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  • Let me tell you how miserable my mornings are without breakfast. I hate everyone, yes

  • everyone. Even that old lady who took the last seat on the train. I hate you.

  • Hey guys Julia here for DNews

  • Do we need breakfast? Your mom always tells you to eat your breakfast, but do you really

  • need to?

  • A recent study published in Journal of Public Economics says yes. The researchers found

  • that schools that provided free breakfast for their students had better test scores

  • than those that didn’t. The kids performed 25% better in math, and had similar gains

  • in other areas like reading.

  • But this news isn’t entirely new. Breakfast is heralded as the most important meal of

  • the day. And science backs this up. There are loads of studies that show just how important

  • it is for learning and memory, but it might not have the weight loss benefits you think.

  • Anyways, is it breakfast that helps give the brain a boost? Or is it the type of food you

  • eat?

  • I mean, the brain consumes a lot of energy. Almost 20% of the energy we consume goes to

  • the brain. Some researchers say that the brain functions best when there’s 25 grams of

  • glucose circulating through the bloodstream. So really, you should keep that as level as

  • possible- any spike or dip can leave you feeling off. So maybe eating more frequent smaller

  • meals throughout the day can help you avoid a “post lunch crash”.

  • But is there a way to hack your brain with food? Is there such a thing asbrain food?”

  • I was always told to eat a banana before a test.

  • Curcumin[CUR-Q-MIN] and Omega 3s seem to be buzzing around the blogsphere of late. And

  • there may be some truth to that. According to a paper published in the National Review

  • of Neuroscience, these nutrients lessen cognitive decline in the elderly and improve cognition

  • in people with brain injuries. Youre typical sources of this stuff are fish, like salmon,

  • Flax seeds and walnuts.

  • Curcumin can be found mostly in tumeric, a type of spice. Iron and b vitamins help memory

  • and brain function in women. While diets high in saturated fats, tend to do the opposite.

  • Omega threes and other micronutrients seem to be the heavy hitters of brain food. One

  • study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that a cocktail of

  • omega-3s, iron, zinc, folate and vitamins A, B6, B12 and C, helped kids in Australia

  • and Indonesia do better on learning and memory tests.

  • Another study published in the journal Appetite by some of the same researchers found that

  • foods low on the glycemic index are better for breakfast. The glycemic index rates food

  • based on how it affects your glucose levels, or levels of sugar. The study found that yes,

  • kids memory and cognitive function decline throughout the morning, but a low GI breakfast

  • reduced that decline more than a high GI did. Low GI foods are like fruits and vegetables

  • or oatmeal. So a good breakfast might be a bowl of oatmeal with a banana rather than

  • a bowl of cereal.

  • So yes, a balanced diet, with fish and fruits and veggies seems to be good for the brain.

  • Eating breakfast might keep you perkier in the morning so youre more alert to learn

  • more. And some studies even show that that old wives tale of chewing gum for a test is

  • true. Chewing gum increases blood flow to the brain, which more does all sorts of good

  • things.

  • So before a big test, eat a good breakfast, no not sugary cereals and maybe have a piece

  • of gum.

Let me tell you how miserable my mornings are without breakfast. I hate everyone, yes

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