Tara Schmidt, dietitian, on how food impacts our brain’s health: “3 to 5 eating episodes a day can be reasonable for most people”

Food plays a major role in keeping not only our bodies functioning properly but also our brains. Our grey matter throughout the day requires a steady supply of inputs like glucose, key micronutrients and oxygen to keep it running smoothly.

The frequency and size of your meals can have an impact on your brain’s cognition and memory. However, there is no one-size-fits-all for what is best for each person, explained a group of dieticians to HuffPost.

Experts share tips on how frequently you should eat to improve your brain’s functioning

Registered dietitian nutritionist and spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Angel Planells shared with HuffPost some of the advantages for the brain of smaller, more frequent meals. These include minimizing swings in blood sugar levels, enhancing distribution of nutrients and limiting cognitive fatigue.

However, again, there is no one-size-fits-all, and “eating frequency alone doesn’t guarantee better cognition,” Planells highlights. Furthermore, multiple smaller meals might not be right for everyone.

Three square meals a day may be just right, as long as they are balanced, not excessively big and spaced out so that your brain doesn’t experience long fasting gaps. When experienced, all of those factors can have a negative effect on brain performance.

Typically, those people that need more calories or have difficulty consuming a lot of food at one time can benefit from more frequent eating explained lead dietitian at the Mayo Clinic Diet Tara Schmidt. She told HuffPost that “anywhere from three to five eating episodes a day can be reasonable for most people.”

When giving advice, Schmidt says she always asks those considering changing the frequency of their meals: “How will this change impact what you’re eating?”

Eating more meals often results in some people consuming more calories. On the other hand, it may facilitate them in meeting nutritional needs she notes.

“Eating frequency is a complex topic, so advice always needs to be personalized,” Schmidt says.

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