Although it’s always tempting to think about health tips in terms of the benefits they can bring to our physical fitness or mental health, these are not the only advantages of focusing on a healthier lifestyle. Dietary choices have an impact on a number of areas, including the health of our bones, organs, immune system, and state of mind.
One interesting example is how the specific dietary choices students make can have an impact on how effective their study sessions are. This is not something that only applies to younger people. Many older adults now choose to return to studies in later life – either as a way to boost career prospects in their current role or break into another industry altogether.
But what role do study sessions play in this, and why can specific dietary choices around them have such a huge impact?
Effective study is key to academic success
The simple fact is that doing well on any course is only possible if you can find ways to plan effective study sessions. These are self-directed sessions where students carry out any revision for upcoming examinations, prepare for class presentations, and conduct their own extra-curricular subject reading.
Study sessions are also key for completing any coursework and any extra work outside of class. At certain times, students may also participate in group study sessions. These involve working with classmates to complete the required work. If any more proof of their importance in academia were needed, you will find that study outside of class is found in pretty much every quality program.
When you take all of this into account, it is obvious why study sessions are so critical for academic greatness. Of course, all of the benefits you can gain from sessions such as this only come if they are effective. Without effective study sessions, students will not complete work to a decent standard or fail to take in the knowledge they are studying. For group sessions, no benefit will be gained if they are used simply as a social gathering to chat.
How can dietary choices influence the effectiveness of study sessions?
The truth is that what we eat and drink plays a major role in how well we perform in daily life. This is true for family life, for example, where a busy dad will only have the energy to run around after multiple children with the right fuel inside him. By the same token, students will only have what it takes to excel in study sessions with the right dietary choices to fuel them.
But how can this make such a huge difference for students at these kinds of sessions? To begin with, what they eat and drink leading up to a session can have a massive impact on their mood or how energized they feel to do well in it. If they were to eat a junk food meal and wash it down with a large soda beforehand, for example, the crash in their blood sugar levels could combine with the fat in the junk food meal to leave them feeling sluggish.
If they were to drink a lot of alcohol before they studied, students could feel too distracted to study properly. The importance of a healthy diet in terms of performance is not just evident in the immediate lead-up to study time—the overall impact of dietary choices in normal life can also influence students’ general mood or ability to do well.
School counselors are key to healthy student development
As the above shows, it is a great idea for students to focus on making better decisions about what they eat and drink to help them study better. For all students, the best way to find out more about this is by talking to school counselors at their institution.
This is because these counseling professionals are able to work with students to give advice on proper dietary choices and why they matter so much. In addition, counselors are able to seek advice from specialist nutrition experts or refer students directly to them when required.
School counselors can often be more effective in getting students to listen to their guidance when compared to parents or teachers. This is because students often see them as unbiased sources of advice that they are able to fully trust.
This makes working in school counseling an ideal career choice if you enjoy helping students gain the most from their studies and live a wholesome lifestyle. To break into the industry, though, the relevant qualifications are needed first, like the Master of Education in School Counseling from St. Bonaventure University Online. The program offers online coursework, which allows for flexibility for those with a busy lifestyle, and, in addition to this, it includes an internship in school counseling, meaning aspiring counselors can gain hands-on experience.
How else can students find out about specific dietary choices to boost study session performance?
Although school counselors are a trusted way for students to find out about making better choices with their diet to positively influence study sessions, this is not the only source of information available.
An obvious alternative in many cases would be for students to seek advice from responsible adults in their families. This has the benefit of seeing information coming from a source close to students and which has their best interests at heart.
In the same vein, students may also look to close friends for inspiration and advice about certain dietary choices to enhance their study capabilities. If they have a friend who eats healthily and performs brilliantly in each session, for example, they may seek help from them in improving their own food/drink choices.
In the modern age, students will naturally seek advice on the best specific dietary choices to boost their studies via online sources. This is something that should be approached with caution, though, as not all the information available on this subject online is verified or trustworthy. It is, therefore, key for students to seek guidance from well-known, reliable websites that specialize in this area.
What do specific healthy diet choices for better study look like?
Although we have looked at the theory of why better dietary choices can enable effective study sessions, it is still worth looking at some concrete examples of this in action. This not only shows how the theory behind a proper diet can be applied to academic studies but also exactly which foods/drinks are worth focusing on for students. But what do the best specific diet choices for students look like in practice?
Healthy meal plans
The best place to start is healthy meal planning. This ensures students create a diet that provides all the essential food groups, vitamins, and nutrients they need to study to their best. By concentrating on this, students are able to follow a healthy diet on a regular basis, which sets them up perfectly to study like pros.
The benefit of this approach is that students are always ready to attend a study session and feel alert enough to do well. Healthy meal planning on a regular basis will also have a positive cumulative impact on student’s health and ability to study well, which is not possible with short-term fixes. Eating an apple before a study session, for example, is no substitute for eating one every day for the whole year before.
Before we go into detail about some healthy meal plans to follow for students, it pays to know what a healthy meal plan should contain. In general terms, planned meals should include fruit (such as bananas, apples, berries, and grapefruit), vegetables (such as leafy greens, peppers, cauliflower, and broccoli), whole grains (such as brown rice, oats, and whole grain bread), lean protein (such as white fish, turkey, and chicken), and healthy fats (such as Omega 3 found in tuna and salmon). By following this as a guide, it should be possible for students to make the best dietary choices to fuel their sessions. But what are some examples of healthy meal plans to take on board?
Healthy meal plan example 1
Breakfast: Two poached eggs on 100% whole grain toast.
Lunch: Grilled chicken breast with a healthy garden salad.
Dinner: Any white fish with broccoli and steamed rice.
The above meal plan hits the right notes for better studying for a number of reasons. The eggs at breakfast are not only filling to aid focus in sessions throughout the day but also contain healthy fats to boost memory levels. The healthy salad at lunch is packed full of vitamins and minerals to boost mood for studying, whilst the grilled chicken provides a healthy protein fix for energy. The combination of the healthy fats found in the white fish combined with vitamins C, K, and A in the broccoli is also ideal for later night study sessions where full concentration is needed.
Healthy meal plan example 2
Breakfast: Overnight oats.
Lunch: Vegetable soup.
Dinner: Turkey burgers on a whole grain bun with a leafy green salad.
This meal plan is ideal for busy students who need healthy, nutritious food to help them perform well. Oats are a great source of fiber, and adding seeds can pack an extra protein hit for a burst of energy. Depending on which vegetables you put into the soup, lunch is sure to help boost any immune system and keep students well enough to make study sessions. Lean turkey burgers on a whole grain bun are the ideal dinner to finish, and a mineral-packed leafy green salad on the side is perfect for boosting mental clarity for studies.
Healthy meal plan example 3
Breakfast: Granola with mixed berries and Greek yogurt.
Lunch: Turkey sandwich on whole grain bread.
Dinner: Sirloin steak with green beans and cooked spinach.
For any student looking to boost their focus and mental alertness for any study session, this meal plan stands out. The mixture of energy-laden carbs and key vitamins breakfast provides is perfect for study, and the protein hit of turkey at lunch helps key compounds in the blood carry oxygen around for true mental clarity. Choosing a healthy cut of steak for dinner also helps with this and means that there is no unhealthy fat to spoil the boost to vision and energy levels the spinach delivers.
Healthy snacks are also crucial
Whilst healthy meal planning covers the majority of what students might consume in a day, it is not the full story in terms of the latest health tips to know about. Many will fill up with unhealthy snacks in between classes, at lunch, or even during study sessions themselves. This can undo all the good work around eating healthy meals each day and have a negative impact on how well students perform when studying.
Classic examples of poor snack choices include crisps, biscuits, and sweets. These all provide no health benefits when consumed and could actually hinder how well students study in sessions. This is because bad snack choices can leave students feeling lethargic, listless, and with something of a mental fog.
It is, therefore, crucial for students to concentrate on eating healthy snacks each day, which actually contain ingredients that boost their abilities to study well. Good options to consider include nuts (they not only fill you up but also come packed with healthy fats for improved focus), fruit (bananas, for example, contain potassium, which is thought to help move nutrients into cells to boost how lovely we feel), and hummus and raw vegetable sticks (the vitamins in the raw veg help boost how healthy we feel to get the most from study sessions, whilst the hummus is packed with minerals such as manganese to regulate blood sugar levels).
Although the above are just a few examples of healthy snack choices students could make, they show the kind of thing that’s worth focusing on.
Hydration strategies are also key for better studying
The above touches on the food students can eat for better studies and give some good examples of what this looks like in action. It is also key, however, to focus on what students drink and why staying hydrated is so important overall.
It is well known that following the best strategies for proper hydration throughout the day can make you feel more mentally alert, in a happier mood, and more able to focus on the job at hand. This means that staying hydrated can really help students get the most from study sessions.
Of course, the opposite is true if students were to let themselves get dehydrated. In this case, they would feel grumpy, irritable, and without the mental alertness to study well. This is all down to the negative impact a lack of fluid has on the body and its key components (such as the brain).
This makes following some key hydration strategies a must for all students. Some of the best tips to take on board include drinking plain water, as this will help hydrate you best and does not contain any unwanted extras (such as added sugar) that other drinks can, remembering to drink little and often throughout the day, as this will help you to keep your hydration levels topped up and never fall too low, trying to consume around eight glasses of water per day for peak hydration levels, carrying a water bottle around with you so you can easily stay hydrated all day and do not have to buy less healthy options when you feel thirsty on campus, and eating foods with high water content (such as watermelon and strawberries).
What else makes for better study sessions?
Although specific dietary choices have a major impact on study sessions and how they go, this is not all that can affect them positively. Taking the time to stay in good physical shape through regular exercise, for example, can ensure students are well enough to attend sessions. It will also give them the confidence to fully participate in them and get the most from them.
Focusing on mental health can also prove a real bonus for better studying. Practicing mindfulness, for example, can help students remain fully engaged with sessions and take in all they learn from them. Meditation can also help students feel positive enough about themselves to engage in group study sessions.
Better studying can also be achieved through a number of factors outside of health, such as planning out revision timetables, always having the right books/equipment to hand, and making sure you are not interrupted when studying.
Specific dietary choices can influence study sessions positively
From healthy meals to healthy snacks and proper hydration, it’s clear just what a huge impact specific dietary choices for students can have on their study sessions. This all comes down to how the various vitamins and minerals found in healthy foods boost our physical and mental capabilities. By the same token, poor dietary choices contain ingredients that do not help us feel more alert or able to focus. With this in mind, all students should be aware of making the best nutritional choices and how they can go about this.
