Whether it’s Back-to-School or Back-to-Work: The Avocado Is Here To Power Up Your Brain

Photo: Canva

Back From Summer Holidays

As the end of summer creeps in, many of us start to wonder how we will get our brains in gear to return to office life or get our children excited for their new school year. All the fun under the sun tends to turn our brains to jelly, but what most of us need right now is a boost to embark on new challenges in the workplace or in the classroom.

But did you know that the food you eat can have a huge impact on your mental performance? This year, make a new addition to your toolkit for success – throw in an avocado!

Green Brain Power

Avocados have long been cherished across the globe for their unique taste and versatility, but their remarkable impact on our health is taking centre stage as of recent. Zac Bard, Chairman of the World Avocado Organisation, says, “Not only is the avocado a tasty fruit that can be enjoyed in sweet and savoury meals, but it also has a big positive impact on our overall health and wellbeing, including our brain and its functioning”.

For decades, scientists have been studying the relationship between foods that contain certain vitamins and minerals, such as magnesium and B-vitamins, and the effect that they can have on our brains.

Harvard nutritionist, Dr Uma Naidoo, released a book “This is your Brain on Food” in which she lists the best foods for brain power. Among them is the avocado, a superfood that proves not only to be good for your heart, blood pressure, skin, eyes, digestive system and more, but also your brain too!

But what is the reason for this? Avocados contain B-vitamins, which are essential for healthy brain functioning and can help boost our brain energy, cell growth, communication capacity and even disease resistance. Half of an avocado contains about 2.7 mg of B-vitamins alone, including vitamins B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B9 (folate).

Half an avocado also has a whopping 19.5 mg of magnesium, which Naidoo states is important for proper cognitive functioning. This means that if you want to increase your brain performance and be on your top form, avocados are a good ally to have. Also, avocados contain an antioxidant called lutein (0.5 mg lutein per avocado), which a range of scientific evidence has shown to play a significant role in our cognitive as well as visual functioning throughout our lifespan from childhood to adulthood.

Photo: Hass Avocado Board

Indeed, most experts agree that we should take measures to improve our brain cognition from a younger age so this can positively impact our cognitive functioning in later life. In fact, a recent study found that avocado consumption was associated with improved performance in memory and cognitive tests in older adults. So get eating avocados sooner rather than later!

Add more green to your diet

So when it’s time to get our heads back in the game, consider adding this green superfood to your packed lunch in the following ways:

• Sliced avocados as the perfect mid-day snack or topping
• A quick and easy spread on bread or crackers
• Throw half an avocado into your next smoothie for an extra boost of vitamins and nutrients