Parent Place

Supporting parents as partners in student achievement.

Brain Food: Eating to Achieve
By Keli Hurst, Registered Dietitian, Nutrition Education Coordinator

Studies show that breakfast improves student achievement. Research done in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition has found that skipping breakfast interferes with thinking and learning. More specifically, skipping breakfast affects short term memory, verbal skills and math skills. Children who eat breakfast are more likely to behave better in school, pay attention in class, and perform better in their school work and on standardized tests.

The components of a “high achieving” breakfast are a balance of complex carbohydrates and protein. Combine tasty whole grain foods (the complex carbohydrates) with protein foods such as eggs, peanut butter and low fat dairy products.

This month’s Brain Food focus is the easy, quick and inexpensive breakfast food – “The Incredible Edible Egg”.

The egg is a “Brain Builder” and a great source of high quality protein, vitamins, lutein (for good eye health), and CHOLINE. Choline is a vitamin-like substance, also found in nuts, vital for improving memory! For some easy recipes, you can click these links from the American Egg Board.

The “Portable” Egg & Cheese Waffle Sandwich –
http://www.incredibleegg.org/recipes-and-more/egg-cheese-waffle-sandwich

French Toast That You Can Make Ahead –
http://www.incredibleegg.org/recipes-and-more/basic-french-toast

3-Minute Cereal Bowl Egg Burrito
http://www.incredibleegg.org/recipes-and-more/cereal-bowl-egg-cheese-breakfast-burrito

Other Basic Recipes –
http://www.incredibleegg.org/recipes-and-more/category/simply-eggs

Allergic to eggs? Have questions? Contact Keli Hurst, R.D., Nutrition Education Coordinator at khurst@nkcsd.k12.mo.us

BRAIN FOOD TERMS:

• COMPLEX CARBOYHDRATES - Carbohydrates are classified as simple or complex. The classification depends on the chemical structure of the food, and how quickly the sugar is digested and absorbed. Complex carbohydrates have three or more sugars and include starchy vegetables, beans, whole grain breads, and whole grain cereals. Starchy vegetables would include foods like corn, potatoes, and carrots.
  


• PROTEINS - Proteins are complex natural compounds. You need protein in your diet to help your body repair and replace cells. Protein is especially important for growth and development during childhood, adolescence and pregnancy. Protein-containing foods are grouped as either complete or incomplete proteins. Complete proteins contain all nine essential amino acids such as meat, fish, poultry, eggs, milk, yogurt and cheese. Incomplete proteins are plant-based proteins that are missing one or more of the essential amino acids. Examples are beans, nuts, seeds, grains, fruits, and vegetables. Soybeans are the only plant-based protein considered to be a complete protein. All other complete proteins are animal based.
  


• WHOLE GRAINS - Whole grains, or foods made from them, contain all three essential parts of the entire seed grain, and include all the naturally occurring nutrients. Studies show that eating whole grains instead of refined grains, or more processed grains, lowers the risk of many chronic diseases. Examples of whole grains are corn, whole oats, wild and brown rice, popcorn, and whole wheat breads, pastas, and cereals. Whole Grains Counci: http://www.wholegrainscouncil.org/
  


• LOW-FAT DAIRY FOODS - These are foods from the “Dairy Group” that are lower in fat such as skim or 1% milk, low fat cheese, low fat or fat-free yogurt, and low fat or fat-free cottage cheese. Dairy products contain nutrients like calcium and vitamin D that help build strong bones and teeth. Dairy foods are also a good source of protein.
  


• LUTEIN (pronounced “LOO-teen”) - This is a natural coloring, found in dark green leafy vegetables such as spinach, plus various fruits and corn. Egg yolks are also sources of lutein. Lutein provides nutritional support to keep our eyes and skin healthy.
  


• CHOLINE (pronounced “KOH-leen”) - This is an essential nutrient needed for the normal functioning of all cells. It is very important for proper liver, brain and nerve function, memory, and transporting nutrients throughout the body. It appears that choline affects the area of the brain responsible for memory function and life-long learning ability. The American Dietetic Association, http://www.eatright.org/
  


• AMINO ACIDS (pronounced “ah-MEE-no”) - These are complex natural compounds that link together in strings to form proteins that are important for transmitting messages throughout the body for proper functioning. Of the 20 amino acids the human body needs, the body itself produces only 12. This means that we have to meet our requirements for the others through the food we eat. See PROTEINS for examples of amino-acid containing foods.