Food plays an important role in our task to strengthen memory.
The main fuel for the brain is glucose, which we get from carbohydrates. Complex carbohydrates, such as whole grains, legumes, vegetables, and fruits, provide our brain with constant energy, whichyou get the perfect amount of glucose just when we need it. It is known to all, for example, that children and adults who go to school or work without having breakfast have worse performance. Therefore, to obtain good cognitive function,It is key to maintain an optimal blood sugar level, which is achieved by eating regularly and especially unrefined foods.
Eating foods rich in omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids also helps us improve our health.a learning and memory capacity. These healthy fats work by protecting the membrane that covers neurons, and increasing their ability to carry signals. The omega-3s that our brain needs can be obtained by combining during the semanates blue fish (sardines, mackerel, anchovies, salmon), with oil or ground flax seeds, walnuts or ground chia.
Fruits and vegetables cannot be missing from our diet either; source of fiber, vitamin C, folic acid, carotenoids, miNerals such as calcium, magnesium and potassium, flavonoids and antioxidants; They provide us with extra protection against premature aging of the brain. Antioxidants inhibit the formation of free radicals, which are the cause of damagehealthy cells, including those in the brain, leading to memory loss. Blueberries, blackberries and strawberries are not only delicious, but also protect our brain thanks to the anthocyanins of great antioxidant power thate contain, improving our intellectual performance.
And finally it seems that the catechins in green tea, to which many positive health effects are already attributed, promote neurogenesis, improving cognitive functions, in particular short-term memory, which allows us, for example, remember for a moment, without having to take a note, a phone number. We use this type of memory many times a day and it is what allows us to carry out tasks of a certain complexity in a fairly fluid way.
Not all the foods we eat are beneficial for our brain activity, and we should avoid their consumption as much as possible. We can forget about alcohol, sugar, excessively refined flours and saturated fats.that they are not good friends of our brain. You just have to see, for example, how a person speaks, thinks or recites with a few too many drinks.
To have an active and clear mind, apart from consuming these foods to improve memory, pWe can do mental exercises, such as memorizing lists of objects or doing sudoku puzzles and crossword puzzles in order to further stimulate our brain. If your problem is lack of time, you can always go to our restaurants rich in brainfood. Keeping the brain young will be a matter of what we choose.
Fuentes:
European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) (2010). Scientific Opinion on Dietary Reference Values for carbohydrates and dietary fibre. EFSA Journal 8(3):1462.
Peters A (2011). The Selfish Brain: competition for energy resources. American Journal of Human Biology 23:29-34.
Peters A, Kubera B, Hubold C, et al. (2011). The Selfish Brain: Stress and eating behavior. Frontiers in Neuroscience 5(74):1-11.
Valenzuela, R., Tapia, G.,González, M., and Valenzuela, A. (2011). Omega-3 fatty acids (EPA and DHA) and their application in various clinical situations. Chilean journal of nutrition, 38 (3), 356-367.
Einöther et al. Acute effects of tea consumption on attention and mood. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Oct 2013.
Challem, J. and Block M. (2008). Natural antioxidants: How to reduce the risk of cancer, Alzheimer's and cardiovascular diseases. Madrid: Ed. Nowtilus.SL
