Today I Learned...
Key Takeaways:
- Nutrition is important to the health of your brain, but the older you get, the more important it becomes.
- As you age, your body loses some of its ability to absorb nutrients, so you need to take more care in planning your diet.
- You need to be sure you are getting the right vitamins and minerals from your food.
emory and focus are essential to the quality of life. Therefore, it's important that we pay attention to what we eat in order to make sure we're getting all the nutrients necessary for good brain health.
Let's dive into the top essential nutrients you should be consuming for a healthy brain.
1. B Vitamins
B vitamins is an essential nutrient for a healthy brain. They are responsible for the production of energy in your body, which fuels brain function.
B vitamins can be found in foods like eggs, meat, whole grains, nuts, and legumes.
2. Vitamin D
Vitamin D is the sunshine vitamin. It's not just for preventing bone disease—it also helps improve memory and focus, and can even help prevent dementia.
Getting enough daily vitamin D has many health benefits, but it's better to get it from the sun or food rather than in a pill.
Vitamin D can be found in foods like salmon, egg yolks, canned tuna, mushrooms, fortified milk and orange juice.
3. Omega-3 Fatty Acids
Omega-3 fatty acids play important roles in brain health. Research has shown that omega-3 fats can help prevent depression and improve memory function.
Omega-3 fatty acids are a type of essential fatty acid that your body cannot make on its own but must consume from food sources.
Omega-3 fatty acids are found in fish and other seafood, walnuts, flaxseed, chia seeds, and oils. As well as dark leafy green vegetables like spinach.
Learn more: Fishing For Health: Seafood Dinners That Support Healthy Aging
4. Vitamin E
Vitamin E is a powerful antioxidant that protects the brain from damage. Studies have shown that taking vitamin E supplements can improve memory and focus in older people, as well as be effective against dementia. Researchers also found that high doses of vitamin E could help prevent Alzheimer's disease by slowing down the mental decline associated with old age.
Vitamin E can be found in foods like nuts, seeds, and vegetable oils.
Remember that it can take weeks or even months for your body to fully absorb and use the nutrients you eat. It's also important to remember that these are just the basics – there are many other nutrients out there that are important for brain health.
Learn More:
- More healthy foods and recipes, check out our class: 7 Healing Foods & 7 Simple Recipes
- Antioxidant-Rich Foods for Healthy Aging
- 8 Foods that Help Beat Stress and Anxiety
- 5 Foods That Will Give You A Healthy Mood Boost
Classes by:
Ravina Chandra
