Your brain plays a big deal in your body. Functioning as the control center, it’s in charge of keeping the parts of your body like your heart to beat and lungs to breath, making you move, feel and think.

Your brain makes you alive and keeping it in good condition is essential not only for the brain itself, but also to your overall body.

Aside from the activities that you usually do, Yes Wellness is aware that the foods you eat play an important role in keeping your brain well. This also contributes to improvement in doing some of its specific mental tasks, such as memory and concentration.

Here are some of the foods that you should eat in order to boost your brain.

1. Fatty Fish

Our brain is made of about 60% of fat, and half of that fat is the omega-3 kind. Fishes like salmon, trout and sardines are all rich sources of omega-3 fatty acids.

Your brain uses these omega-3s to build brain and nerve cells, and these are also essential for learning and memory. It also helps to slow down mental deterioration. Failure to eat the right amount of omega 3s can cause learning damages and also depression.

Generally, eating any kind of fish regularly, according to a study, had more gray matter in their brains. It comprises most of the nerve cells that aid in control decision making, memory and emotion.

2. Coffee

Caffeine and antioxidants, the two main components in coffee help your brain increased its alertness by blocking adenosine, a chemical hormone that makes you sleepy. It also helps you to improve your mood since it boosts “feel-good” neurotransmitters like the serotonin. Moreover, drinking coffee over the long term can also reduce the risk of neurological diseases like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s, because of its antioxidants’ high concentration.

3. Blueberries

Blueberries and other deeply colored berries transport anthocyanins, plant compounds with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. These antioxidants play part in fighting the oxidative stress and swelling which contribute to brain aging and other neurodegenerative illnesses. These were also collected in the brain and help strengthen the brain cells communication.

4. Turmeric

This deep-yellow spice contains curcumin, a blood-brain barrier, which means it can directly enter the brain and benefit the cells there. It is a powerful antioxidant and has anti-inflammatory compound which helps improving memory. It also clears the amyloid plaques that are a trademark of Alzheimer’s disease. Curcumin helps new brain cells to grow and develop because it can boost brain-derived neurotrophic factor, a growth hormone helping brain cells to grow.

5. Broccoli

This vegetable is packed with powerful plant compounds, including antioxidants.

It’s also very high in vitamin K, a fat-soluble vitamin essential for building sphingolipids, a fat that becomes brain cells once compactly packed.

Aside from producing this vitamin, broccoli also contains a number of compounds that provide anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects, helping to protect the brain against damage.

6. Pumpkin Seed

Pumpkin seeds contain powerful antioxidants that keeps the body and brain from free radical impairment. it is also an excellent source of magnesium for learning and memory, iron to prevent brain fog and impaired brain function, zinc which is crucial for nerve signaling, and copper to help control nerve signals.

7. Dark Chocolate

Dark chocolate and cocoa powder are filled with some brain-boosting compounds like flavonoids which are antioxidant plant compounds, caffeine and antioxidants.

The flavonoids in chocolate gather in the brain areas associated with learning and memory. According to some researches, these compounds can improve memory and also help slow down age-related mental failure.

Studies also reveal that chocolate is also a authentic mood booster.

8. Nuts

Research has shown that consuming nuts can improve heart health markers, and having a healthy heart also means having a healthy brain.

Nuts can also develop reasoning and even aids in preventing neurodegenerative diseases, according to a 2014 review.

Several nutrients in nuts, such as healthy fats, antioxidants and vitamin E (shields cell membranes from free radical damage), also have brain-health benefits.

With many kinds of nuts to savor, walnuts are the ones that can also transfer omega-3 fatty acids.

9. Oranges

Vitamin C in just a medium-sized orange is already important for brain health, since it is an important ingredient in mental decline. Consuming appropriate amounts of vitamin C-rich foods can be a shield against age-related mental decline and Alzheimer’s disease.

Vitamin C is also a powerful antioxidant that helps fight off the free radicals that can harm brain cells. As you age this vitamin supports the health of your brain.

10. Eggs

Eggs are a good source of various nutrients contributing to brain health like:

  • Choline, an important micronutrient that your body uses to produce acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter that helps control mood and memory.
  • Vitamin B12, a vitamin involved in producing brain chemicals and maintaining regular sugar levels in the brain. It also helps slowing the progression of mental impairment especially in the elderly.
  • Folate, which helps in minimizing age-related mental decline.