What we eat affects our learning and memory

What we eat affects our learning and memory

Last week I met up with a former post graduate student and was most impressed that he remembered my diet that we had discussed many years back. He asked if I was still having the same breakfast diet that I shared with him in UK, where I had  the honour of also presenting him a scroll for his Master’s degree.  He recalled it to the letter and had been following the same recipe for years! He says it provided both energy and nutrition for the start of the day. It saved him time, as he could ‘drink’ it on the way to work.

It also gave him the stamina he needed to regularly, jog several kilometres every morning. He also embarks on a quarterly or half marathon on weekends.

It’s not so much that we still share the same breakfast menu, but that he remembered a lecture that I gave on nutrition, attention, learning and memory – and the statement “that we become what we eat”. The fact that brain diseases like dementia can slowly develop over 20 years. New research shows that our mental energy, ability to focus and pay attention – all can be affected by nutrition, exercise and sleep!

For this blog, let me focus now more on diet & nutrition, and for a later blog we will look at exercise and sleep. In my recent book “The Leadership Brain”, I include a chapter on the ‘Learning Leader’ and  present 9 principles to help learners learn more and faster. The Principle on learning and diet for this blog include foods to consume that help our attention, memory  and recall.

So what nutrients should we include in our diet? We know that glucose in critical to brain energy as the brain utilizes more glucose than, any other part of the body. But glucose is converted from the sugars we consume and fructose (fruit sugar) is more efficient.  Best sources for this are fruits like bananas, (also high potassium) apples, dates, raisins, berries, papaya – but not too much – as it might overwork the liver which metabolizes fructose. Glucose also comes from sucrose or starchy sugars, which comes from carbohydrates. The complex carbohydrates in corn, potatoes, or whole grains are slower in conversion to glucose, but also important.  

Other ‘micronutrients’ important for the learning brain, are:  mono-unsaturated fatty acids – like Omega 3, EFA’s, DHA/EPA – from fish or krill oil, tree nuts (almonds and walnuts), some seeds, like sunflower seeds, and primrose oil. Potassium (Bananas, Pistachio nuts) carries oxygen to the brain, whereas Magnesium (Pumpkin and Sesame seeds) helps prevent dementia, as also does Vitamin E (Almonds and Hazelnuts).  Also, micronutrients, like lutein, (spinach, eggs, citrus fruits) or flavenols (tea, wine, broccoli) are helpful. Caffeine (20mg or 2 strong coffees) is not only a stimulant, but also enhances memory. However, we need to drink our coffee about one hour after our learning, and not at night time, if we want a good night’s sleep!

Various minerals and trace elements are also critical. These include: Calcium, Iodine, Thyroid  hormone, Iron, Zinc, Magnesium, Selenium and anti-oxidants. Sources for some of these include potatoes, spinach, orange, apricots and prunes and cashew nuts. Thus, if we consume some of these nutrients, regularly, we will improve our memory, well into old age. However this all needs serious dietary planning!

From the various foods listed in my breakfast, you can see that there are complex carbohydrates, protein, fibre, and a several vitamins, minerals and Omega-3 fatty acids.

As we are creatures of habit, it is perhaps more on whether we follow healthy habits, rather than the opposite. So what is my breakfast habit that has not changed much over the last 10 years? I of course have to share with you this healthy (but maybe boring recipe) But I do have some variations, depending on the ‘fruits that are seasonal’, as well as less expensive. So here it is! Try it out for a few weeks, and let me know how you feel. My student tried it years ago – and never gave up!

RECIPE –MY DAILY BREAKFAST

Ingredients Basic Homemade Muesli Miix (for 2 to 3 weeks) -        Rolled Organic Oats (500g) -          Wheat bran (100 grams – 1 packet) -          Oat Bran (100 grams – 1 packet) optional -          Raisins (200 grams – 1 packet) -          Mixed of chopped nuts and seeds (300 gm) Mix and keep in a large airtight glass jar. Ingredients for daily mix 1 cup of Muesli mix 2 cups of selected fresh mix fruits* 1 small cup of yogurt 1 raw egg 1 cup of water (can be replaced with Dark grape juice – if it is too bland or not sweet enough for you).  Instructions: BLEND for 40 – 60 seconds, and ‘VOILA’  Breakfast is ready! * I select fruits depending on season and availability – a dark red apple with, or a banana, riped papaya or pineapple. I also use  5 – 6 wild figs which grows outside my house but you need it to boil them first.