-calorie foods can condition the dopamine system to respond to the sweetener alone, altering insulin and blood glucose responses.
• Key tip: Consume artificial sweeteners away from foods that raise blood glucose to avoid altering insulin responses (30:34).
• Repeated consumption of healthy but initially unpalatable foods, especially alongside enjoyable metabolic experiences (e.g., while active), can reshape taste preferences within 1–2 weeks.

Implications for Diets, Habits, and Reinforcement

Timestamp: 33:53–35:55

• Dietary preferences often reflect reinforcement learning—a neural adaptation to repeated experience, not objective "rightness" of one diet over another.
• Highly palatable and sweet foods can shift the dopamine system, making them feel uniquely rewarding, but this can be recalibrated by shifting dietary habits over time.

Quote:
"Put simply, we don't just like sweet foods because they taste good. We like them because they predict a certain kind of metabolic response." — Andrew Huberman (35:37)

Memorable Moments & Notable Quotes

• "Everything in this list is directed towards answering the question—what can I eat, what can I ingest by way of food and or food supplement that can support brain function in the short term and in the long term?" (13:39)
• "What we tend to do regularly becomes reinforcing in and of itself." (34:35)
• "If you want to eat more of a healthy food ... pair it with other food that provides you a shift in brain metabolism ... even within a short period of time, that food will ... taste at least better to you." (32:48)

Recommended Reading

• "Rethinking Food Reward," Ivan d'Aruho, Mark Schachter, Dana Small, Annual Reviews of Psychology, 2019.
  Covers how food perception, preference, and neural reward mechanisms shape eating behavior. (35:59)

Summary Table: Key Brain-Boosting Food Components

| Nutrient | Primary Food Sources | Supplement Dosage | Brain Benefit | |------------------------|----------------------------------|---------------------|-------------------------------------| | Omega-3 (EPA/DHA) | Fish, chia, walnuts, soy | 1.5–3g EPA/day | Neuronal membrane, cognition | | Phosphatidylserine | Meat, fish | As directed | Neuron structure/function | | Choline | Eggs | 500mg–1g/day | Focus, memory, acetylcholine | | Creatine | Meat | 5g/day | Energy, frontal circuits, mood | | Anthocyanins | Berries, black currant, etc. | — | Anti-inflammation, overall function | | Glutamine | Protein-rich foods, veggies | 1–10g/day | Sugar craving reduction, immunity |

Takeaways

1. Focus on whole foods rich in omega-3s, choline, phosphatidylserine, anthocyanins, and glutamine for brain health; supplement as needed.
2. Your brain’s preference for foods is both innate and changeable—belief, metabolic experience, and habit can reshape what you find rewarding.
3. Be mindful of artificial sweetener timing—consume away from calorie-rich foods to avoid metabolic conditioning.
4. Repeated exposure and positive pairing can make even less palatable but healthy foods more rewarding over time.

For further exploration, consult the referenced Annual Reviews article for a deep dive on food reward.