{"id":6116,"date":"2013-10-07T22:41:58","date_gmt":"2013-10-08T02:41:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/ombs\/?p=6116"},"modified":"2013-10-07T22:41:58","modified_gmt":"2013-10-08T02:41:58","slug":"brain-food-what-to-eat-in-order-to-study-more-effectively","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/ombs\/2013\/10\/07\/brain-food-what-to-eat-in-order-to-study-more-effectively\/","title":{"rendered":"Brain Food: What to Eat in Order to Study More Effectively"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Food\"
Brain Food to Smile About<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It\u2019s almost time for the dreaded fall midterms.\u00a0 Somehow, midterms manage to be even more stressful than finals.\u00a0 Maybe it\u2019s because of the time of year they fall, which is easily the most beautiful time to be living in Boston.\u00a0 You just want to spend time outside walking on the esplanade, looking at the beautiful red and orange leaves on the trees that line the river and watching the rowing teams pass you by.\u00a0 Well, it may actually be beneficial to take some time out of your studying to take a stroll along the river, or to just sit on a bench for a little while.\u00a0 In fact, take some time to picnic this fall with some brain food, because studies show that it will enhance your studying experience.<\/p>\n

Some of these brain foods include foods that you\u2019d expect.\u00a0 These are the foods that your mom has been forcing down your throat, whether you like them or not, for as long as you can remember.\u00a0 But take a step back and think about why.\u00a0 Berries, for example, provide neurological benefits.\u00a0 They have a ton of antioxidants which will protect you from bacteria that make you sick when you\u2019re stressed.\u00a0\u00a0 Berries mediate signaling pathways that are involved in cell survival, and they increase the neuroplasticity, neurotransmission and calcium buffering properties of the brain, all related to aging, and in turn, memory and behavioral changes.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

There have been books after books, articles after articles, and studies after studies done on why eating nutritious foods is actually beneficial to more than just your weight and appearance.\u00a0 They change the chemistry in your brain, allowing for more capacity to remember what you are studying, and to retain that information.\u00a0 All of these books, articles, and studies agree that there are some key recommended nutrients in the foods that are classified as brain food.\u00a0 These nutrients are omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin E, fiber, folate, polyphenols and monounsaturated fats and they all affect the cognition potential of your brain!<\/p>\n

The point is, your brain reacts to what you eat, so you should eat foods that make your brain react in a way that enhances your studying.\u00a0 Eating fish high in omega- 3 fatty acids increases the production of serotonin and lowers your chances of becoming depressed.\u00a0 Docosahexanoic acid (DHA) is one of the most abundant forms of omega- 3 fatty acids found in the cell membranes in the brain and therefore the brain depends on our consumption of dietary DHA.\u00a0 Add some salmon, and some walnuts which are also high in these omega- 3 fatty acids.\u00a0 Flavanoids in green tea and chocolate improve your cognitive function, as well, along with the Vitamin E in asparagus, avocado, nuts and spinach that reduces cognitive decay, or memory loss.<\/p>\n

So here is a list of the foods to bring on your picnic: berries, salmon, walnuts, green tea, chocolate, asparagus, avocado, almonds, cashews, hazelnuts, pecans, Brazil nuts, and spinach.\u00a0 Add in a source of calcium from some cheese and make yourself a delicious salad for your picnic.\u00a0 Stop by your favorite chocolate shop on the way back, and you\u2019ve got your fill of healthy, nutrient- rich, brain foods to help enhance your midterm studying.\u00a0 Good luck!<\/p>\n

Melissa Heller<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Sources:<\/em><\/p>\n

Brain Foods: the effect of nutrients on brain function<\/a> -NIH<\/p>\n

Berry Fruit Enhances Beneficial Signaling in the Brain<\/a> –Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry<\/em><\/p>\n

Nutrients that affect cognitive function<\/a> -NIH<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s almost time for the dreaded fall midterms.\u00a0 Somehow, midterms manage to be even more stressful than finals.\u00a0 Maybe it\u2019s because of the time of year they fall, which is easily the most beautiful time to be living in Boston.\u00a0 You just want to spend time outside walking on the esplanade, looking at the beautiful […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7898,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[587],"tags":[1203,1202,1209,1207,1208,1204,1205,1206,1101],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/ombs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6116"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/ombs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/ombs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/ombs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7898"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/ombs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6116"}],"version-history":[{"count":39,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/ombs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6116\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6210,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/ombs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6116\/revisions\/6210"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/ombs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6116"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/ombs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6116"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/ombs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6116"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}