Eat Better to Think Better – Top 20 Foods Your Brain Adores1. Breakfast 1.Start your day with a well-balanced breakfast can boost your mental and physical performance all day long.Students who eat good breakfasts do better on tests than those who skip breakfast or eat sugary snack foods. 2. Salmon Like all oily fish, is filled with the omega-3 essential fatty acids EPA and DHA, which may boost brain power, reduce blood pressure and reduce triglycerides, bad fats that clog your arteries. Omega-3 deprivation may interfere with cognitive abilities, especially in babies.Enjoy salmon grilled, smoked or chilled on salads. 3. Folic Acid Everyone needs folic acid, but it is especially important for preventing birth defects.Women who plan to have children need 400 micrograms (mcg) of folic acid every day during pregnancy to prevent brain defects in their babies.To ensure your baby’s brain is not deprived of folic acid in the crucial first trimester of pregnancy, do not wait until you test positive.Start taking folic acid supplements or load up on folate-rich legumes, leafy greens, asparagus, and broccoli when you start trying to have a baby. 4. Tomatoes Enjoy a breakfast tomato or load your pasta, pizza or hamburger with tomato sauce. Whether raw in salads or cooked, tomatoes are the most concentrated source of lycopene, an antioxidant that may reduce your chances of developing Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of age-related mental decline. 5. Blueberries Give your memory a boost with a helping of blueberries. The flavonoids in blueberries and strawberries may protect you against memory loss.Whether fresh or frozen, this low-calorie delicious treat may also help your cardiovascular health.They can be served alone as a snack, make a colorful addition to salads, served with cereal or yoghurt or added to many healthy desserts. 6. Almonds One of the best natural sources of brain protective Vitamin E, raw, unsalted almonds also are a good source of vegetarian protein and contain other heart-healthy antioxidants. Because they are high in calories, do not go overboard on almonds.Enjoy a small handful as a convenient snack or sprinkled in morning cereal and possibly reduce chances of getting Alzheimer’s or the rate of brain decline if you or a loved one is already suffering from this disease 7. Oysters The famous eighteenth century lover Casanova would eat oysters for breakfast as an aphrodisiac. While the amorous qualities of oysters may be an urban legend, they are one of the best food sources of zinc, a mineral that is necessary for good brain function. 8. Swiss Chard Add a handful of Swiss chard to soups, stews or stir-fries. It is a top food source for vitamin K, which has been shown to improve certain types of memory.Also being a good source of vitamins A, C and iron makes this decorative and richly flavored green a genuine superfood. 9. Broccoli When you mother told you to eat your broccoli, she knew what she was talking about. Whether eaten raw, steamed on its own, or served with jacket potatoes, this one vegetable is a nutritional powerhouse.It’s a good source of choline, a nutrient related to B vitamins that is essential for brain development.It also supplies vitamins A and K and folate, as well as being low in calories and high in fiber. 10. Turmeric Curry is a smart food choice. Curcumin, an important compound in turmeric, may prevent brain degeneration from age and disease. Some studies also show that it may help prevent or slow the progress of some cancers. 11. Rosemary Rosemary really is, as Shakespeare claimed, for remembrance. There is some evidence that eating rosemary may improve blood flow to the brain and that rosemary scents may improve alertness and test performance.Try rosemary with roast pork, chicken, potatoes or fish. 12. Red Beets Whether tossed in a salad or cooked in the traditional Russian borscht soup, red beets supply a hefty dose of anthocyanins and flavonoids which may help both memory and cognitive processing speed. 13. Flax Seeds If you want all the brain and cardiovascular health benefits of omega-3 fatty acids, but do not enjoy fatty fish, grind up some flax seeds and sprinkle them in baked goods or on cereal or salads.As whole flax seeds can pass through your body without being digested, you will get the best nutritional benefits from ground flax or flax oil. 14. Walnuts Like flax seeds, walnuts are another good non-fishy source of omega-3 fatty acids, substances that not only improve brain function but are also good for your heart. 15. Quinoa This whole grain is loaded with the B vitamins your brain needs to function properly. It also contains a good balance of protein, fiber and complex carbohydrates, which give the steady supply of energy your brain needs for optimal functioning.Mix quinoa with or substitute it for rice. 16. Sunflower Seeds Build brain power by snacking on sunflower seeds or sprinkling them in salads. They are high in tryptophan, which is converted in your brain to serotonin, a neurotransmitter.Tryptophan may reduce symptoms of depression.These small seeds are also packed with thiamine, a B-vitamin necessary for brain function. 17. Red Bell Peppers Vitamin C may help increase mental agility. One of the best sources is the red bell pepper, which also contain B6, a vitamin necessary for proper nerve function.They are also packed with beta-carotene, vitamin A and phytochemicals which fight inflammation and may improve your cardiovascular system. 18. Red Cabbage Cheap, versatile and low calorie, red cabbage contains polyphenols. These antioxidants protect brain cells from damage and may prevent or ameliorate Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.They also are a good source of brain-protective anthocyanins.Shred raw cabbage in salads, add it to stir fries or make a cabbage curry to combine the benefits of red cabbage and turmeric. 19. Coffee Scientists are discovering the biology behind what ordinary people know from experience: coffee, in moderate quantities, does make you more alert and able to perform cognitive tasks. Even better, there is some evidence that regular, moderate consumption of coffee may help protect against Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases.Make sure to drink coffee black or with low-fat milk.Adding sugar and full-fat dairy products isn’t good for your brain or your waistline. 20. Tea The ordinary cup of tea you take for granted actually has brain benefits beyond the immediate alertness boost due to caffeine. Theanine, a substance found only in tea, may increase your problem solving abilities.The antioxidants in tea may also help build neurons in your brain
Posted on: Mon, 17 Mar 2014 11:56:21 +0000
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