FEED YOUR BRAIN
Your brain is an organ, hungry for nutrients. Start packing these foods into your diet, and your brain will thank you with clearer thinking and slower aging.
Go Nuts
Here are those omega-3 fatty acids again, perking up a salad or handy for snacking. Walnuts might be especially good at improving memory and cognition, while they also lower blood pressure and protect arteries. Almonds and hazelnuts deliver ample vitamin E, which can reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease.
Tap Into Water
Hydration could be our most important brain-health habit. Water helps the brain form proteins, absorb nutrients, and eliminate waste. Start with a morning glass of water to make up for a night without fluids, and end the day with another glass or a cup of herbal tea.
Go Green
Vitamin K. Lutein. Folate. Beta carotene. All good for the brain, and all found in leafy greens like kale, spinach, and collards. Another essential green is broccoli and its cruciferous buddies, Brussels sprouts, bok choy, cabbage, and turnips. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil or flaxseed oil for an extra brain boost.
Dive In
Oily fish delivers unsaturated fats that build neurons, increase blood flow to the brain, and possibly ward off Alzheimer’s disease. Twice a week, enjoy salmon, cod, canned light tuna, or pollack, plus such delights as herring, sardines, and anchovies.
Make It Berry Delicious
Berries get their dazzling colors from flavonoids, which are also antioxidants that help improve memory, reduce inflammation, and ward off cognitive decline. In one study, women eating two servings of strawberries and blueberries a week could delay memory decline by two and a half years. Try blackberries, blackcurrants, and mulberries, too.
Caffeinate
Jumpstart the morning with that latte or chai, and you’re also doing your brain a favor. Caffeine drinkers score better on tests of mental function. Caffeine can also help solidify new memories, keeping them from skittering out of your brain.
“Wine” For A Little Chocolate
Those hard-working flavonoids are abundant in dark chocolate containing at least 70 percent cacao. Go easy on the overly sweetened stuff. The same goes for wine. Too much is harmful to brain and body, but a glass with dinner can improve blood flow and prevent clotting.
