The unlikely grocery-shop heroes that could help boost your brainpower.

You are what you eat. This might not be the most revelatory statement; after all, we are all au fait with how protein grows biceps and carbs can add inches to our waistlines. But in the fog of dietary information about how we fuel our bodies, one vital organ is often forgotten: the brain.

“Our brains are literally what we eat,” says Dr Lisa Mosconi, a neuroscientist and nutritionist whose new book, Brain Food, is a big think on how diet affects our grey matter. The science itself is not new. Food gets broken into nutrients, taken into the bloodstream and carried to the brain to help it function by replenishing depleted storage, activating cellular reaction and to be incorporated into brain tissue. But the idea that our brains have very specific dietary requirements might make you think about how to fuel it. As the good doctor puts it: “Many of us are unaware that the only way for the brain to receive nourishment is through our diet.”

A specialist in Alzheimer’s research, Dr Mosconi argues that what we feed our minds can influence our cognitive health in later life. But getting the right balance of brain nutrients – proteins, carbs, fats, vitamins and minerals – will also ensure instant results, from clearing brain fog to sharpening your edge. “Eating for your brain isn’t just a powerful preventative against disease,” she says. “It actually helps you achieve peak performance in every part of your life.”

To add another series of dietary requirements to an already packed schedule may sound like a recipe for brain overload. The good news is that some of Dr Mosconi’s smart foods are ones you almost certainly will be in the business of digesting. She’s a big advocate of drinking water, for example. She also recommends avoiding processed food, refined grains and high-fat dairy, and suggests we don’t eat enough organic fruit and vegetables. But there are other foodstuffs that might not be on your brain food radar. Here are four to stock up on.

The fat in our brains structures cells. The type the brain really craves are polyunsaturated fats found in plant oils and salmon, algae, nuts and seeds. You’ll be familiar with two types: omega-3 and omega-6, to be eaten at a ratio of 2:1. Omega-6 is easier to come by in plant oils or animal fats. There are three major types of omega-3, one of which – DHA – is found in caviar, which contains three times the omega-3 than in the best quality salmon. The less-than-humble roe also has another benefit: it’s a source of memory-boosting choline.

Protein, made up of amino acids, is necessary for structural function and regulation of the brain’s network. Neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine – the chemical messengers of the brain – are created from food and specifically react to this protein intake. A lack of serotonin in the brain, Dr Mosconi suggests, can lead to memory impairment associated with advancing age and dementia. So, to get those serotonin levels up, she prescribes chia seeds, the best source of an amino acid called tryptophan, upon which the neurotransmitter is dependent.

All the brain’s energy comes from glucose. When you eat carbs, they are broken down into glucose, quickly absorbed into the bloodstream and transported throughout the body for energy, including in the brain. So, while it may be hardwired into your brain that carbs are bad, they are good for your mind. The go-to carbs on this front are onions, turnips and beetroot – a small beetroot contains 31 per cent of your glucose for the day. Fruits such as kiwi, grapes, raisins and dates also work a treat for the brain.

Vitamins assist the brain in energy production and most cannot be manufactured in our brains or bodies at all. So they have to come from food. We’ve mentioned the vitamin choline before; Dr Mosconi calls it “a real go-getter of the brain”, important in the process of memory and learning as well as arousal and motivation. The best source of choline is egg yolks. But as an assist, Dr Mosconi recommends Brewer’s yeast, a great natural source of choline. Your brain will thank you, even if your taste buds might not.

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