Nutrition’s Impact on Academic Performance and Well-being
Reflecting on this topic, I will speak as a student, a common person, and as a future teacher. Not everyone is fully aware of how crucial food is and the significant impact it has on our day-to-day lives. It goes beyond affecting our stomach with physical pain; it is directly connected to our learning and academic performance. Therefore, I will address essential points here, based on my personal experience and also supported by scientific evidence, discussing how our food choices can influence us in the short and long term. In this reflection, I want to *explore the simple and powerful connection between nutrition, academic performance, and well-being*. Raising awareness and understanding how paying attention to what we eat can make a crucial difference in how we feel and in our learning process.
The Importance of a Balanced Diet
At the beginning of this semester, had someone asked me about a specific topic, I might not have chosen this one since it didn’t seem interesting or relevant enough to me. However, after personal experiences, I believe it is one of the most crucial ones, and not all students are (or were) aware of it. Developing unhealthy eating habits affects us in many ways, and one of those is reflected in our bodies. We can see physical changes, such as obesity, acne, among others, but we also can notice changes in our organism. Personally, I was someone who never cared much about “eating well”, having a balanced diet or not skipping meals. When I didn’t have much time, I preferred getting ready, doing my makeup instead of eating, which was a terrible choice. After a while, this had an impact on me, and I ended up at the hospital for a month. Poor eating habits led to the development of gallstones, skipping meals resulted in anemia and constant dizziness. There is a point where your body can’t take it anymore, and that’s when you start to prioritize everything. After leaving the hospital, I became more aware of what I ate, occasionally allowing myself to have junk food, but most of the time, I prefer home-cooked food, and most importantly, never skipping any of my meals.
The Negative Effects of Processed Foods
On the other hand, sugar and processed foods possess the capability to induce inflammation in both the body and the brain, potentially contributing to the development of mood disorders, such as anxiety and depression. If I hadn’t chosen processed foods during periods of stress or low mood, I might not have experienced the inflammation that can contribute to mood disorders. Rarely do individuals choose fresh fruits and vegetables during periods of stress or low mood. To illustrate my point, there are instances when a cup of coffee might serve as a substitute for a nutritionally well-balanced breakfast, or also the consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables is replaced by fast food options due to lack of time or just the habit of not having a balanced diet.
Maintaining a Regular Meal Schedule
Lastly, maintaining a regular meal schedule regulates blood sugar levels, influencing specific hormones such as dopamine and serotonin, which are responsible for regulating both mood and concentration. Consequently, students who have been without food for too long, such as those who skip their meals, experience disruptions in their mood and concentration levels.
Personal and Professional Implications
Personally, now my diet is different. I try not to skip breakfast (I used to do it very often) and I take care of what I eat, trying not to eat a lot of junk food or fried foods, and instead try to opt for more home-cooked food or fruits and vegetables. Professionally, this will help me pay close attention to my students. If their academic performance is affected, it’s probably their diet that is not balanced enough, and thus I will try to create awareness in them about how food affects their learning and prevent this from affecting them negatively.