Have you heard the saying, “you are what you eat?” This may seem a bit cliché, yet it is actually true. Virginia Woolf said it better than anybody else, “One cannot think well, love well, and sleep well if one has not dined well.”
Food is the cornerstone of a healthy lifestyle, and the food you consume impacts your productivity in more ways than you can imagine. Our daily lives, including work and everyday chores, are impacted by the food we consume.
When most of us consider the advantages of eating properly, we tend to focus on the long-term benefits. This is understandable, as preventing illnesses is one of the finest investments we can make in our future. However, in addition to lowering our risk of long-term conditions like heart disease, type 2 diabetes, osteoporosis, and cancer, healthy eating habits can also boost our productivity at work.
Keep reading to find out how food affects your brain function. We have also shared some useful advice from a nutritional psychiatrist on how you can make simple dietary adjustments to sharpen memory, focus, and overall brain health.
What You Eat Impacts Your Brain
The brain is the starting point for everything we do, and a healthy brain requires a balanced diet. So, in order to function properly, our brain requires nutrition and energy—and we get them from food.
We can regulate how effectively our brains work physically, mentally, and emotionally by paying close attention to what we eat. It’s basically a two-way communication between your digestive system and brain.
Probiotics, fermented foods, and increasing fiber consumption can improve brain function. Other than that, despite its severe restrictions, keto may be a suitable option for enhancing productivity and focus.
Your brain, like an expensive vehicle, can get ruined if you use anything other than premium fuel. When low-premium fuel components (such as those present in processed or refined meals) reach the brain, the brain’s capacity to release them is reduced.
For example, diets high in refined sugar are bad for the brain. According to multiple studies, a high-refined sugar diet is connected to impaired brain function and the worsening of mood disorders such as depression.
Although the brain only accounts for around 2% of our total weight, it requires over 20% of glucose-derived energy, indicating that food is essential for brain function.
A Nutritional Psychiatrist’s Take On Healthy Eating
Dr. Uma Naidoo, a nutritional psychiatrist and faculty member at Harvard, and author of ‘This Is Your Brain on Food,’ reveals the foods she consumes to improve her memory, attention, and overall brain health. According to her, extra dark chocolate, berries, turmeric, leafy greens, and fermented foods are the way to a happy and healthy brain.”
Final Thoughts
To sum up, increasing productivity may be as simple as finding the right balance of all food components and limiting those that drain energy. Consult a nutritionist or a health coach if you’re concerned about balancing your diet to increase productivity.
