Have you ever been at work and found it very difficult to focus or think clearly when you needed to? More and more studies are showing that nutrition and exercise directly impact improvements in cognitive function and help the mind actually function better.  If you think about it, it really does make sense.  If we break it down, when you eat you are fueling your body, not just to have energy to do all the things you need to do in a day physically, but also to feed your mind. 

 When you exercise, you are increasing the oxygen flow through your body and breaking up that stagnant, slowing effect that can become apparent when you are lethargic and not eating well.  Have you noticed people who regularly run or exercise as well as pay attention to eating well in your office? Often they are the ones with annoyingly high energy, friendly attitudes and on top of their game with ideas and organization with their work!

 A U.S. News & World Report health article reported a study on 124 men and women to show a difference in high blood pressure from added healthy diet and fitness, but also showed improvements in cognitive function.  The two things focused on in this study were eating and exercise. In terms of eating, they focused on reducing portion sizes and altering habits like snacking.  For exercise, it was a minimal program which consisted of 30-minute workouts 3-4 times each week.  This study was done for the duration of 4 months and showed a 30% improvement on average in mental function. 

 In my humble opinion, this shouldn’t come as much of a surprise.  There have been numerous studies showing drastic improvements in children’s behavior patterns and ability to learn in schools that had healthy lunch programs.  Why would it be any different for adults?  It is amazing, however, to think that there could be as much as 30% improvement in your cognitive activity from just four months.  This should be enough to inspire each and every one of us to change our bad habits, as we could get more done and be more efficient in our work without it being a struggle or depending on that fourth cup of coffee to carry us through!

We have all heard the phrase, “you are what you eat” and it does seem to ring true on many levels.  Almost every single day I hear someone express how tired they feel.  I know several people who do not sleep well on a regular basis. What we don’t realize, is that the food we eat can have a big impact on our sleep quality at night. This can have an enormous impact on your life, let alone your work.  Let’s face it, sometimes it actually isn’t the meeting that is so boring that you are falling on your face, it is the fact that many are not well rested. 

The food and liquids we consume can often make or break our ability to sleep on time and with quality rest.  Here are a few tips to keep in mind to see a change in your own sleep pattern so that you can be at your best during the day, for whomever it is you need to work with or for:

-Tryptophan-rich foods.  We’ve all heard about thanksgiving turkey dinners putting everyone to sleep.  Well, it truly is a sleep-inducing item! Other foods that contain tryptophan would include poultry, dairy, banans, honey and oats.

- Bedtime snack.  It helps to have a small snack before bed, but don’t mistakenly have a large meal or overdo it right before bed. This could have the opposite effect and mess up your digestion, making it difficult to have a restful sleep.

- Not that eating foods that are high in fat are recommended anyway, but here is just one more reason to avoid them.  Sleep cycles have been proven to be disrupted by diets consisting of high fat foods such as fast food items.

- It may seem like a no-brainer to avoid a full cup of coffee before bed, but keep in mind that caffeine in its various forms also do play a role in your sleep ability.  Caffeine is often found in tea, chocolate and sodas.  You might also be aware that it can be found in cold medicines, pain relievers, weight loss pills and the like, so check labels and make sure there isn’t any hiding in there.

- Alcohol. Drinking alcoholic beverages makes you think you are falling asleep easier, but it is not a better sleep and can disrupt a restful sleep.

-Watch the protein.  Believe it or not, protein-rich foods are more difficult for your system to digest and this makes it not the best choice for a bed time snack.

- When our kids are young, we try to keep them from drinking fluids after a certain hour at night, well the same rule should apply for adults.  You can’t sleep well if you are in need of hitting the restroom throughout the night.

Lack of sleep can have major impacts on the quality of your life in many areas, not just the fact that you will be less alert and capable at work.  So pay attention to your evening habits, and you may just find the reason why it has been difficult to get a good night’s sleep.  Happy Z’s!

It can be quite monotonous, at times, planning the weekly meals around my work schedule.  I would like to say I try to stay mindful of healthy food options and sometimes it helps to try new things, get new ideas to break up the routine. 

I always love finding recipe ideas that I can share with everyone that are tasty options to vary from the easy convenience of unhealthy food that seems to surround us.  The one I would like to share with you today is for apple-cinnamon muffins that can be brought along as a breakfast treat to work, or really any time.  I found this recipe in Women’s Health Magazine back in 2008.

Apple-Cinnamon Oat-Bran Muffins

Ingredients: 1/2 cup oat bran, 1 cup whole wheat flour, 1/4 cup ground flaxseed, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 1/2 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp ground cinnamon, 1 tsp nutmeg, 1 egg beaten, 4 tbsp canola oil, 1/3 cup applesauce, 1/4 cup sugar, 1/4 cup chopped pecans.

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together bran, flour, flaxseed, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

3. In a separate bowl, whisk together egg and oil until smooth.  Stir in applesauce and sugar.  Combine mixtures and fold in pecans.

4. Spoon batter into paper-lined muffin cups. Bake for 22-25 minutes or until tops spring back when lightly touched.  Cool on a wire rack.

These have about 3 grams of fiber and 3 grams of protein and about 147 calories each.  It is a nice alternative in comparison to say, a bagel and cream cheese or store-bought blueberry muffin.  These are a good source of fiber and I think they are a great recipe, however, I would like to throw in my own personal take.  There is a lot of supporting evidence that canola oil is not the healthiest of choices.  Now, if you take the time to look, you will find that canola is in a lot of the foods on the shelves at the grocery store and used at home quite often too.  I’ve determined that canola oil is one of the things that I personally am going to avoid.  If you find that you do not want to use canola oil in recipes such as this one, there are a number of substitutions that can be used.  Instead of canola oil, use olive oil, butter or coconut oil at this temperature.

I might test this one out on my co-workers this week and see what type of response I get.  If you try it out, I would love to hear your feedback as well.  Have a wonderful week!

You may recall a few months back I wrote an entry discussing sugar – friend or foe?  Well, as I hoped to point out, it is not your friend! I could write numerous addendums to that topic and probably never fully be able to emphasize that fact enough.  Today is one of those occasions. 

Time Magazine recently published a health special, A to Z Health Guide, which covers most topics briefly.  I was relieved to see that the dangers of sugar are being discussed more and more in general, and was, of course, touched upon in this magazine.   The section that caught my eye was one that clarified the differences of glucose, fructose and sucrose.  Although they sound the same, they do not have the same impact on your body. 

Glucose is produced by your body after you digest and break down starches and carbohydrates, and this is the easiest on your body.  Surprisingly enough, it is fructose, the sugar obtained from various fruits, that can be dangerous if eaten excessively over time.  Excessive fructose puts you in the ring for risks such as heart disease and diabetes.  The reason for this is that more fat develops in the liver and do not react to insulin properly.  We are always taught that fruit is good for us, but the thing to consider is all of the other places that fructose lingers.

Working in an office, or any workplace for that matter, we see more fructose on a daily basis than any of us would like to believe.  It is all of the processed foods, mainly, that typically contain sucrose, which is a combination of fructose and glucose.  I would like to challenge you to start paying attention to everything you consume and the things that are consumed around you, and you would be amazed at home sugar is consumed.  Beverages alone make up a great deal of this when you look at most sweetened beverages such as sodas, juices, energy drinks and the like.  It has been said that the average American consumes 53 tablespoons of sugar per day.  Can you believe that?  Yes, this is a problem.  So I urge you to pay attention to the things that you put in your mouth going forward, because it is certainly easy to fall into the trends of our fellow co-workers when it comes to processed, convenient foods and drinks.  If there is something that you love more than most, perhaps a type of soda or snack, put a limit on it and make it for those exceptional days and eliminate all other unnecessary sugars. 

And believe me, this is as hard for me to swallow (or literally, not swallow!) as it is for you, but we will all feel and look better for those better choices!

You would be hard pressed to find someone who hasn’t experienced the afternoon fatigue at work after lunch.  We tend to blame it on everything around us except the thing that makes the most sense – the food in our lunch!  I have heard the sleepy blame game for years now, and it includes pointing fingers at the weather, meetings, not having enough coffee, and the list goes on and on.  The food we eat can make or break us for the duration of our day, and let’s face it, we need to be energetic, alert and thinking properly. 

There are many nutrients that we need on a daily basis to keep our bodies running efficiently ona a daily basis, not to mention long-term.  Needless to say, most average adults do not get all of the nutrients they need and eat a healthy and well-balanced diet regularly.  I have compiled a few basic food categories to keep in mind when packing your lunch or deciding what to order when you step out of the office to grab a bite.

Protein is known to keep you satisfied for longer periods of time.  Fish, in particular, has long been associated with being an excellent brain boosting food.  Fish are rich in omega 3 fatty acides, which are necessary in the process of function and development for the brain.

A small handful of nuts as a mid morning or afternoon snack could also prove to be helpful.  The antioxident, vitamin E, is found in nuts and seeds as well and has been associated with avoiding more cognitive decline later in life.  A bonus in this is that dark choclate also has antioxident properties as well as a little caffeine, so it is actually a good thing to have an occasional piece of dark choclate to maintain focus and concentration!

A big part of the working mind is blood flow, and ultimately, most organs in the body also rely on the blood flow.  You can reduce the liklihood of cardiovascular disease and increase blood flow by eating whole grains and fruits like the avocado.  The whole grains also contain dietary fiber and vitamin E. 

Studies continue to show the positive influence of blueberries in our lives.  Not only do they have antioxident properties, but protect the brain from oxidative stress.  Learning capacity increased when studies were done on animals with a diet rich in blueberries. 

Your ability to concentrate can really suffer when your diet lacks some of the necessary and essential nutrients.  Now, don’t lose sight of the fact that eating too much or too little can also take away from your ability to focus.  Think about adding healthy and wholesome foods to your diet and notice how much better you feel as well as the mental focus and concentration to get you through your work day efficiently.

Last week I brought up the topic of breathing correctly and how it can be an easy tactic to relieve stress and protect against all the harmful affects that stress can have against one’s health.  In your career, can you think of times when you should have taken a step back from the situation and given yourself a minute to breathe and you could have been able to think more clearly or handle something more objectively?

When you are at work, it is the perfect opportunity to practice proper breathing techniques.  If you are more relaxed, and hence less stressed, your posture, your attitude and your abilities will show the improvement.  I will admit, that this is something I need to work on.  We, as a society, let ourselves become so busy and so scheduled, that amazingly enough, we actually forget how to breathe correctly, one of the most basic essentials of life!

Many other relaxation practices, such as yoga, aromatherapy, stretching, etc., involve deep, cleansing breaths.  Deep breathing can be practiced anywhere though, in hand with these methods, or on its own, right in your office chair.  The average person, when being conscious of it, will notice that their breath is coming from their chest.  However, you get more oxygen when you do proper deep breaths, which come down from the abdomen, rather than short shallow breaths from the chest.  This deeper breathing, which gives you more oxygen, is what alleviates those anxious feelings. 

As advised by helpguide.org, a good description of how to breath deeply for relaxation and eliminating stress is as follows:

•  Sit in a comfortable position with your back straight. Place one hand on your chest and the other on your stomach.
• Breathe in through your nose. The hand on your stomach should rise. The hand on your chest should move very little.
• Exhale through your mouth, pushing out as much air as you can while contracting your abdominal muscles. The hand on your stomach should move in as you exhale, but your other hand should move very little.
• Continue to breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth. Try to inhale enough so that your lower abdomen rises and falls. Count slowly as you exhale.

Let this be your homework this week, to practice being more at ease and stress-free by breathing correctly and deeply.  Try it at work, and even at home before bed for a more restful sleep.