Food for Thought – Nutrition and Your Brain
Did you know that your brain is 60% fat? Too often, when people think about nutrition, it’s about building muscle or losing weight. But what you eat can affect more than the size and shape of your body. It can actually influence the health of your brain. Learning about key brain nutrients can help keep your brain working at its best.
Fat and Your Brain
60% of your brain is fat and much of the fat is a very special omega-3 called DHA. DHA forms a jacket around your nerves and helps the electrical messages from your brain to stay targeted. This is why DHA is so important in helping to maintain normal brain function. You will find DHA in oil-rich fish like salmon, mackerel and sardines, fresh or tinned.
Carbs and Your Brain
Did you know that your brain uses 20% of your daily calories, even though it is only about 2% of your body weight? Your brain needs fuel to function and carbohydrate, especially glucose, is its favourite energy source. Your brain can use ketones, but still needs to get at least 50% of its energy from glucose. Even if you fast or follow a keto diet, your body will make glucose from amino acids to keep your brain fuelled.
Including carb-rich foods throughout the day can help keep your brain well fed. Choose high fibre carbs like brown rice, wholegrain bread, jacket potatoes, high fibre breakfast cereals, oats and pasta.
B Vitamins and Mental Performance
B vitamins have lots of roles to play when it comes to your nervous system, psychological health and how your brain metabolises nutrients.
Pantothenic Acid, also known as Vitamin B5
Pantothenic acid is really important for normal mental performance. Find pantothenic acid in salmon, chicken, avocado and mushrooms.
Vitamin B12
Vitamin B12 is essential for healthy nerves and normal psychological function. Find B12 in yoghurt, milk, eggs, all kinds of fish and beef.
Vitamin B6
Vitamin B6 helps to reduce tiredness and fatigue. Bananas are a great source of vitamin B6, and you will also find it in chickpeas, salmon and beef.
Check Your Iron
Being low in iron can affect your mood as well as how your brain functions. Symptoms of anaemia, low iron, can include:
- Weakness
- Feeling lightheaded or dizzy
- Increased heart rate or palpitations
- Pale
- Low mood or depression
- Short of breath or getting out of breath easily
Low iron is quite common in Ireland, and you can feel tired even before you have full anaemia. You need to eat iron-rich foods at two to three meals every day. Foods that are rich in iron include:
- Red meat and liver
- Chicken legs
- Breakfast cereals fortified with iron
- Nuts and seeds such as almonds and pumpkin seeds
- Spinach and kale
- Barley and lentils
- Eggs
- Shellfish like mussels and cockles
And Sleep…
Nobody’s brain works well without sleep. You can’t always control how much sleep you get, think of parents of small children, but lots of people miss out on sleep without realising it.
Aim to be in bed for at least 8 hours. You need around 8 hours sleep each night, and if you are only in bed for 6 hours there is no way you are getting what you need. If you need to get up at 6am, then you need to be in bed by 10pm. How often do you miss sleep watching TV or looking at screens? Even going to bed half an hour earlier each night can make a huge difference to how you feel after a few weeks. Give it a try.