Brainfoods To Help You Concentrate While Working From Home
Looking for a snack to lift your spirits and energy while working at home? Check out below to learn more about brainfoods, the perfect variety of snack to keep you focused and productive during your at-home workday
What is a brainfood?
Brainfood is a term that describes foods which help support good mental performance, providing the brain with the nutrients it needs to perform at its best.
Why are brainfoods particularly helpful during the work day?
It’s important to remember that thinking consumes energy. This point is often forgotten, but carrying out mental activities can leave you just as tired and energy-drained as performing physical activities. Although the brain accounts for only about two to three percent of total body weight, it is responsible for about 20 percent of all energy consumption.
Which nutrients/ingredients distinguish brainfood?
Brainfood is characterized by a good mix of high-quality fats, amino acids, vitamins and minerals, all of which are necessary for keeping your brain working smoothly.
Water: The number one brain food is water. Even a fluid deficit of only 2 percent has a noticeable effect on cognitive performance, including lack of focus and decreased creativity. It’s recommended to drink a glass of water at least every 1.5 hours throughout the day.
Proteins: The individual amino acids that make up proteins are also an important component of our brain cells.
Omega-3 Fatty Acids: Polyunsaturated fatty acids are essential for healthy brain function. Fatty acids are an important component of every single cell in our body, including brain cells. Remember that the quality of the fats we consume actually has an effect on our cells. While industrial trans fats make them rigid and inflexible, unsaturated fatty acids ensure a flexible cell membrane, much better for the body.
B Vitamins: B vitamins are essential for the smooth transmission of information between nerve cells. Nerve vitamins include above all vitamins B1, B6, B12 and folic acid.
Vitamin C: Vitamin C, known most widely for its immune-boosting capabilities, also helps protect brain cells from harmful free radicals.
Magnesium: If the body lacks magnesium, the brain is facing a problem. Magnesium supports the production of messenger substances and the transmission of nerve impulses, which makes it essential for our cognitive abilities.
Blueberries: The antioxidants found in berries like blueberries and blackberries intercept free radicals and thus protect our brain cells. The sugar in the small berries are also converted into glucose by the body, which helps supply the brain with energy.
Nuts: Nuts are a great brainfood because of their high content of satiating protein and good unsaturated fatty acids. Walnuts provide a particularly high dose of valuable omega-3 fatty acids. In an Australian study, researchers found that more than 10 grams of walnuts per day are associated with improved cognitive abilities.
Beans: Whether chickpeas, lentils or mung beans: beans provide vegetable proteins and B vitamins.
Energyballs: Energyballs have begun to replace energy bars, as they similar amounts of nuts and dried food but, depending on the recipe, generally contain less sugar.
Coffee and Black Tea: Coffee not only wakes you up, but also strengthens your long-term memory when consumed after learning, according to a recent University of Baltimore study. But be careful: too much caffeine can make you nervous and unable to concentrate.
