Hi everyone. I’m Lenique Adam’s and I am a 1st and 2nd year student at Cornerstone Institute in Cape Town,South Africa.As a student I think it is important to address the health of the brain and the self-esteem as the transition from high school to a tertiary institution can be a bit stressful and cause us to neglect ourselves.
With this blog I aim to look at how we can better our self-esteem and how we can increase our cognitive abilities through exercise and eating the correct foods.
Did you know that exercising is crucial for cognitive development.Exercising can help to strengthen ones thinking and memory capacity.A chemical called endorphins which is also the feel good chemical helps to play a role in increasing concentration of the mind and sharpening the mind to deal with tasks at hand.
I did some research on what the best exercises are to better brain health and I came across running l,swimming and cycling as the most popular activities.With these activities more blood is pumped to transport oxygen to the brain due to the adrenaline of the activity. This allows for an increase in brain cells which obviously means we are able then to think and concentrate more.
Personally for me I found that when I swam I not only felt calm and refreshed but I was able to concentrate and think better when I needed to sit down and study for an exam or do an assignment.
WHAT TYPES OF FOODS SHOULD WE EAT?
The food we eat can have a big impact on how our brains are structured and what condition they can be in health wise.
The brain uses up to 20 calories from the body’s food intake so in order for it to function properly we need to make sure that we are consuming the correct foods to enable our bodies and minds to perform to their full capacities.
OMEGA 3 FATTY ACIDS Foods like omega-3 fatty acids play a role in the building a repairing of brain cells.A study found that people that consumed omega-3 fatty acids had much better cognitive development and thinking abilities.
CHOCOLATE Have you ever heard that dark chocolate is good for you?Well it turns out that dark chocolate contains antioxidants which help reduce stress levels and Improves with cognitive decline of the brain.
VEGETABLES You know how you were forced to eat your vegetables as a kid and how much your parents told you that they were good for helping you grow. Well it turns out your parents were right.They are good for not only your body but brain as well.A 2006 study found that individuals who consumed vegetables had a significant decline in mental problems as they got older.
Another good supplement for the brain would be consuming proteins like eggs,meat,fish etc.They help with alertness and staying focused. However the most important one of all will be drinking water.
We all know that drinking 6-7 glasses of water a day is good for flushing out the toxins but it has other perks to it as well. It improves the smell and colour of urine and helps us to be more energized as well as increases concentraition levels. If we do not drink enough water,we become dehydrated and we are not able to function properly .
SELF-ESTEEM Since there is a change of scenery from high school to tertiary institution students often feel and think about whether they will fit in as there are various age gaps between students and they might not necessarily feel like they are able to handle the stress that comes along with studying further.
I think as a student myself,starting college for the first time last year I felt a bit inferior as I had much more intelligent and older scholars in my class and their level of thinking was much broader than I could imagine and not being able to hit those A’s the way you want can be tough for ones self-esteem when your colleagues are doing much better than you are.
What helped me to gain my confidence and self-esteem back was to motivate myself and tell myself that in order to be successful we have to have some ups and downs to allow us to push harder in life.
You have allowed yourself to get this far so my advice to each and everyone out there that is starting college and wanting to give up is that you need to applaud your self or give yourself a pat on the back because not alot of people make it this far. You are here working hard to get your degree and even though it might not seem that it is worth it sometimes you are doing the best that you can and at the end of the day you will reap the benefits of it all.
Start being much nicer to yourselves and rewarding yourselves everytime you achieve something. See every failure as a chance to to get up and dust yourself off and try again.You might not always get the best grades but you tried your best and that’s all you need to do.
It is important for students to take some personal time out and allow themselves to breathe and do some introspection.Go and have a day out with friends to help yourself get away from being in the books. You need to be around people who are closest to you and who can uplift you in a good way.
It is also good to know that nobody is perfect and that there are many others like you out there that’s struggling and that it will get better with time.
“Always Remember you are braver than you believe,Stronger than you seem,Smarter than you think and more loved thank you know”
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