Having a blueberry smoothie with lots of fresh blueberries can help keep the brain working at peak efficiency throughout the day, research has revealed. The study, carried out by molecular nutritionist Dr Jeremy Spencer at the University of Reading, has revealed that the antioxidants contained in blueberries help maintain the blood flow to the brain, thereby keeping it healthy and operating efficiently even in the afternoon.

The study was carried out on a group of 40 students aged between 18 and 30 years. For one month, the participants were given one blueberry smoothie with their breakfast. Following that, they were asked to take various tests that measured their power of concentration throughout the day.

After one month, the same participants were asked to perform the activities as before, only this time they were served regular breakfasts.  The result showed that when the participants took blueberry smoothies with breakfast, their concentration levels remained high all the way to the afternoon, but without it, their concentration dwindled in the afternoon.

Dr. Spencer commented that “the findings were impressive and have the potential in the long term to lead to cognitive improvement”, adding that the high level of antioxidants can indeed make a person’s brain healthier in the long run.

Recent research conducted by a group of reputed neuroscientists has proved that brain waves can directly influence how a person behaves. The research revealed that people can be forced to move slower than usual by boosting a single type of brain wave. Peter Brown of University College London (UCL), one of the researchers, declared, “At last we have some direct experimental proof that brain waves influence behavior in humans, in this case how fast a movement is performed.”

The research involved injecting a low-voltage electrical current into a person’s brain through the scalp. The study involved 14 people and all of them were asked to manipulate the position of a dot of light on a screen as quickly as possible with a joystick, while the current was being applied. To their amazement, the scientists found that the application of current actually made the research subjects work slower (up to 10%).

The researchers now plan to carry out further research on the topic, to see whether they can find a potential cure for Parkinson’s disease, chorea, or dystonia.

According to a recent study carried out by neuroscientists, and published in Nature Neuroscience magazine, the human brain can rewire itself at almost any age, making it more efficient. The study showed that juggling balls or small objects seem to have the best therapeutic effect on a person’s neural network.

Neuroscientists scanned the white matter of the brain (which comprises the axons) using MRI technique, which showed that juggling objects for even short intervals regularly increased blood flow to the axons and brought about some discernible changes to the wiring of the brain. “We tend to think of the brain as being static, or even beginning to degenerate, once we reach adulthood…. In fact we find the structure of the brain is ripe for change. We’ve shown that it is possible for the brain to condition its own wiring system to operate more efficiently”, commented Heidi Johansen-Berg, lead researcher of the project.

One more interesting discovery that the researchers noted was that the improvement in brain performance was not linked to the skill level of the test subject, but rather on the time spent on the activity. Thus, a person may not be good at juggling, but if he spends an hour or so every day with the activity, his brain should perform better during the later years of his life.