Research shows that the best brain foods are the same ones that protect your heart and blood vessels, including the following:
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- Green, leafy vegetables. Leafy greens such as kale, spinach, collards, and broccoli are rich in brain-healthy nutrients like vitamin K, lutein, folate, and beta carotene. Research suggests these plant-based foods may help slow cognitive decline.
- Fatty fish. Fatty fish are abundant sources of omega-3 fatty acids, healthy unsaturated fats that have been linked to lower blood levels of beta-amyloid—the protein that forms damaging clumps in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s disease. Try to eat fish at least twice a week, choose varieties low in mercury, such as salmon, cod, canned light tuna, and pollack.
- Berries. Flavonoids, the natural plant pigments that give berries their brilliant hues, also help improve memory, research shows.
- Tea and coffee. The caffeine in your morning cup of coffee or tea might offer more than just a short-term concentration boost. In a 2014 study published in The Journal of Nutrition, participants with higher caffeine consumption scored better on tests of mental function.
- Walnuts. Nuts are excellent sources of protein and healthy fats, and one type of nut in particular might also improve memory. . . .Walnuts are high in a type of omega-3 fatty acid called alpha-linolenic acid (ALA). Diets rich in ALA and other omega-3 fatty acids have been linked to lower blood pressure and cleaner arteries. That’s good for both the heart and brain.