Brain Food

                 Brains are expensive. They take 20% of the total energy our bodies use (Shulman et al.). This is a HUGE portion of our total food intake. Human energy use typically ranges from 70 kilocal/hr while sleeping, to 1400 kilocal/hr while sprinting (D. Morton). Think about it, 20% of this energy goes towards our brain’s functioning. To put this concept to actual numbers, an individual who does simple housekeeping for an hour uses 150 kilocalories. This means the brain alone is using 30 kilocalories (commonly referred to simply as calories) each hour. A chocolate chip cookie, a zucchini, three cucumbers, and 3/4ths a cup of popcorn are all examples of foods with around 30 calories (Healthy Bites Under 30 Calories). The thought that a brain can use up a whole zucchini in an hour of simple everyday work is ‘mind-boggling!’