Your brain is one of the most essential organs of the human body. It is the control center of your body and is responsible for keeping the other organs in control. It could help you to move, think, see, feel or even breathe. Due to this, it is of utmost importance for you to take care of this organ to the best extent.
The food which you eat could have a great impact on the performance and health of your brain. Providing the required energy and nutrients to the brain is very essential because the brain is an energy-intensive organ.
It could easily utilize 20% calories of your body. These calories may serve as good fuel for the brain to maintain its focus. Though there is no single food item that could prove to be excellent brain-boosting food, you could still go through a list of the brain-boosting product.
All these food items may help to truncate the risks related to age disorders. Say, for example, omega-3 fatty acids could help to repair your brain cells.
On the other hand, the antioxidants received by your brain may help to treat stress and inflammation that could further lead to Alzheimer’s disease.
As a result, you could also term these as some of the best natural supplement for brain memory.
Now let us have a look at the different food items that could help to bolster your brainpower and provide you with the required nutrients to maintain your cognitive health.
Coffee
The two major ingredients included in coffee known as antioxidants and caffeine may help to augment your brain health. Besides this, the caffeine included in coffee also has a myriad of benefits like-
Caffeine might help to augment your level of concentration and focus. Regular consumption of caffeine could even lead to short term amelioration in your focus and concentration levels.
Another benefit of caffeine is that it may help to block adenosine in your body. Adenosine is a chemical messenger that might make you feel sleepy. So blocking this chemical messenger could help to increase your alertness.
Caffeine could even augment the amount of some neurotransmitters, like dopamine in your body. This might further help to improve your mood and make you feel happy.
So if you drink a cup of coffee in the morning, then it could be good for your brain health. Drinking coffee in the long term might even truncate your risk for several diseases like Alzheimer’s.
Other important aspects are discussed here.
Dark Chocolate
The major component included in dark chocolate is Cocoa. Also referred to as cacao, cocoa consists of flavonoids that is an antioxidant.
The benefits of antioxidants for brain health are numerous. Since there are greater risks of the brain being susceptible to oxidative stress, antioxidants may help to protect you from certain brain diseases. Hence, eating dark chocolate could help to augment your brain health because flavonoids can help in the growth of your neurons and Brain blood vessels.
Here is a study from the NCBI talks about the same.
Whole Grains
Just like any other organ of your body, the brain also requires food as fuel. It requires energy to focus and concentrate and maintain the functioning of the other organs of your body. This energy is provided to the brain from the blood, in the form of glucose. The blood, in turn, receives this energy from brown whole grains that have a low GI.
This study from South Dakota Health Department also mentioned the high fiber whole grains to be the fuel for the brains.
Turmeric
With a plethora of benefits, this yellow coloured spice is a key ingredient to ameliorate your brain health. The major reason behind the brain health-related benefits of turmeric is because of its key ingredient, curcumin.
However, turmeric consists of only 3 to 6% curcumin. So you may always consult your doctor about the quantity of Turmeric that could help to bolster your brain health.
Since curcumin present in turmeric can cross the blood-brain barrier, it could help your brain cells. This antioxidant also has several anti-inflammatory properties that could benefit you. Let us have a look at the different benefits of curcumin for your brain health.
Curcumin could help to improve your memory by clearing the amyloid plaques, which may, in turn, be linked to the development of Alzheimer’s disease.
Another benefit of curcumin is that it could augment the production of brain-derived neurotrophic factors. This is a growth hormone that may increase the growth of your brain cells. Hence, curcumin might even truncate the risk of age-related mental diseases.
Since curcumin even enhances the level of dopamine and serotonin, it could help to cure your depression and improve your mood.
Here are some of the effects discussed in Alzheimer’s disease treatment.
Oily Fish
Oily fish could help to promote the healthy functioning of your brain because it is a rich source of omega-3 fatty acids. Since your body cannot naturally produce the essential fatty acids, it needs these acids from an external source. You could receive two of the most effective omega-3 fatty acids known as DHA & EPA from oily fish. Some of the best sources of oily fish may include salmon, herring, trout, pilchards, etc.
Any deficiency of DHA in your body might enhance your susceptibility to diseases like memory loss, Alzheimer’s disease or even dementia. On the other hand, if your body has optimum levels of both DHA and EPA then it could help to enhance the brain chemical serotonin and thus, improve your mood. This is because these fats would help your brain, heart and even joints to function properly.
Confirmed here as well.
Avocados
Avocados are a good source of unsaturated fat and hence, they may augment your brain’s health. The monounsaturated fats may deal with high blood pressure and cognitive decline. So if you eat avocados, then your blood pressure level could be maintained and this might further help to deal with cognitive decline.
Besides avocados, there are even other sources of healthy unsaturated fats like walnuts and Brazil nuts, cashews, almonds, peanuts, sunflower oil and soybean oil.
Other aspects related to Avacado and brain health are discussed here.
Pumpkin Seeds
Being rich in various micronutrients like copper, magnesium and zinc, pumpkin seeds could help to support your brain functioning. Besides the presence of these micronutrients, pumpkin seeds are themselves a powerful antioxidant. So, they may protect your brain from free radical damage. The benefits of the different nutrients present in pumpkin seeds are explained below.
Magnesium present in the pumpkin seeds is quite essential for memory and learning. So low levels of this ingredient may enhance the risk of certain diseases like depression and migraine.
Another micronutrient present in pumpkin seeds is Zinc. This nutrient could help to support nerve signaling and save you from different neurological diseases like Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease and even depression.
Any deficiency of iron present in pumpkin seeds could even lead to brain fog and impaired brain functioning. In the end, copper present in pumpkin seeds could help to control the nerve signals. It might even save you from Alzheimer’s disease.
A few pointers are discussed here.
Broccoli
Being a rich source of vitamin K, broccoli could help to improve your brain functioning and memory. The reason behind this may be because broccoli is rich in different compounds known as glucosinolates. Due to the presence of these compounds, it could help your brain to function properly. When these compounds are broken by the body, they may produce isothiocyanate. Isothiocyanates might help your body to deal with a number of brain-related diseases and even oxidative stress.
Besides this, Broccoli also has flavonoids and vitamin C in it. The flavonoids are antioxidants that could bolster your brain health and its functioning.
Berries
Another important food item that might help to enrich your brain health includes berries. Berries are a rich source of flavonoid antioxidants. These antioxidants could help to deal with oxidative stress and inflammation. The different antioxidants present in berries are caffeic acid, quercetin, anthocyanin and catechin.
All these antioxidants have a number of positive effects on your brain health. They could help to reduce inflammation throughout your body and enhance the communication between the different brain cells. The antioxidants might even augment the brain plasticity that could help your brain cells to develop new connections. Thus, all this could ameliorate the memory and learning skills of your brain. In the end, antioxidants present the berries might even help to truncate the risk of different age-related diseases.
Some of the antioxidant-rich berries that you may include in your diet include blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, mulberries, and blackcurrants.
Nuts
Nuts are a great source of healthy fats, vitamin A and antioxidants. All these nutrients could provide positive effects on your brain health and its functioning. Besides this, the nuts may even increase your heart health that could be linked with a healthy brain.
The regular consumption of nuts may truncate the risk of age-related diseases in adults. The vitamin E present in these nuts could fight against the free radical damage thus, truncating your mental decline. So you may add different nuts to your diet, especially walnuts. This is because walnuts even have omega-3 fatty acids.
Some of the brain functionality supporting attributes of walnuts are discussed here.
Eggs
Being a good source of different nutrients and vitamins like vitamin B12, vitamin B6, choline and folate, Eggs are an important source for maintaining the health of your brain. Choline is a crucial micronutrient that could augment the production of acetylcholine in your body and hence, improve your memory and mood.
So consuming eggs could be a great way to receive choline and hence, augment your brain health. At the same time, the vitamin D present in eggs might even truncate the risk of different age-related diseases and mental decline. It could reduce the levels of homocysteine in your body. Homocysteine is an amino acid that might be linked with the diseases like Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.
At the same time, if you have any deficiency of folate and vitamin B12, then it could augment the risk of anxiety and depression in you. Vitamin B12 might also help to balance the sugar levels in your body while synthesizing different brain chemicals. So eggs play a vital role in balancing your mood and enhancing your brain development and its functioning.
Eggs consumption is supported during pregnancy as well for a child’s brain development. More on it here.
Tomatoes
The major reason for including tomatoes in your diet to enhance your brain health is because they consist of a powerful antioxidant known as lycopene. Lycopene may even prevent free radical damage that could occur during dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. So you may eat cooked tomatoes with a little olive oil to enhance the health of your brain.
Green Tea
The caffeine present in green tea could help to ameliorate your brain functioning and its performance. It might augment your focus, memory, concentration, and even performance. Other ingredients present in green tea that function together to enhance your brain functioning include L- theanine, antioxidants and polyphenols. The antioxidant and polyphenols might help your body to deal with Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease.
At the same time, L- theanine is an amino acid that can cross the brain-blood barrier. It could even augment the functioning of the neurotransmitter GABA to help you feel more relaxed and evade anxiety. Not only this but L- theanine could even deal with your depression and anxiety by enhancing the frequency of alpha waves of your brain.
More on it here.
Let Us Finish It Up!
Thus, the foods mentioned above in this article could help to ameliorate your memory and concentration at the same time. They may reduce the risk of different age-related diseases like Parkinson’s disease, dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. The reason behind this Is because some of the food items contain fatty acids and other micronutrients that might enhance your brain cell functioning and its development.
So, if your food items are rich in Omega fatty acids, B vitamins and antioxidants, then they could help to enhance your memory and brain health. However, you may optimise your brain health by keeping a check on your diet, getting enough sleep, exercising regularly and keeping yourself hydrated. At the same time, it is also very important to reduce your anxiety and stress through meditation or yoga. The importance of exercises, meditation and yoga cannot be ignored. Regular exercising could help to ameliorate your cognitive functioning and decrease your mental ageing process.
If you do not include brain-boosting foods in your diet, then you may have to opt for brain power supplements later. A brainpower supplement is a multivitamin that could contain different micronutrients and Omega-three fatty acids. However, consuming these supplements is always recommended after consulting your doctor. Otherwise, they may even cause certain side effects on you.
Additional References