Foods That Boost Brain Health

Learn what to eat to improve memory and focus and banish brain fog When you’re Burnt out.

One of the telltale signs that you’re headed towards burnout? BRAIN FOG.

You know… that feeling when, mid-sentence, you forget what you were talking about? Or when you walk into a room and forget why? Or you just have an overall inability to concentrate?

It’s brain fog. And it keeps you unproductive, inefficient, and ineffective. Indecisive, too!

The good news is that there’s a lot you can do to relieve brain fog with nutrition. Because guess what? FOOD has a huge impact on your brain.

But before I get into it all, here’s a quick personal story of why I’m so adamant about treating brain fog- and burnout in general- with food.

On October 15, 2016, I had a surfing accident that left me with a serious concussion. The symptoms lasted not weeks, not months, but years. Even today (as I revise this article in 2024), I continue to have post-concussion symptoms like debilitating headaches and short term memory problems.

When you have a serious injury like this, you become pretty desperate to try anything that could help you get better. Back in month three of my recovery, I was expecting to feel ‘normal’ again but unfortunately seeing very little progress. So, I started seeing a psychologist who specializes in traumatic brain injury recovery. And he helped me focus on healing my brain through things I could control: like diet.

Recovery didn’t happen overnight. But I can say with certainty that changing what and how I was eating definitely improved my concussion symptoms. And today as well, I see the impact food has on me and women I’ve coached: with the right nutrition, you can be sharp as a tack every day.

In this post I’ll be sharing some specific foods that you might want to incorporate into your diet.

But first, a few general tips on how to eat for optimal brain health and clear thinking

1. Eat anti-inflammatory foods

   • I remember that my brain doctor suggested incorporating cherries into my diet. So I started mixing them into my morning oatmeal. There are loads more anti-inflammatory foods you can focus on, obviously- and I’ve listed more of them below. But the general point is, eat as many anti-inflammatory, brightly colored, whole plant foods as possible. Less inflammation means clearer thinking.

2. get your omega-3 fats (“Healthy fats”)

   • Your brain is made up of mostly fat, and it needs omega-3 fatty acids to function properly. My brain doctor wanted me to eat fish or take a fish oil supplement, but I was vegan at the time and instead made sure to toss some walnuts (a great source of omega-3 fatty acids) into my morning oatmeal. Some other examples of foods high in omega-3 fats are avocados, olives, and fatty fish (see more below).

3. Don’t skip meals, and have snacks when you need them

   • Your brain is connected to your gut. When you don’t eat, you don’t have energy and your brain can’t work properly. Your blood sugar eventually will plummet, sending your body into a state of stress. This will impact your thinking capacity. The solution? Eat a good breakfast and carry snacks with you at all times. Don’t wait till you’re hangry to eat.

4. When you do eat, have meals that keep you and your brain fueled- eat to balance blood sugar

   • In all meals and snacks, use this formula to avoid wild blood sugar swings and keep energy and focus on point:

     Protein + Healthy Fat + Fiber + Color

     For the purposes of stabilizing blood sugar, the protein and the fat are the most important parts of this equation.

Now, here’s a short list of foods that your brain will love:

Spinach, kale, collards and other dark leafy greens are great food for your brain. They provide nutrients your brain needs, including folate, vitamin K, and lutein. Eaten regularly, dark leafy greens can help slow cognitive decline and improve current cognitive function. In other words, they can help you think more clearly!

It’s pretty easy to eat your greens- sneak them into a smoothie (like this creamy kale smoothie or super green smoothie), work them into a buddha bowl, or enjoy them in a daily green salad.

Try to get a daily dose of berries. My brain psychologist suggested incorporating cherries into my diet. So I started mixing them into my morning oatmeal (I just buy the frozen kind). I don’t eat oatmeal too often now (I found it tends to spike my blood sugar and then leave me hangry a couple hours later), but I still work cherries or some other kind of dark berry into my morning smoothie almost every day. Other berries you can try include blueberries, raspberries, strawberries etc. Or get a big bag of frozen mixed berries.

Why do we want to eat berries? They’re supercharged with flavonoids and antioxidants and can help with things like:

• Decreasing short-term memory loss and slowing cognitive decline';

• Reducing inflammation in the brain and in the body in general;

• Protecting the brain from free radicals, early aging, and development of Alzheimer’s.

*Try my winter berry detox smoothie.

Nuts and seeds contain the antioxidant Vitamin E, which protects the brain. They also fall into the “healthy fat” category because many of them contain omega-3 fatty acids, an unsaturated fat that your body and brain need. The great thing about nuts and seeds is that a little goes a long way. Try tossing them into your salad, a smoothie, or a sauce. Some nuts or seeds I like to keep on hand include:

• Walnuts

• Almonds

• Pecans

• Macadamia

• Chia

• Flax

• Hemp

• Pumpkin (aka pepitas)

• Sesame

Not a seed, but avocados and olives are also a great source of omega-3 fatty acids. That also means that when you’re cooking, olive oil and avocado oil are your best choices.

*Tip: store raw nuts and seeds in your fridge so that they don’t spoil/go rancid in warmer temperatures.

There’s a reason cacao is called a SUPERfood. It’s high in antioxidants- 40 times what you find in blueberries! If you ever needed an excuse to eat your chocolate, this is it. But you’ll want to be careful which kind of chocolate you’re eating. Chocolate candies that are loaded with sugar and other additives are no good. Instead, stock your pantry with raw cacao powder and cacao nibs. Both are great additions to smoothies, oatmeal, granola, and energy bites.

Curcumin, the compound that gives turmeric its signature yellow color, has been shown to help your brain recover after an injury. But it can also help improve brain health in people suffering from Alzheimer’s, help to prevent Alzheimer’s in the first place, and decrease inflammation in the brain.

Some ways you can get turmeric are by adding it to a stir fry or curry, making a ‘golden milk’ latte, incorporating it into your salad dressing, using it to season a soup, or adding it to a cold pressed juice (if you have a juicer). Note: the whole food version of turmeric is much more potent (nutrient dense) than the powder you buy in the spice aisle.

Fatty fish are an excellent source of omega-3 fatty acids. But what qualifies as a fatty fish? Here are some options:

• Wild salmon (choose Pacific/sockeye salmon instead of Atlantic)

• Sardines

• Mackerel

• Herring

• Anchovies

• Black Cod (aka sablefish)

FOODS TO Limit if you want a healthy brain

You probably won’t be too surprised to find that the foods you need to avoid (or at least limit) if you want to promote brain health, memory, and focus are the same foods you should avoid to maintain your health in general. Here’s a quick rundown:

• Lots of saturated fat

  • Here we’re talking about butter and animal fats, particularly from feed lot (“factory farmed”) cows.

• Trans fats, aka hydrogenated fats or oils

  • This should really be banned by the FDA (in my opinion) but since it’s not, we need to be informed consumers. Trans fats are usually found in highly processed foods that come in boxes, bags and cans and are found in the middle of your grocery store. They’re often added to foods in order to improve shelf life. Do yourself a favor and just skip the processed foods.

• Refined/added sugars

  • High fructose corn syrup gets a special mention here. Look for it on any packaged food you buy. And limit or cut your intake of sodas and other sugary drinks.

• Refined grains

  • This includes anything made with white flour like pastas, breads and cakes. Also white rice. A grain has three parts: germ, bran, and endosperm. The refining process takes away the germ and bran, but those are the very parts of the grain that hold nutrients and fiber.