You are what you eat, and our brains prove it. The foods we consume can either fuel our focus and energy or leave us feeling sluggish. For students trying to improve their mental focus and energy, understanding brain food can be a useful game-changer.

Food is more than just something that gives us physical energy. It’s a powerful source of our mood and emotional energy, and knowing what improves this feeling can overall improve our bodies.

Julia Cassidy, a dietitian at “EatingRecoveryCenter” states that, “Nutrition for brain health includes foods rich in B6, magnesium and tryptophan…These help the brain make serotonin and dopamine.”

Serotonin and dopamine are chemicals called neurotransmitters that help control our moods, focus, and energy production throughout the day. Eating foods that link to these chemicals helps regulate our mood and energy levels in our bodies, so when we consume junk food, the nutrients like vitamin B6 that we need are barely absorbed, and none of those nutrients make it into our system.

When our bodies are low in these nutrients and are instead filled with sugar and processed foods, our brains are in danger.“Multiple studies have found a correlation between a diet high in refined sugars and impaired brain function,” says Eva Selhub from Harvard Health Publishing. There are many consequences in not knowing what we put into our bodies and how it affects our brains. Ultimately, knowing how foods affect our energy and mood levels can also link to understanding how what we eat also influences our mental health.

Most of the serotonin our bodies produce is within our gastrointestinal tract, which is linked to nerve cells; these are the inner workings of our digestive system. So what we digest doesn’t just affect our bodies but also our emotions. It “makes sense that the inner workings of your digestive system don’t just help you digest food, but also guide your emotions,” reads Harvard Health Publishing.

Understanding what food can do to our brains and how it’s linked to our mental health is just the first step in becoming healthier. Knowing what specific foods and nutrients inside of them help our bodies in different ways is the second step to health. Around sixty percent of our brains is composed of fat, and omega-3 fatty acids can help us maintain that fat. Fatty fish such as salmon, trout, or sardines are rich sources of this omega-3 fatty acid. An expert from Northwestern Medicine dives deeper into the science behind these foods: “Omega-3s protect the brain from damage. They do this by helping to reduce inflammation and oxidative stress.”

Another nutritious food source is eggs. Eggs have nutrients, choline, that help with memory and communication between brain cells. Tryptophan is also found in food and helps make serotonin to boost our moods.

Lastly, another source of healthy nutrients is blueberries. This fruit is packed with antioxidants, which help improve blood flow and improve memory, learning, and concentration. Knowing what is inside all these foods, and how they better protect our bodies and fuel our brains with energy, is such an essential part of life. Making sure our bodies stay healthy and finding ways we can continue to grow is the first step in living a healthy life.

Ultimately, understanding how food fuels the brain empowers us to make healthier decisions about our bodies. Stripping away junk food from our bodies and embracing natural foods such as eggs, blueberries, fish, and more makes a crucial change in our lives.

Every meal is an opportunity to support our brains and empower our bodies to the fullest. It’s important to take that healthier step into living life in a more balanced way.