March 8th-11th: GEPA (grade 8)
March 14th-18th: NJASK
(grades 3 and 4), STEST (grades 5, 6, and 7)
Nutrition and the
Brain:
a)
Water comprises up to 90% of brain
weight, more than any other body organ. Under normal conditions, a person
should drink 1/3 oz. water per pound of body weight each day. However, the more
stressed a person is, the more water the body needs! Water is instrumental in enabling the brain to focus attention, it
allows faster processing for high-level reasoning, and is essential for
electrical transmissions in the nervous system to allow learning and thinking.
b)
Diuretics such as coffee, tea, carbonated beverages,
chocolate, fruit juices, and alcohol drive up the salt level in the body
eliminating water. The body uses water from the brain
to form digestive juices to break down high sugar drinks!
c)
Protein, protein, protein!! It serves as a water
trap, allowing it to be present in order to function within the brain. Children with learning difficulties are often deficient in
protein. Good sources of protein are: eggs, snacks of cheese, yogurt,
nuts, meat, beans, and cottage cheese.
d)
Carbohydrates provide most of the energy for our
bodies. They are found in grains, fruits, vegetables, and dairy sugar. From
these comes a type of sugar, glucose, a main energy
source for the brain.
Stress and the Brain:
a)
The brain attempts to maintain a “balance” at all
times. Anything that upsets that “balance” is considered a stressor.
b)
The primary purpose of the brain is survival. It
does not matter whether the stress is from social problems, an accident, or an
environmental trauma: the brain/body reacts the same
way each time!
c)
In children, long- term
stress can result in a reduction of neurons substantially hindering a
child’s ability to plant new memories and to retrieve old ones.
Summary:
a)
Make sure your child is well hydrated during the New
Jersey State Assessments.
b)
Avoid carbonated beverages (soda) and fruit juices
during the New Jersey State Assessments. Especially the morning of: your child
will suffer a tremendous sugar high for about an hour, then CRASH! This crash,
usually happens during testing, thus negatively effecting his/her results.
c)
Make sure your child’s protein levels are well
maintained. Eggs for breakfast, string cheese and nuts for snack, and a
hamburger for dinner.
d)
Eat your fruits and vegetables. An apple a day may
not keep the doctor away, but it sure is a great energy source for the brain.