As kids we were always told that “we are what we eat”.
Unfortunately, rather than really pay attention to this simple wisdom most of us shot back “I sure don’t feel like candy bar” and then kept on following a less than picture-perfect Standard American Diet that left most of us with little energy and anything but ideal health and wellness.
Study after study shows that many of us are quite literally digging our own graves with our teeth, steadfastly marching towards all kinds of health complications without even realizing the damage we are doing.
Things are starting to turn around, however. More people are waking up to the importance of cleaning up their diets than ever before. High quality and nutritious foods are available in abundance, folks are starting to push back against the overtly chemically altered foods that were so popular before, and we really starting to put our sodium and sugar levels in check.
Even still, some folks are walking around feeling a lot “foggier” than they’d like to. Their brains just don’t feel as flexible, as quick, or as adaptable as they did when they were younger – and many people are learning first-hand the impact that Father Time has on our memories, our temper, and our emotions (all of which are dictated by the gray matter we have between our ears).
Believe it or not, making a handful of smart choices when it comes to your daily diet can transform your mental health in ways you never have expected possible before.
Below we highlight just a couple of the best foods for brain health you want to begin adding to your daily diet ASAP, delicious and nutritious foods that are going to reawaken your brain matter and your brain cells almost immediately.
Salmon & Oily Fish
Potentially the very best of all the different foods for brain health there, salmon – especially wild caught salmon – is a game changer when you added to your healthy eating routine.
About as oily a fish as you are going to find in the ocean, wild caught salmon is flooded with omega-3 fatty acids that include both DHA and EPA. Both of these fatty acids are of critical importance for the regeneration of healthy brain cells, the structure of our brain, and optimum brain functionality.
On top of that, wild caught salmon is rich in magnesium, B vitamins, vitamin D, and a vitamin called choline. All of these vitamins are capable of getting through the blood/brain barrier that other nutrients cannot pass through, and quite literally fuel your brain while keeping it much younger (from a health standpoint) as well.
Walnuts & Mixed Nuts
While salmon isn’t all that uncommon to be featured in a healthy diet, walnuts (for one reason or another) don’t often make the cut.
If you’re serious about supercharging your mental capacity with foods for brain health you need to be sure that walnuts are in your regular rotation. It’s not a bad idea to snack on a handful of walnuts every day to jumpstart you in your brain with all of the nutrients it deserves.
Walnuts are one of the better foods for brain health because they are absolutely swimming in amino acids, a full range of bioavailable minerals, a whole host of B vitamins, and quite a bit of vitamin E. The high level of vitamin E in particular helps to make walnuts very attractive for those fueling their mind through their mouths, as a number of different studies – including one from the American Journal of Epidemiology – shows the positive impact that these biochemicals have on the human brain.
You’re also going to get quite a bit of anti-inflammatory and antioxidant benefits when you are regularly eating walnuts. Loaded with polyphenols, walnuts are going to help push back against the oxidation and inflammation that naturally degrades the brain over time. This will keep you thinking a lot younger (and a lot clearer), especially as you age.
Avocados
Avocados deserve to be on your healthy eating grocery list for dozens and dozens of different reasons, but they are also one of the best foods for brain health you can get your hands on all year round.
The Federation of American Societies of Experimental Biology has published a number of research papers showing the positive impacts that foods rich with monounsaturated fats have on the overall brain health and cognition – and avocados are almost entirely monounsaturated fats.
Okay, that’s a little bit of an over exaggeration (not by much) but hopefully the point we’re trying to illustrate is clear. Avocados are overloaded with monounsaturated fats that not only improve your overall brain health and well-being, but also improve circulation in the brain while delivering a payload of vital biochemicals and nutrients that include vitamin C, vitamin E, copper, and folate.
High levels of potassium in avocados keep your blood pressure low (but never artificially or dangerously low), a big boost for reducing stress and anxiety. This will undoubtably have a positive impact on your brain as well.
Closing Thoughts
At the end of the day, there are dozens and dozens of different foods for brain health that you can pick up at your local grocery store – all without having to blow up your bank account or break your regular grocery budget.
Each of the options that we highlighted above are going to do tremendous good for your cognition, your memory, and your clarity of thought on their own. But when you combine them together with a healthy eating plan you follow on a daily basis you’re able to (quite literally) transform most every aspect of your life from top to bottom.
Every single thing that you put into your body will have an impact, good or bad. There’s no such thing as a neutral food choice.
As soon as you really embrace the severity of the decisions you make with every bite you really start to understand how quickly and how effortlessly you can change your brain health and wellness, your blood pressure and your weight, as well as the way you look and feel – all by making smarter choices at breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Hopefully we’ve been able to help point you in the right direction with great foods for brain health to get started with.