Nutrition and your brain activity are closely related. The things you eat and the things you fuel yourself with directly affect your cognitive ability. Your brain is always in function, it is never “turned off”. Therefore, it needs the proper food to fuel itself. Certain foods help nourish and replenish the cells in your brain to learn and perceive things all around you. To be able to function at your best during any activity you need the full presence of your brain and the best way to make sure it is fully present is to make sure you are eating healthy. Eating healthy is a broad term and means a lot of things to different people, in this case it means ingesting the right nutrients to help support brain activity. 

Proteins and Fats provide your brain with a variety of amino acids that help with cognitive functions. This is because the amino acids produce neurotransmitters – brain signaling chemicals required for cognitive functions. Vitamins, such as vitamin B-12, coat the cells in your brain with myelin which helps with nerve communication. The brain also required minerals like sodium, calcium, magnesium and potassium, which produce small electrochemical signals that transfer signals between the nerve cells. There are many negative side effects if you don’t eat enough or properly. Some brain-boosting foods that you can snack on or mix in your meals are: 

• Blueberries – they boost concentration and memory due to the antioxidants which enhance blood flow and oxygen access to your brain. 
• Avocados – they boost blood flow and are loaded with fiber which can help with keeping food cravings at bay. 
• Leafy Greens – they help protect and boost brain cells due to the antioxidants and carotenoids that they contain. 
• Fatty/Oil Fish – they help with memory and behavioral function due to the amount of Omega-3 they consist of. 
• Water – it improves focus because it feeds your brain with the electrical energy it needs to preform properly 
• Dark Chocolate – This helps your brain focus and destress due to the presence of caffeine and magnesium, which stimulates the release of endorphins and serotonin. 
• Nuts – These help you in the long run because of the presence of vitamins, oils and amino acids that help with focusing. 

If you are not eating enough, you are essentially starving your brain from the nutrients it needs to function. If you do not ingest enough vitamins, your brain can potentially suffer from brain atrophy – which is severe shrinking of the brain. In some cases, if you are not eating enough of the proper nutrients you can lose the ability to stay focused, or it becomes very difficult to remember things. The more often you do not eat the more your brain begins to crave food, which makes it harder to make the proper food choices and avoid unhealthy temptations, which hurts your brain even more severely. The most severe side effect of not eating enough or properly is complete brain damage. This occurs when you do not eat enough for a long period of time and your brain suffers from such damage that it may be irreversible.