Diet most definitely plays a part in improving or maintaining your IQ. There are plenty of foods which are reported to enhance mental alertness and even possibly enhance IQ. So you not only need to consider your waist line when it comes to diet, but you also need to consider the impact of what you eat on your brain and your mental processing abilities. Let’s look at a list of possible IQ boosting foods. We will attempt to categorize them into moderately high evidence, medium evidence and low evidence of possible effects on the brain. Moderately high evidence
- Creatine: often used by bodybuilders, creatine is a nitrogenous organic acid that occurs naturally in vertebrates and helps supply energy to all cells in the human body. An Australian study found that creatine supplementation in the short term provided a significant boost in brain power including memory. Refinements on this study found that creatine supplementation was able to negative the negative effects of sleep deprivation.
- Omega and fish oils: supplementation by either pregnant mothers or to young infants has been shown to increase IQs of children by up to 3.5 points. A study in northern England also found that pupil performance improved with fish oil supplementation. Some studies have also found that consumption of fish oils conferred an IQ advantage in adults. Although omega and fish oils are IQ boosting foods, the purity of the oils is also a critical component.
Medium-evidence IQ boosting foods
- Gotu Kola: is a pervasive south Asian herb. Its supplementation has been shown to improve IQs of children with mental retardation by up to 10%. It is not clear whether this herb can achieve the same feet in normal children or adults.
- Blueberries: some studies have found that their consumption may improve memory in older adults with age-related memory problems. Berries contain flavonoids have recently been found to confer positive benefits to the brain. Whether or not blueberries are really an IQ boosting food remains unknown, but these tasty foods certainly fall in the category of super foods and are thus worth adding to one’s diet.
- Gingko Biloba: is a herb that has long been claimed to boost memory and concentration. Although the strongest early evidence in its favor related to the treatment of Alzheimer’s, recent meta analyses have suggested that the herb does not alter the progression of the diseases and that memory or problem-solving abilities are not enhanced by its consumption. This one should really fall off the list of IQ boosting foods.
