Study Fuel: The Best Foods to Boost Your Brain Power

4 min readAug 14, 2019

Let’s face it: fast food and sweets are tasty, but they aren’t exactly beneficial for your health. Junk food can leave you feeling sluggish and greasy, and it affects your mental health just as much as your physical. If you want to feel your best and perform your best academically, you need to feed your brain right. Whether you’re prepping for a big test day or you just want to give your brain a boost, eating these foods will make you smarter and healthier!

Berries

These antioxidant-rich fruits have been shown to provide a multitude of health benefits, particularly when it comes to the brain. Berries promote communication between cells, boost learning and memory by increasing plasticity, and reduce or delay age-related cognitive decline. Make yourself a smoothie or a healthy parfait and you’ll enjoy the sweet taste of a healthy brain!

Oily Fish

Oily fish are an excellent source of so-called “good fats.” These fats build up membranes around brain cells called neurons and increase blood flow to the brain. Salmon makes an excellent and tasty alternative to a greasy burger and boosts brain health to boot!

Coffee

Coffee is a student’s best friend. The caffeine in coffee keeps you awake and alert and leads to greater concentration. Besides these well known benefits, a 2018 study suggested that caffeine might increase the brain’s ability to process information. If consumed in moderation, coffee can be a beneficial part of a healthy diet. Drink up!

Avocados

Like oily fish, avocados provide a great serving of “good fats.” Because these fats reduce high blood pressure, they lower the associated risk of cognitive decline. Luckily for your brain, avocado toast is delicious!

Broccoli

Anything green goes when it comes to the world of brain-boosting veggies! Broccoli reduces the risk of oxidative stress and lowers the risk for neurodegenerative diseases, so broccoli doesn’t just protect your brain in the moment but also protects it from future brain illnesses.

Eggs

Eggs make a particularly good breakfast before the day of a big exam because they fill you up, taste delicious, AND contribute to a healthy brain! Eggs are a fantastic source of vitamins like B-12 and folic acid, which prevent brain shrinkage. Fried, scrambled, sunny-side up, or hard-boiled, eat them any way you like to enjoy the health benefits!

Dark Chocolate

Mmm, chocolate. That’s right, one of the tastiest sweets has made the list of best brain foods! Ingredients in dark chocolate provide a myriad of health benefits: dark chocolate improves brain plasticity, boosts memory, increases blood flow to the brain, and promotes growth in areas of the brain associated with memory and learning. No need for guilt about the late night study-munchies; dark chocolate is a perfect study snack!

Nuts

Nuts are excellent sources of protein and healthy fats, and the Vitamin E found in nuts has been linked to improved cognition. In 2015, a UCLA study linked greater consumption of walnuts to increased test scores. If you want to bump your own test scores, try swapping your usual bag of chips with a serving of walnuts.

Green Tea

In addition to giving a quick caffeine boost, green tea helps to reduce anxiety and increase concentration. Green tea can give provide all the benefits of caffeine without giving you the jitters you get from coffee. Besides its relaxing benefits, green tea has also been shown to increase memory function.

Leafy greens

Leafy greens like kale and spinach are renowned for their health benefits, with some even calling kale a “superfood.” Leafy green vegetables have antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals that slow cognitive decline.