Smart Foods
Do you forget what's-his-name's phone number or where you put the keys?
Rather than blame your dwindling memory on genes, age, or a busy lifestyle,
take a look at your diet.

By Elizabeth Somer, M.A., R.D.
WebMD Medical News

Do you forget what's-his-name's phone number or where you put the keys?
Rather than blame your dwindling memory on genes, age, or a busy lifestyle,
take a look at your diet. What you eat affects how clearly you think and
concentrate, your intelligence level, memory, and reaction time, and even
how quickly your brain ages.

Brain Basics

The brain is a hungry tissue. Though the brain makes up only two percent of
total body weight, it uses up to 30 percent of the day's calories. It's also
fussy, demanding that all its energy come from high-quality carbohydrates.

Your brain burns this quick fuel even while you sleep, so eating breakfast
is the best way to restock fuel stores and prevent a mental fog later in the
day. While wolfing down the occasional bagel won't ensure you ace the
morning meeting, after two to three weeks of adding breakfast to your daily
routine, you should notice a gain in energy and mental power, especially if
the meal includes at least one fruit, one whole grain, and a protein-rich
source. One healthy start is a whole wheat English muffin with peanut
butter, an orange, and a glass of nonfat milk.

Also, spread food intake among four to six mini-meals and snacks evenly
distributed throughout the day. Keep these mini-meals light. Avoid high-fat
or big meals that divert the blood supply to the digestive tract and away
from the brain, causing sluggishness and fatigue.

Does Dieting Make You Dumb?

Crash diets do more than deprive you of calories; they deprive you of
smarts, as well. Researchers at the Institute of Food Research in the United
Kingdom report that women on very-low-calorie diets process information more
slowly, take longer to react and have more trouble remembering sequences
compared with non-dieting women. In contrast, losing weight the good
old-fashioned way -- a gradual weight loss of no more than two pounds a week
-- allows you to lose fat not muscle, keep it off, and stay clear-headed in
the process.

Coffee and Cognition

A cup of coffee helps you think and work faster and more efficiently.

But too much has adverse effects.

Caffeine lingers in the system for up to 15 hours. A cup of coffee or cola
mid-afternoon could disrupt sleep at 10 p.m., resulting in mental fatigue
and poor judgment the next day.
Caffeine is effective only up to your "jitter threshold"; add more coffee
after this and you'll be too buzzed to think clearly.
Coffee and tea contain compounds called tannins that reduce other
brain-boosting nutrients, such as iron, by up to 75%. Limit coffee to 3 cups
or less each day and drink your coffee or tea between meals.
Ironing Out Memory Problems

Iron helps carry oxygen to the tissues, including the brain. When iron
levels drop, tissues are starved for oxygen, resulting in fatigue, memory
loss, poor concentration, lack of motivation, shortened attention span and
reduced work performance. Premenopausal women need at least 15 milligrams of
iron daily, yet many consume 10 milligrams or less.

How Can You Boost Iron?

Eat more iron-rich foods, including extra-lean red meat, cooked dried beans
and peas, dark green leafy vegetables and dried apricots.
Cook in cast-iron pots. The iron will leach out of the pot and into the
food, raising the iron content of the meal.
Drink vitamin C-rich orange juice with iron-rich meals to boost iron
absorption.
B Is for Brain

Inadequate intake of any B vitamin, including vitamins B1, B2, B6, B12 and
folic acid, literally starves the brain for energy and leads to confusion,
irritability, and impaired thinking, concentration, memory, reaction time
and mental clarity.

To boost Bs, include several daily servings of B-rich foods, including
nonfat milk and yogurt, wheat germ, bananas, seafood, whole grains and green
peas. In addition, take a moderate-dose multiple vitamin and mineral.

Anti-Dumbing Vitamins

The brain consumes more oxygen than any other body tissue. This exposes the
brain to a huge daily dose of free radicals, by-products of oxygen usage
that attack and damage brain cells. After decades, the wear and tear of
free-radical attacks can contribute to the gradual loss of memory and
thinking, an effect associated with aging. Fortunately, the body has an
anti-free-radical army comprised of antioxidant nutrients, which include
vitamins C and E. This dietary militia deactivates free radicals.

To keep your antioxidant defenses strong, consume at least five but
preferably nine servings of the following foods each day: orange juice,
strawberries, carrots, spinach, cantaloupe and other dark-colored fresh
fruits and vegetables.

Brain-Boosting Eating Strategies

Eat a balanced breakfast every morning
Take it easy on the caffeine
Include plenty of the following "smart foods" in your diet: Extra-lean red
meat, cooked dried beans and peas, dark green leafy vegetables, dried
apricots, nonfat milk, nonfat yogurt, wheat germ, bananas, seafood,
whole-grains and green peas, orange juice, strawberries, carrots, spinach,
cantaloupe, and other dark-colored fresh fruits and vegetables