Three Common Foods that can Improve your Memory

If you are like most people and find that as you age, you occasionally forget things, you’ll want to know about these three common foods that can improve your memory.

Carrots

Studies show that people who eat higher levels of vitamin A and other anti-oxidants for several years are less likely to have Alzheimer’s disease. Especially if they are smokers. Another study shows that if you eat foods that are high in four antioxidants you are less likely to lose your eyesight as you get older. These anti-oxidants are beta-carotene, vitamin C, vitamin E and zinc. Did your mother tell you to eat carrots so that you’d see well? She was right. Carrots are a great source of beta-carotene. Your body converts this to vitamin A.

An average-sized carrot will give you 203% of the daily RDA for vitamin A. Broccoli is also high in vitamin A, but you need to eat about nine spears of broccoli to get the amount of vitamin A that you get in one carrot. If chewing is hard for you, try to microwave or lightly steam vegetables to soften them while minimizing the loss of nutrients.

Broccoli

As well as vitamin A, broccoli is also very high in vitamin K. Vitamin K is important for making sphingolipids. These are a type of fat that is found in brain cells. Eat one cup of broccoli and you get more than 100% of the Recommended Daily Intake (RDI). Some studies show that older adults with a higher vitamin K intake have better memories. Broccoli also has a number of compounds that give it anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects. These may help protect the brain against damage.

Oranges

You can get all the vitamin C you need in a day by eating one medium orange. Eating oranges is important for your brain because vitamin C keeps your brain working well. Some studies show that eating sufficient amounts of vitamin C can protect you from Alzheimer’s disease. You can also get excellent amounts of vitamin C from bell peppers, guava, kiwi, tomatoes and strawberries.

Memory lapses are a normal part of the aging process. One of the reasons is that the hippocampus, a region of the brain involved in the formation and retrieval of memories, often deteriorates with age. But you can use these common foods to improve your memory.