Patient's question:
What foods are good for brain health? Thank you!Doctor's answer:
Brain foods. Simply put, they are foods that are beneficial to the brain. In other words, brain foods are foods that build strong and fatigue-resistant brain nerves. When children eat brain foods, they should be scientific and reasonable, and try to give them as much natural wild plants and animals as possible. They are rich in a large number of minerals, vitamins, proteins, and other components that maintain their natural state. Eat less plants and animals that are cultivated and raised under unnatural conditions, food additives, and processed foods. Because processed foods destroy the active ingredients in food and reduce its nutritional value. Among food additives, a lot of chemical substances are often added, such as artificial colors and flavors. They can cause allergic reactions, directly harm brain cells, and disrupt attention. Children should avoid eating pickled century eggs as much as possible. Pickled century eggs contain a small amount of lead in the pickling ingredients, and lead is one of the metals harmful to the human body. Children are very sensitive to lead poisoning, with an absorption rate as high as 50%. In addition, children's brains and nervous systems are not yet fully developed, making them more susceptible to the damage of lead poisoning, which can affect their intellectual development. A reasonable diet has a significant effect on improving children's intelligence. According to the U.S. "Science Digest," scientists used some minerals and vitamins to treat a group of children with low intelligence and physical strength, achieving unexpected and significant results. The researchers supplemented a group (16 children) aged 5-15 with 8 minerals and 5 vitamins, and after 8 months, their average IQ increased by 6 points, and their height increased by 2 centimeters. One child with congenital intellectual disability saw his IQ improve by 25 after treatment, with a very noticeable effect. Meanwhile, the other group of children who took placebos only saw their average IQ increase by 1 point and their height increase by 1 centimeter after 4 months. The above examples fully illustrate that increasing nutrition and eating more brain foods are also important steps in developing children's intelligence. Experts point out that in daily life, if parents insist on giving their children brain foods, not only can the structure and function of the brain (brain nerves) be improved, but their IQ scores and academic performance will also be enhanced. How should parents choose foods for their children? When choosing brain foods for their children, parents should consider their children's physical condition and practice targeted dietary choices. Only in this way can children receive good results from eating brain foods. 1. If your child has pale skin, is listless, has a vacant look, feels cold in the feet and hands, is slow to react, is thin and short, and is sleepy and lethargic, then you should give them foods that strengthen the spleen, benefit the stomach, calm the mind, and improve intelligence. Such as honey, apples, walnuts, carrots, jujubes, peanuts, pine nuts, fish, shrimp, Chinese yam, etc. 2. If your child is obese, listless, has short and red urine, loose stools, abdominal distension, poor nutrition, slight swelling in the lower limbs, and gets tired easily after slight movement, then you should give them foods that dispel dampness, dry the spleen, and eliminate stagnation. Such as red beans, hawthorn, carp, loach, broad beans, winter melon, bamboo shoots, and water chestnuts, etc. 3. If your child is plump and swollen, has dark and rough skin, short and red urine, enuresis, convulsions, thin and yellow hair, slow reaction, and unclear speech, then you should give them foods that benefit the kidneys, support yang, activate blood, and nourish the brain. Such as walnuts, hawthorn, animal livers, animal blood, animal brains, Chinese yam, seeds, black sesame, black beans, chestnuts, black fish, and kelp, etc. 4. If your child is weak, sweaty, and prone to catching colds or getting sick easily, then you should often choose foods that strengthen the body, support yang, supplement qi, and improve brain function. Such as daylilies, lychees, radishes, jujubes, sesame, peach kernels, milk, chicken, ducks, fish, eggs, and soy-based foods, etc. In short, parents should provide their children with different foods according to their actual conditions. Only in this way can it be beneficial to the balance of nutritional intake, brain development, physical health, and the all-round development of morality, intelligence, and physique.