Keep your brain firing on all four cylinders.
We often think of nutrition in terms of physical activity, and making sure we have enough energy to get through a busy day or a tough workout, and we tend to disregard how much energy our brain needs.
Many of us think that drowsiness, loss of concentration, and the inability to remember things is just stress. But what we forget is that our brains need a healthy diet and certain nutrients to keep it working at an optimal level.
If you are juggling busy days of learning, working and exercise with late nights studying and revising for tests, then you need to pay close attention to how you are fuelling your body.
Here are some great brain power snacks that will help you stay alert and focussed for sustained periods.
🍓Dark Fruits and Vegetable for Antioxidants.
Maintaining a high level of antioxidants is important for cognition and memory.
Look for darker coloured fruits and vegetable for the highest levels. Our top picks would be blueberries, Goji berries, strawberries, dark grapes, cucumbers, green beans and carrots. Along with water, these are all great hydrators too.
🍫Dark Chocolate (Hooray!)
For the night owls… here’s your excuse to indulge in your guilty pleasure. But… chose wisely. The darker the chocolate the better the quality and the higher the levels of theobromine, which contains trytophan, the basis of serotonin. This is a great one to elevate your mood, so if your struggling with motivation this may help you stay positive. Make sure the sugar content is not too high and a minimum of 70% cocoa solid.
🥜Pack some snacks.
If you have a busy day on campus, prepare healthy snacks to take with you rather than relying on rubbish from a vending machine. Try and bag of mixed nuts and seeds, like roasted almonds, macadamias, walnuts (they even look like a brain!) sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds. These snacks have higher amounts of magnesium, potassium, zinc and selenium which are vital for improved concentration, memory retention and keeping us calm.
🌯Carbs for concentration.
We’re talking quality carbs, not high sugar sweets or pastries. Grab a wrap stuffed full of salad and hummus or a multigrain rice cake with nut butter. It’s proven that a small, high fibre, carb snack before a test will boost concentration and brain power. So don’t head into a big exam on an empty stomach, the brain needs good fuel to operate optimally.