Most Essential Foods For Brain Health

Understand how food affects your intellect and learn what to eat to make your brain sharper and healthier.

Everyone wants to be smart but most people forget to consider buying healthy foods for the brain. Being forgetful or having a poor concentration may be caused by not having enough nutrients for your brain. Understand how food affects your intellect and learn what to eat to make your brain sharper and healthier.

The brain is the busiest organ in the body. Processing billions of information chunks from and to other parts of the body every hour. That is why it is the most energy-demanding organ that we have. Consuming 20% of the body’s energy resources. Like other organs, the brain has required nutrients to boost its power. Improving memory, concentration, ability to solve complex problems, and preventing neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinsons, and dementia.

Carbohydrates are one of the most important nutrients for the brain. They are breakdown into glucose when digested and become the energy source of the organ. However, you need to choose the right type of carbs to ingest. Especially during the times when you need to be alert. For instance, working hours. There are carbohydrates that are high glycemic which releases glucose fast resulting to quicker drop of energy level. This explains why you feel sleepy after eating a full plate of white rice for lunch.

The better choice are low glycemic carbohydrates such as brown rice, oats, wheat cereals, pasta, and soy products. They release glucose slowly providing a good and steady level of energy for many hours. Other high glycemic foods aside from white rice are: potatoes, cakes, white breads, and sugary foods.

Another nutrient that you must include in your diet is omega-3 fatty acids. It is critical for brain development and improving cognitive functions. Omega-3 is essential for building cell membranes, maintaining neurons health, and synaptic transmission which facilitates communication between nerve cells. A low supply of this nutrient may result to learning problem, memory loss, and small brain size.

Moreover, omega-3 is found to help prevent mental decline diseases and restore cognitive performance of patients suffering from neurodegenerative diseases. Foods that are potent source of omega-3 are fatty fish such as salmon and mackerel, flaxseeds, pumpkin seeds, avocado, and walnuts. It is important to note that the human body cannot produce omega-3 fatty acids. So, it is crucial to make sure that we always have them in our diet.

Caffeine is a popular brain booster that you don’t want to miss out. They are mostly found in people’s favorite morning drinks: coffee, tea, and cocoa. Caffeine stimulates the nervous system which increases energy level. Resulting alertness, improving attention, concentration, and memory. The nutrient also increases serotonin and dopamine levels which relieve stress and promote better mood.

Aside from caffeine, the three beverages mentioned also contain flavonoids. Another nutrient that is beneficial for the brain. Flavonoids have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects which are helpful in keeping the brain healthy. They fight against free radicals and repair cell damaged preventing Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases. To enjoy the full benefits of coffee, tea, and cocoa, it’s better to drink them with less added sugar. As sugary foods are high glycemic and will drain down energy level fast.

Protein that is digested into amino acids also play important role for the brain. It is the building block of neurotransmitters. Which means that not having sufficient amounts of this nutrient may result to low level of neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine. This could greatly affect your mood and behavior. Making you feel depressed or overly aggressive.

Is your diet rich in the nutrients that are mentioned above? If not, it’s time to add brain healthy foods in your next grocery list. Remember that the brain is the control center of your entire body. It needs to be well taken care of as poor brain functions may affect your overall health.

Isabella Whitmore believes that taking care of the brain is taking care of the entire body. She writes for https://electrickettlesplus.com, a website that offers BPA-free electric kettles. Healthy options for hot beverages like coffee, tea, and chocolate drinks.

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