The #1 Best Vegetable to Keep Your Brain from Aging, Says Dietitian — Eat This Not That

Wouldn’t your life be much easier if you could get through all the turmoil about a healthy diet and combine good nutrition into one simple rule: a daily choice that requires little brain or willpower? ??

Don’t hold your breath: nutrition rarely fits well into the if-then statement —If you eat this, it will be like this..

Nonetheless, food science research continues to identify certain nutrients that appear to be essential for the optimal functioning of our most important body parts. Like our brain.

Interview with a registered dietitian, a member of the Medical Experts Committee Toby Amidor, MS, RD, CDN, FANDShe believes that choosing the best vegetables she believes in from the garden is most effective in keeping our brains healthy for the long term. Now, it’s a nearly impossible task for anyone advocating eating a variety of natural foods to reap a treasure trove of nutrients essential to health. So she wisely chose the vegetable category and a single specific plant to keep her brain power youthful.Green leafy vegetables.. “

“Studies show that including green leafy vegetables in a balanced diet may help slow down cognitive decline,” said an award-winning nutrition expert. The Wall Street Journal best seller Diabetes Creates Your Plate Meal Prep Cookbook..

“Green, etc.?” We asked.

“Kale, spinach, broccoli, collard green.”

She says those powerful leafy vegetables are rich in the proven brain-activating nutrients vitamin K, folic acid, beta-carotene, and lutein.6254a4d1642c605c54bf1cab17d50f1e

Amidor highlights observational studies published in the journal in 2018 NeurologyOver 950 people between the ages of 58 and 99 are participating in the study of the Memory and Aging Project. In this study, subjects completed a food intake frequency questionnaire and two cognitive assessments for nearly five years.Analyzing the data, researchers found that the person who ate it Two servings of spinach, kale, corrado, or mustard greens daily had the same memory and mental abilities as those 11 years younger. Scientists speculate that these important nutrients in green are responsible for delaying cognitive decline.

Related: The best food to delay aging after age 50.

Here’s what those important compounds of green are believed to do in your brain:

Vitamin K

You may know the role of K in blood clotting, PhytonadioneK’s scientific name has been shown to protect neurons from toxin-induced damage and death in the brain.

Folic acid

This B vitamin is important for the production of neurotransmitters and myelin. Myelin is a protective insulating layer that covers nerves in the brain and spinal cord, allowing electrical impulses to fire quickly along nerve cells.

Beta carotene

The most well-known compounds for giving carrots and peppers orange and red colors, and for healthy eyesight, are also common in leafy vegetables. As an antioxidant, it helps limit damage from oxidative stress, which is believed to be a major contributor to cognitive decline. Studies have shown that beta-carotene improves memory.

Lutein

This antioxidant, known to reduce age-related macular degeneration, is also a carotenoid like beta-carotene, but it is even more important for brain health as lutein accounts for 60% of the carotenoid content in the brain. There may be. Studies have shown that breast-fed children who take lutein from their mother’s diet are associated with greater cognitive function than infant formula-fed children. And researchers are looking at lutein as a potential treatment for Parkinson’s disease because of its role as an antioxidant in preventing cell death.

Now you probably think, “My brain needs more green.” Well, here are some ideas: Check out over 35 healthy salad recipes for weight loss. However, like breakfast, you can also incorporate leafy vegetables into your diet by means other than salads and sides.

“If you like smoothies for breakfast, add a little spinach or kale before blending,” says Amidor. You won’t make a difference either!

Jeff Chatari