11 Ways To Boost Your Brain Power Daily

Beth Rush

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Do you sometimes feel like your brain is running on empty? Today’s hectic lifestyles can keep you on your toes, but exhaust your reserves. Research shows your concentration falters more with rising stress levels. Ironically, this scenario may create even more anxiety as you struggle to focus but find yourself reading the same paragraph multiple times.

Wouldn’t it be lovely if you could naturally boost your brainpower? While there’s no easy cure for external demands, like financial realities that push you past your limits, you have the power to control other factors. The decisions you make daily about what to eat and which activities to engage in create a huge difference in your overall ability to focus.

What should you do to get those neurons running on all cylinders? Here are 11 ways to boost brain power daily.

6 Foods That Boost Brain Power

It shouldn’t surprise you that your diet can increase brain power. Everything you consume creates slight alterations in your brain chemistry, affecting everything from how quickly you digest to how sharp you feel while taking a multiple-choice test.

You control what you put in your body, but you don’t have to stress yourself out with a restrictive diet. Instead, simply strive to get more of the following six foods into your daily meal plan.

1. Beetroot

Beetroot dilates your blood vessels, helping to lower your blood pressure and increase flow throughout the body. Improved blood flow bathes your brain with vital oxygen and the nutrients it needs to function at its best. It ensures each cell has what it needs to rapidly fire signals and form new connections.

2. Nuts and Seeds

Nuts and seeds are high in three minerals that are crucial for proper neurological functioning: magnesium, selenium, and zinc. Magnesium alone works as a tricyclic antidepressant in some patients suffering from a deficiency, and you can imagine how adversely depression impacts your ability to concentrate.

These foods are a great alternative to processed snacks and are healthier than croutons on a salad. Some, like chia and flax seeds, are also your best plant-based sources of omega-3s if you follow a vegan diet.

3. Fatty Fish

Fatty fish is the richest source of omega-3 fatty acids, which are crucial for brain functioning. The increased blood plasma levels of these fats correlate to lower dementia risk, helping you to maintain strong cognitive power as you age.

You need both omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids for health, but the problem lies in the proportion many Americans consume. While many health experts recommend a 2:1 to 1:1 ratio, most people run closer to 10:1. This imbalance may lie behind the increasing rate of chronic diseases in today’s society.

4. Green, Leafy Vegetables

Eating more salads – or adding a bit of kale or arugula to your lunchtime wrap – is another way to protect your brain health. Researchers theorise that the neuroprotective powers of several nutrients in these foods, like lutein, folate, beta carotene, and phylloquinone, may slow cognitive decline in older individuals.

5. Berries

Berries, like currants, blueberries, and strawberries, are rich sources of anthocyanins, the phytonutrient that gives them their red and blue hues. This stuff has incredible antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, helping to protect against neurodegeneration as you age. Scientists are currently investigating their role in combating several brain diseases.

6. Tea and Coffee

Do you feel more awake after your morning cuppa? That’s because both coffee and tea have impressive antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.

Want your morning brew to do double duty? Consider replacing the occasional cup of green tea with matcha. While it contains similar antioxidants, matcha contains ground leaves, making it rich in filling fiber to nourish your intestinal microbiome. These beneficial bacteria in your gut send messages to your brain – fiber feeds them, encouraging a happier correspondence.

5 Non-Dietary Ways to Boost Brain Power

Including the above foods in your diet isn’t the only way to boost your brain power. Lifestyle changes like the following can also preserve neurological health.

1. Dance

You might think all exercise benefits brain health, and this assumption is generally true. After all, movement increases blood flow. However, researchers investigated the impact of multiple activities, from cycling to reading, on dementia risk. One clear winner for boosting brain health emerged: Dance. Scientists suggest that focusing on following the steps while getting your brain chemicals engaged through exercise encourages neuroplasticity.

2. Meditation

It seems logical that meditation would improve your ability to concentrate. After all, you practice focusing on one thing or nothing at all. Science now supports this assumption. Even a brief time spent in mindfulness improved the attention span of novices. Those who practice regularly enjoy even more impressive results.

3. Lifelong Learning

Neuroplasticity refers to your brain’s ability to form new connections. You get better at anything through practice, and learning is no exception. You don’t have to take out any additional student loans, but studying a topic that fascinates you is an ideal way to increase brain power.

4. Brain Games

Although brain games didn’t perform as well as dance in the comparison study, they do boost brain power. Another New England Journal of Medicine study found that attempting the daily crossword slowed cognitive decline. The study suggested you get an A for effort, so please don’t stress if you can’t complete the New York Times version with a pen.

5. A Good Night’s Sleep

Your concentration ability falters when you don’t get adequate rest. Studies suggest that driving while drowsy is nearly as dangerous as getting behind the wheel after a few drinks. If it’s that hard to do what, for many, is an automatic function, imagine how challenging it must be to balance a budget report.

What can you do if you toss and turn? Try these tips for improving your sleep hygiene and getting better-quality rest:

• Be consistent: Lay down and awaken at roughly the same time each day, even on weekends. However, don’t toss and turn if you can’t rest, as it can make you associate your bed with negative vibes. Instead, get up and read while sipping some chamomile tea.
• Ban electronics: The blue light from the screen mimics sunlight, keeping you awake. Even the incessant glare from the power buttons can disrupt your patterns.
• Drop the temperature: Many people sleep best in temperatures between 62°F and 69°F.
• Dim the lights: Use blackout curtains if you’re a shift worker, and consider white noise machines or comfortable headbands with stereo headphones if a snoring partner or noisy roommates disturb your rest.

Ways to Increase Brain Power Daily

Boosting your brain power can make a substantial difference in your daily life. When you can focus, you’re less likely to make time-consuming mistakes that cause more stress, and you can more easily form new neural connections. Try the above 11 methods to increase brain power daily. Pay mindful attention and you’ll see results with a few simple lifestyle changes.

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Featured image courtesy of Lacey Williams on Unsplash. Image license can be found here. No changes were made to this image.