Food For Thought
You know the story: you find yourself dozing off at your desk halfway through the morning or unable to drag yourself off the sofa by mid-afternoon. Perhaps it’s what you’re eating, rather than a lack of sleep, that’s dragging you down.
By eating a good breakfast as soon as you can after waking, you rev-up your metabolism and provide instant fuel for your brain to function throughout the day.
Brain-boosting breakfast ideas:
- a bowl of breakfast cereal with chopped dried fruit and semi-skimmed milk
- two slices of wholemeal toast with low-fat spread and marmite
- a bagel with low-fat cream cheese, topped with canned pineapple
- a bowl of fruit salad, topped with yoghurt and a good sprinkling of muesli
- a bowl of porridge, topped with chopped banana
- the occasional full English breakfast (Make it healthier by grilling the bacon, sausages and tomatoes instead of frying them.)
- With a plethora of cafes and take-away shops it’s little wonder people find it hard to make healthy choices at lunchtime.
Energy-enhancing lunch ideas:
- a mayonnaise-free sandwich (good options are wholemeal bread, filled with a small portion of meat, cheese or canned tuna and a good serving of salad.)
- a jacket potato with no butter, topped with baked beans or cheese
- cream-free soup with a salad roll
- pasta with a tomato-based sauce
- Chinese chicken and pepper stir-fry with boiled rice
Dinner winners
After a long day at work, often all you want to do is collapse on the sofa. That’s fine if you haven’t got anything planned, but if you’ve got to sparkle and shine in the evening you may need a little help.
These three delicious evening meals will not only boost your brainpower. They will also help you avoid ’snack attacks’ before bedtime.
- chickpea and vegetable stew, served with bulgur wheat
- carrot and cashew nut curry, served with chapattis
- buckwheat noodles served with tofu and mixed vegetables, flavoured with sesame and soy dressing.
