Review article
Brain food: how nutrition alters our mood and behaviour
Ines Banjari
orcid.org/0000-0002-8680-5007
; Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Faculty of Food Technology Osijek, Department of Food and Nutrition Research, Franje Kuhača 20, HR-31000 Osijek, Croatia
Ivana Vukoje
; Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Faculty of Food Technology Osijek, Department of Food and Nutrition Research, Franje Kuhača 20, HR-31000 Osijek, Croatia
Milena L. Mandić
; Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Faculty of Food Technology Osijek, Department of Food and Nutrition Research, Franje Kuhača 20, HR-31000 Osijek, Croatia
Abstract
Studies have been showing the food we eat affects chemical composition of our brain and alters our mood. Nutrition affects cognitive possibilities, including alertness and the production or release of neurotransmitters, the chemical messengers that carry information from one nerve cell to another. Foods are made up of more than one nutrient, and their interaction is going to affect the production and release of neurotransmitters. Neural impulses are largely resulting from sodium-potassium exchange, but numerous others such as complex carbohydrates, amino acids (tryptophan and tyrosine), fatty acids, particularly omega-3 fatty acids, affect permeability of cell membrane, neurotransmitter metabolism and glial cells. The delicate brain chemical balance is somewhat controlled by the blood – brain barrier. Still, brain remains highly susceptible to changes in body chemistry resulting from nutrient intake and deficiency. The direct connection between nutrition, brain function and behaviour exists, without any doubt. It can be seen through brain’s capability of receiving, storing and integrating sensory information, while initiating and controlling motor responses. These functions correspond to mental activities and form the basis for our behaviour. Constant rise in number of evidence from epigenetic studies confirms that specific nutrients alter our brain development and susceptibility to diseases. Still, specific combination of foods can be extrapolated to a dietary regime, like the Mediterranean diet which has shown its positive impact on maintaining brain function and lower incidence of neurodegenerative diseases. This is of special importance since elderly population (people of 65 years and older) is on the rise all over the world, and the quality of life becomes a priority.
Keywords
nutrition; food composition; neurotransmitters; mood; behaviour
Hrčak ID:
126236
URI
Publication date:
31.7.2014.
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