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To be at the top of your game, your brain needs to be well fed. From the production of neurons, transmission of nervous impulses, to the reproduction of synapses…there are foods that can boost our intellectual performance. Discover your brain’s best friends and add them to your diet in your quest to become the next Nobel Prize winner!

Although it accounts for only 2% of your total body weight, the fact remains that the brain is a food-hungry organ with ten times the appetite of other organs. In order to function, it uses up a minimum of 20% of your daily calorie in-take.

In addition to calories, you should also make sure you get good nutrients for your neurons through a balanced and varied diet. To ensure your brain gets what it needs there are certain foods you should add to your diet.

1. Oily fish (mackerel, sardines salmon…) for brain maintenance

More than 50% of brain mass is made up of lipids, and over 70% of these are fatty acids that belong to the well-known Omega 3 group. These fats are crucial to the production and maintenance of brain cells, preserving the fluidity of cell membrane.

They also play a part in neuron activity. Weakening brain function and memory trouble can often be traced back to a deficiency in Omega 3¹. Oily fish are one of the best sources of Omega 3, but if fish isn’t to your taste, consider nut oils and rapeseed oil as equally rich alternatives.

2. Pulses (lentils, chick-peas…) for brain energy

The brain is said to be glucose-dependent, which means it uses only glucose to function. It consumes more than 5g an hour, but doesn’t know how to store it. It therefore has to be regularly supplied your diet via the circulatory system. It has long been proven that the most difficult task within intellectual performance, the capacity to memorise, depends on the level of glucose in the blood².

But beware of indulging in sugary foods and confectionery; though easy to snack on, they can lead to such strong fluctuations that your system can react violently and reduce blood sugar to below its normal level. The brain cannot tolerate this and the drop in blood sugar leads to fatigue and a shorter attention span.

The sugars that are said to be ‘complex’ and which have a low Glycaemic Index (GI) are therefore crucial. Pulses are rich in these ‘complex’ sugars, and their GI is one of the lowest. This really works to allow the regulation of glucose in the blood and its supply to the brain without creating a reaction of hyperglycaemia. If pulses aren’t to your taste either, consider wholegrain foods, especially cooked ‘al dente’.

3. Bananas for a calm brain

Rich in magnesium, which is essential in the transmission of nervous impulses, bananas are equally a source of Vitamin B6 (just one banana holds practically a quarter of the recommended daily amount). This vitamin is not only involved in the assimilation and use of magnesium in cells, but also in the metabolism of amino acids and the functioning of the nervous system through enabling the production of certain neurotransmitters, notably Serotonin and GABA (Gamma-amino butyric acid).

These two molecules seem to create the right state of mind for prudent, calm and measured behaviour. If you don’t like bananas, consider prunes or dried fruit instead.

4. Liver (veal, beef, chicken…) for intelligence

The brain accounts for around 20% of the body’s oxygen needs, and iron is needed to get oxygen to the brain by means of the blood’s haemoglobin. Liver is one of your diet’s assets guaranteed to contain this valuable metal. Equally, liver is one of the most important sources of Vitamin B. Since the mid 1980s, it has been shown that these vitamins, mainly B9, B12, B1 and B6, improve cognitive function and the results of intelligence tests. If you don’t like liver, consider ham, beef or nutritional yeast as a supplement.

5. Red berries for happy brain cells

All edible berries (blackcurrants, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, blackberries etc.) are veritable mines of Vitamin C (blackcurrants have twice as much concentration in Vitamin C as kiwi fruit, and three times as much as oranges). They have antioxidant micronutrients that make up their colour (anthocyanes, polyphenols, flavonoids…)

Together, they not only fight against free radicals which can affect nerve cells, notably brain cells, but also improve circulation and strengthen blood capillaries, which enable the best oxygenation of the brain. If you don’t like red berries, then go for kiwi fruit or garlic.

6. Shellfish for brain function

Though rich in Vitamin B12 and in protein (notably lysine, a precursor to dopamine, a powerful neurotransmitter), it is mostly the oligo-elements in seafood and crustaceans (oysters, clams, shrimp etc.) that are good for brain function. Oligo-elements are crucial in order to fight and prevent stress and its inconveniences. Some of these can be described as ‘therapeutic weapons’ as they have a hand in fighting anxiety, mental fatigue and nervous disposition.

Manganese, copper, lithium, zinc and iodine have this effect too and can also be found in seafood. If you don’t like shellfish, consider eating wholemeal bread, algae (which has iodised salt as in table salt) or wheat germ.

7. Eggs for brain connectivity

Eggs contain lecithin and phospholipids, integral to the construction of brain cell membrane. In terms of feeding intellect, their value lies mainly in the quality of their proteins. Long used as points of reference when analysing the quality of other dietary proteins by the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FOA), eggs are actually rich in amino acids, essential in the production of the principal neurotransmitters.

This is also the case with acetylcholine, a synthesis made from methionine and serine used in the process of memorisation, where noradrenalin (which stimulates learning) and its production rely on the presence of tyrosine and phenylaline, which are again found in the proteins in eggs. If you don’t like eggs, consider white fish as an alternative.

8. Spinach for good memory

All leafy vegetables share a richness in Vitamin B9 (or folates), which is known to play an active role in the development of a foetus’ nervous tissue and also in the renewal of blood cells. One of the signs of Vitamin B9 deficiency is reduced awareness and memory deterioration³. This phenomenon, observed in people of advanced age with folate deficiency, can probably be explained by the fact that Vitamin B9 is needed for the maintenance of dendrites (arborisation of neurons, where B9 levels are high).

If you don’t like spinach, go for watercress, lamb’s lettuce, iceberg lettuce, broccoli or different types of herbs. Of these, rosemary is worth noting as it has certain flavonoids (notably apigenin) in its aroma, which possess stimulating properties affecting concentration and memory through encouraging cerebral blood flow.

9. Cocoa for brain stimulation

In Aztec times, cocoa was already considered a medicine. Later, Casanova, the legendary seducer of women, used chocolate as an aphrodisiac with the kind of effects we know well! Since then, the chemical analysis of cocoa paste has revealed many surprises; besides the important calorific benefits, the presence of molecules similar to caffeine (theobromine, theophylline) and amphetamines (phenylethylamine, tyramine) give chocolate its true power as a tonic and psycho-stimulant. At the same time, chocolate’s high magnesium content (330mg per 100g), and the molecules it contains which are similar to serotonin (the ‘relaxation’ hormone), account for its ‘anti-stress’ and anti-depressant
effects.

But that’s not all! Scientists have demonstrated the positive role flavonoids present in cocoa play in encouraging better dilation of blood vessels⁴. These antioxidant compounds help fight free radicals and guard the brain’s activity. Beware of over-indulging, however. If you don’t like chocolate, drink tea (which also contains antioxidants) and weak coffee (for its caffeine and its psycho-stimulating effect⁵), but being mindful of excess and without indulging too much at the risk of cancelling out or even reversing the effects.

10. Avocado to keep the brain young

The avocado is exceptionally rich in Vitamin E. This vitamin constitutes one of the most powerful antioxidants and protects the fatty tissues of the brain from ageing. If you don’t like avocado, consider oleaginous fruit instead (nuts, particularly hazelnuts etc.).

And don’t forget that, in order to become a real intellectual athlete, you must equally train your brain with special exercises (cerebral games, memory puzzles…). And you mustn’t neglect rest either (sleep is crucial for the brain’s regeneration…). In following this advice, you may not pick up that Nobel Prize, but you will have a brain that’s at the top of its game nonetheless!

Doctissimo
Damien Galtier
27th April 2012

1. Neurology. 2004, 62(2): 275-280 2. Psychopharmacol, 1993, 113: 83-8 3. JAMA, 1983, 249: 2917-21 4. J Hypertens. 2003 Dec; 21(12): 2281-6 5. J Psychopharmacol, 1991, 5: 120-8

Dyslexic, ADHD, How can you improve your memory

In his book, 100 little psychological traits for understanding your brain, Alain Lieury unlocks the secrets to our minds and memory functions. Here are Doctissimo’s top five to help you understand your memory.

Memory: Why do you never forget how to ride a bike?

Everyone knows that once you’ve learned to ride a bike, you never need to learn again. In fact, the memory of all your sensorimotor learning, (riding a bike, swimming, driving etc.), is particularly strong as this occupies a different part of the brain to the memory of images and sounds. We call this the procedural memory. It is the cerebellum especially which retains these automatic movements. According to Alain Lieury, “This part of the memory is so solid because it requires millions of repetitions in order to to be built in the first place, which will ingrain these actions. Lack of practice is responsible for reduced performance over the long term (as with playing the piano, for example).”

Memory: How many words can we remember?

Take a look at how thick dictionaries are, and this will make you realise how many more words you can still learn. Oxford English Dictionary, for example, contains around 218,632 words (171,479 currently in use and 47,156 that are considered obsolete). “Children know on average 9000 words at the end of primary school”, Alain Lieury illustrates his point. “We all know about 26,000 words at the end of secondary school at 16, and continue learning words after this in sixth form and in higher education. An educated adult probably has a vocabulary of between 30,000 and 50,000 words.”
But  it should be pointed out that there is a gap between what we know and what we use. A study in Strasbourg showed that vocabulary used in everyday speech is made up of only 8000 words on average!

Memory: Why are words on the tip of your tongue sometimes?

How many times do you have something just on the tip of your tongue; that feeling that whatever word you are looking for is right there, you just can’t put your finger on it? The cause behind this is connected to the fact that words exist in our memories in two separate sections: Lexical memory: which is a glossary of words we know how to spell and how to pronounce, but don’t have any meaning attached Semantic memory: which contains the definition of these terms
Of course the two are linked, and one word in the lexical memory might correspond to one or more definitions in the semantic memory. “However, in most people, the semantic memory is more efficient, and definitions can be recalled most easily”, Alain Lieury points out. Sometimes, the brain retrieves the meaning of the word we want in the semantic memory without finding the word in the lexical memory. The idea is there, but the “packaging” is missing, so it is impossible to express it! Alain Lieury suggests a method for getting past this: “Go through the alphabet in your head, and the word should spring to mind when you get to its letter.”

Memory: Are we influenced by subliminal messages?

Do the images placed in advertisements really give us instant, irrepressible urges? Popular belief has it that each image in a cinema advertisement will encourage more fizzy drink and popcorn sales through subliminal messages. “But in reality, this idea has absolutely no basis!” Alain Liery states. Actually, a film with 24 frames per second (25 for television) means images are there for 40 milliseconds (ms). However, for all images which last less than 100 ms, it produces a phenomenon in our visual system called “masking”: our brain mixes the images. An isolated image is therefore a lot stronger than a succession of similar images. Moreover, if you add the text “Vote so and so”, you will need around 250 ms for the brain to register just one word… impossible for our minds to decode a phrase in 40 ms!

Memory: How far back can our first memories go?

Some of us have incredibly long memories going back to recollections of nursery, while others can’t even remember primary school and can only remember back to things that happened when they were seven years old. In reality, most people begin to store memories between the ages of three and four. This can be explained by the development of the memory, and especially by the gradual acquisition of language, which allows you to put memory into words, essential for memorising things. “Before they know how to talk, children have a sensory memory, but this is very fragile. If there are no words with which to rebuild these early memories, to contextualise them, it will disappear” Alain Lieury explains.

Alain Sousa
Yahoo
17th May 2012

Some of the best apps to entertain children

App-makers everywhere realised quite early on that there was a massive market for smartphone games and activities for children: from babies and toddlers to older children, there’s something to entertain and educate them all. Here are just a few of our favourites…

My Play Chef, free lite version, £1.82 for full game, Android, available from Google Play.

“This is a great app that’s perfect for budding chefs and bakers,” says technology blogger Jo Bean from Gadget Mum.  “The child initially selects and names a chef and then they pick a dish to make. Even if you just opt for the free app there’s still a few available, from sandwiches to pizzas, hotdogs to cupcakes. Each step of the cooking process is simplified in a series of screens – from adding the ingredients to the mixtures, putting it in the oven and then adding the garnish or toppings. My three-year-old can’t get enough!”

Tozzle – Toddler’s Favourite Puzzle, £1.49, for iPhone/iPod touch/iPad, available from iTunes.

Young children aren’t known for their long attention spans, but this app might just change that. They drag and drop pieces to form the puzzle and there are plenty of sound effects to keep them entertained. The beauty of this app is its simplicity and the fact that the puzzles don’t take very long to do, so once completed, your child can just move onto the next one, although there are variations in difficulty too.

It’s a great option if you’re waiting in a queue at the supermarket, or sitting in the doctor’s waiting room and you don’t know how long you’re going to be. There’s a free lite version with just a couple of games, but we reckon this is worth paying for the full game of 30+ puzzles.
[Related feature: The must-have apps for the household chef] The Going to Bed Book by Sandra Boynton, approx £2.50, iPad/iPhone and Android, available from iTunes, Google Play.

“This is the most marvellous app I’ve come across designed specifically for children,” says tech, toy and gadget expert Ella Williamson. “Your iPad is utterly transformed with The Going to Bed Book, turning your screen into an interactive pop-up book with your choice of narrated or self-read storytelling. Children can turn on taps, open drawers and even wipe away steam that appears to fog-up on your iPad.” Fans of the original board book won’t be disappointed either, as the app looks just the same, and even if it’s a bedtime favourite, there’s something new to discover night after night.

Disney AppMATes, £13 for single car, available from Disney Store, for iPad, (apps available from iTunes, from free to £1.99)

Although the beauty of apps is that they’re right there on your phone, wherever you are, without the need for anything extra, we do like this add-on: toy cars (from the Disney Cars movies) that your child can drive across the iPad to take part in on-screen racing games and other activities. They’re small enough to pop into your bag or pocket and the novelty value will keep children occupied on a car journey or flight.  Consider getting a screen protector though, in case of over-enthusiastic driving!

Kids Connect the Dots, free lite version, £1.89 for full game, Android, available from Google Play.

“This is a fantastic free game that keeps children’s interest for a long time, while testing their hand-eye coordination and counting skills,” says Jo Bean. “The app doesn’t expect a toddler to necessarily be able to draw a straight line, but enables the child to click from 1 to 2 and the line appears.” This game is part of a set which teaches shapes, maths, phonetics and letters. Most are available free as a lite version, although you only get limited parts of the full game which can be quite annoying.

“The other issue with free apps is the constant flashing up of links to the paid app or other related games,” explains Jo. “If you’re worried about your children clicking on these, I’d recommend spending the few pence or pounds on a full version as these often also include full child lock.”

Laugh and Learn Apptivity Case, RRP £12.99, iPhone and iPod Touch, Fisher Price, available from Amazon.

If you’re planning on letting very young children loose with your iPhone, then a protector is a must to stop bumps and scratches,  and to prevent sticky fingers damaging the screen or accidentally dialling people from your contacts.

Pop your iPhone/iPod Touch into the Apptivity case and your little one can play ones of the free Laugh and Learn apps (available from iTunes), or in fact any other app you choose. The downside is you need a coin to unlock the device from the case, which can be a hassle just to change games, or answer your phone if it rings…

There are thousands of apps out there aimed at children (although we reckon most adults have been known to play them once the kids have gone to bed!)

But is there a great app for kids that we’ve missed? Tell us about your favourite app or gadget for entertaining your children here.

by Yahoo Contributor
19th April 2012

Visit http://t.co/LG7cL2J2

New maths question

IGGY Members: We have published a new Maths Cat for you today! Challenge Number 8. The Buttered Cat Paradox http://bit.ly/L2khQQ

IGGY (International Gateway for Gifted Youth)
14th May 2012

DYSLEXIA MATTERS CONFERENCE

SATURDAY JUNE 16TH 2012

Presented by
Dyslexia North East

Venue: Life Conference and Banqueting Centre
Times Square Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 4EP

Speakers Include:

YOUR AMAZING BRAIN,
by Sarah Tall, Teacher who is also Dyslexic.

A PHYSICAL BASIS TO LEARNING & BEHAVIOUR,
by Andy Dalziell, Director for Movement & Learning Centre.

 AUDITORY PROCESSING & LEARNING DIFFICULTIES,
by Andy Dalziell

 HELPING DYSLEXICS at HOME and in the CLASSROOM,
by Lee Pascal, Dyslexia Teacher and Trainer

 PRACTICAL STUDY SKILLS & EXAMINATION TIPS,
by Lee Pascal

 Networking, lunch and stalls also.

 Contact Liz Ferguson to book your place:
07868 263696
www.dyslexianortheast.org

From learning the alphabet, identifying letters in words, and learning how to pronounce basic words, children aged 3 years old to 4 years old slowly transition from just sounding out words to understanding simple basic sentences. Reading is a skill that is a result of smaller skills that just builds up on top of the other.

Encouraging youngsters to start reading is very helpful. It helps reinforce those skills and helps the child further progress. Once the child enters preschool, he or she is exposed to a more structured form of learning. Although, there is play time scheduled within the classes, the curriculum pushes forwards the necessary skills (such as reading) the child needs to learn to advance to the next level.

Preschoolers’ reading skills benefit from one modest change by teachers

A small change in how teachers and parents read aloud to preschoolers may provide a big boost to their reading skills later on, a new study found.

That small change involves making specific references to print in books while reading to children – such as pointing out letters and words on the pages, showing capital letters, and showing how you read from left to right and top to bottom on the page.

Preschool children whose teachers used print references during storybook reading showed more advanced reading skills one and even two years later when compared to children whose teachers did not use such references. This is the first study to show causal links between referencing print and later literacy achievement.

“Using print references during reading was just a slight tweak to what teachers were already doing in the classroom, but it led to a sizeable improvement in reading for kids,” said Shayne Piasta, co-author of the study and assistant professor of teaching and learning at Ohio State University.

“This would be a very manageable change for most preschool teachers, who already are doing storybook reading in class.”

Piasta conducted the study with lead investigator Laura Justice, professor of teaching and learning at Ohio State, as well as co-investigators Anita McGinty of the University of Virginia and Joan Kaderavek of the University of Toledo. Their results appear in the journal Child Development.

Sit and Read Together

The study is part of Project STAR (Sit Together And Read), a randomized clinical trial based at Ohio State to test the short- and long-term impacts associated with reading regularly to preschool children in the classroom.

The study involved more than 300 children in 85 classrooms who participated in a 30-week shared reading program. As a group, the children came from low-income homes, started with below-average language skills and were at substantial risk for later reading difficulties.

The children were separated into three groups: high-dose STAR (four reading sessions per week), low-dose STAR (two reading sessions per week) and a third comparison group who also had four reading sessions per week. All teachers in the three groups read the same 30 books to their students.

Teachers in the two STAR groups were trained to make specific print references while reading the books. Teachers in the comparison group were told to read as they normally would, and were not prompted to make print references.

Results showed that both one and even two years later, preschoolers in the high-dose STAR classrooms had higher word reading, spelling and comprehension skills than did children in the comparison group. The benefits were not as clear for those in the low-dose STAR classrooms, although they did seem to have slightly better skills than those children in the comparison classrooms.

Piasta said it was particularly notable that students in the high-dose STAR classrooms scored higher on tests of reading comprehension.

“If you’re getting kids to pay attention to letters and words, it makes sense that they will do better at word recognition and spelling,” she said.

“But the fact that they also did better at understanding the passages they read is really exciting. That suggests this intervention may help them become better readers.”

How do print references help preschoolers become better readers? Piasta said research suggests it helps children learn the code of letters and how they relate to words and to meaning.

“By showing them what a letter is and what a letter means, and what a word is and what a word means, we’re helping them to crack the code of language and understand how to read,” she said.

While this study shows the value of using print references with preschoolers, research suggests very few teachers and parents do this systematically, according to Piasta.

An earlier study by Justice and her colleagues showed that untrained teachers reference print about 8.5 times per reading session – compared to up to 36 times for those who were trained.

Parents are even less likely to make print references while reading to their children. One study suggests that parents use such references only about once during a typical 10-minute reading session.

“One of the best things about the power of print referencing is how easy it would be to implement during shared reading in the classroom,” Piasta said.

“Compared to a lot of interventions, this only requires a small adjustment to teachers’ typical reading style. But it pays large dividends in reading skills.”

Quantom Day
by Jonathan Vizcarra
17th April 2012

YouTube
2nd May 2012