If you want to better your child's attention span, take a look at their diet. Many children consume a high amount of sugar and processed foods throughout their school day – sugary cereal for breakfast, chocolate milk or juice with lunch, gummy fruits or sugar-filled granola bars for snack, then dessert after dinner. With all of that sugar in their diet, it's no wonder growing minds have trouble concentrating. If you feed the body junk food, you will get junky results.

Keep your kids performing at their optimum during this particularly trying school year, starting with what you put in their lunch bags. Incorporate these brain boosting ingredients into your kids’ diet in order to help improve their focus and stamina.

This beloved brain food is attributed with improving memory and helping reverse short-term memory loss. In addition to being a rich source of potassium, manganese, copper, iron and zinc, antioxidants found in blueberries can help with the development and maintenance of motor skills. That doesn't mean reaching for those packages of tiny blueberries muffins, mix fresh blueberries into yogurt or oatmeal for a powerful kick to your little ones breakfast.

Consumed mostly during the holidays, this common dessert-nut ranks above other nuts in nutrition. Not only a great source of monounsaturated fatty acids and an excellent source of omega-3 essential fatty acids, walnuts are rich in antioxidants. Usually cooked, try this nut raw and turn it into your kids’ favorite snack by pairing with apples and cheese.

Great news for guacamole enthusiasts! Researchers from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign found that higher levels of monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs), like those found in avocados, correlated with greater general intelligence in older adults. This fruit, commonly mistaken as a vegetable, can have up to 10 grams of fiber. Aiding in blood flow, use this favorite to fire up brain cells. Add mashed avocado to whole-grain toast at breakfast or add to a turkey wrap for lunch. You can also take a stab at baked avocado fries for a fun way to enjoy this fantastic fruit.

Super Spinach

As a superfood, spinach is loaded with nutrients. Usually used raw in salads, you should know that cooking spinach actually increases its health benefits! Just half a cup of cooked spinach will give you and your family twice as much nutrition as one cup of raw spinach. Combine fresh spinach in a bowl with a drizzle of olive oil and lemon juice, top with cheese and warm in the microwave for easy wilted spinach!

Yummy Beans

Beans provide protein, fiber, and carbohydrates that keep you full. Unlike processed carbohydrates like white bread and pasta, beans are complex carbohydrates that are slowly absorbed by the body to avoid that 'carb crash.' Mash beans and spread onto a wrap, make black bean cakes for a side with dinner, or eat with eggs for breakfast.

Comments