First Person · The Dose
Feed Your Focus
We spend a great deal of time thinking about what food tastes like — and almost none considering what it’s actually doing once it’s inside us.
Chris Claussen — Co-Founder, First Person · 8 min read
Is your food providing the raw materials your brain needs to make energy, build neurotransmitters, protect neurons, and keep brain cells talking to each other? Or is it simply delivering a few fleeting moments of pleasure before leaving you tired, hungry, and mentally foggy?
The key to better nutrition is deceptively simple: shift your perspective on food from the temporary pleasure of taste to the deeper, more lasting satisfaction of nourishment. That doesn’t mean meals should be bland, joyless, or eaten with the enthusiasm of completing a tax return. It means taste shouldn’t be the only standard by which you judge a meal.
When you start prioritizing nourishment, the question itself changes. You stop asking only, “What am I craving?” and begin asking, “What does my brain need from me today?”
There is no perfect diet
My own journey toward optimizing nutrition has been long, experimental, and occasionally extreme. I’ve explored nearly every major eating philosophy — vegetarian, carnivore, paleo, keto, cyclical keto, intermittent fasting, and extended fasts lasting three, five, even seven days. Each taught me something.
Keto, for example, was genuinely useful for losing weight and improving metabolic flexibility — the body’s ability to switch between glucose and fat for fuel. But I also ran into unintended consequences from staying in ketosis too long. The lesson wasn’t that keto is bad, or that some other philosophy is universally better. It was that rigidly adhering to one dietary ideology is rarely the most sustainable long-term strategy.
Human biology is complicated. Genetics, activity, metabolic health, sleep, age, medications, and goals all shape how you respond to food. A diet that works beautifully for one person can leave another feeling sluggish, irritable, or as though their brain has been replaced with wet cement. So instead of treating nutrition like a religion, treat it like a continuing experiment — track your energy, clarity, mood, sleep, digestion, and performance, and use those signals (alongside proper medical testing) to refine what you eat.
What does the brain actually need?
The brain is only about 2% of your body weight, yet it demands a substantial, continuous share of your energy — along with amino acids, fatty acids, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants to build neurotransmitters, maintain cell membranes, and defend itself against oxidative stress.
Here’s the reassuring part: research suggests overall dietary patterns matter more than any single “superfood.” Diets built around vegetables, unsaturated fats, fish, berries, nuts, and minimally processed foods are consistently linked to better cognitive outcomes than patterns dominated by refined carbohydrates and heavily processed foods. Mediterranean-style diets rich in extra-virgin olive oil or nuts have performed especially well in randomized trials of cognitive function.
Occasional indulgence is part of life. But if you want to support cognitive performance today — and long-term brain health — aim to build roughly 80% of your diet around the foods that follow. Your diet doesn’t need to be perfect to be powerful.
The Ten
Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
Key nutrients Monounsaturated fat · Polyphenols · Oleic acid
A foundational food of any brain-supportive diet. It’s rich in monounsaturated fat (particularly oleic acid) and polyphenols — plant compounds that may help support vascular health and the body’s defenses against oxidative stress and chronic inflammation. That matters because the brain is extraordinarily dependent on healthy blood flow and, being fat-rich itself, is especially vulnerable to oxidative damage. In randomized research, Mediterranean diets supplemented with extra-virgin olive oil have been linked to better cognitive performance than lower-fat control diets — likely because the oil replaces less beneficial fats within a better overall pattern.
Blueberries
Key nutrients Anthocyanins · Flavonoids · Antioxidants
Blueberries earned their reputation thanks to anthocyanins — the flavonoid pigments behind their deep blue-purple color. These compounds support antioxidant defenses and may influence blood-vessel function, inflammatory signaling, and communication between brain cells. Human studies suggest regular consumption may improve aspects of cognition such as episodic memory and processing speed — promising, though results vary by population and dose. In other words: blueberries are excellent brain food, but they will not turn you into Bradley Cooper in Limitless by Tuesday afternoon.
Wild-Caught Salmon
Key nutrients Omega-3 (DHA/EPA) · Vitamin B12 · Vitamin D
An outstanding source of protein and long-chain omega-3 fatty acids, especially DHA and EPA. DHA is a major structural component of brain-cell membranes, contributing to membrane fluidity, neuronal signaling, and the healthy function of synapses — the connection points where brain cells communicate. Omega-3s also help regulate inflammation and support cardiovascular health, which is inseparable from brain health: what protects the heart’s blood vessels tends to protect the brain’s blood supply too. Salmon also delivers B12, selenium, vitamin D, and high-quality protein.
Eggs
Key nutrients Choline · Vitamin B12 · High-quality protein
One of nature’s most efficient packages of brain-supportive nutrition: high-quality protein, B12, selenium, riboflavin, and — most notably — choline. Choline is needed to make acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter involved in memory, attention, learning, and muscle control, and to build the phospholipids that form healthy cell membranes. Many people don’t get optimal amounts, which makes eggs especially practical. Most of the choline lives in the yolk — so an egg-white omelet is leaving the star player sitting on the bench.
Lean Grass-Fed Beef, Bison & Lamb
Key nutrients Vitamin B12 · Iron · Zinc · Creatine
Red meat gets discussed as though it’s either essential for survival or one cheeseburger away from destroying civilization. The reality is more nuanced. Lean, minimally processed beef, bison, and lamb offer an unusually dense mix of protein, B12, iron, zinc, selenium, creatine, and choline — nutrients tied to oxygen transport, cellular energy, neurotransmitter synthesis, and myelin maintenance. B12 is particularly important for neurological health; iron carries oxygen; zinc supports neuronal signaling. What matters most is quality, cut, cooking method, portion size, and the rest of your diet.
Pasture-Raised Chicken & Turkey
Key nutrients Vitamin B6 · Vitamin B12 · Protein
High-quality protein plus several nutrients that support normal nervous-system function, including vitamins B3, B6, and B12. B6 helps the body synthesize neurotransmitters involved in mood, alertness, and cognition; B12 supports red-blood-cell formation and the myelin that insulates nerve fibers. Poultry also supplies the amino acids your body uses as building blocks for neurotransmitters. “Pasture-raised” and “organic” tell you something about how the animals were raised — but sourcing, minimal processing, and preparation still matter.
Mushrooms
Key nutrients Ergothioneine · Beta-glucans · Gut support
Mushrooms contain a fascinating mix of compounds — beta-glucans, the antioxidant ergothioneine, and polysaccharides and fibers that feed the gut microbiome. Because the gut and brain communicate through neural, immune, metabolic, and hormonal pathways, supporting microbial diversity may indirectly benefit cognition and mood. A widely discussed Singapore study found adults over 60 who ate more than two portions of mushrooms per week had substantially lower odds of mild cognitive impairment — though it was cross-sectional, identifying an association rather than proving cause. Variety helps, since different mushrooms offer different compounds.
From First Person
Lion’s Mane is one mushroom being actively studied for its effects on neurological function — though research on specific extracts is a different question from eating culinary mushrooms. It’s exactly why we engineered Crystallized Lion’s Mane into Think Fast: a form built for absorption, not just presence on a label.
Meet Think FastHigh-Fiber, Low-Carb Vegetables
Key nutrients Fiber · Polyphenols · Carotenoids
Vegetables don’t generate the same marketing excitement as a new superfood powder harvested during a full moon — but they remain among the most reliable foods for long-term health. High-fiber, non-starchy vegetables supply vitamins, minerals, polyphenols, carotenoids, sulfur compounds, and fermentable fibers that feed beneficial gut bacteria, slow digestion, and help moderate your blood-glucose response. Strong options: artichokes, asparagus, bell peppers, bok choy, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, arugula, leeks, onions, watercress, and zucchini. And don’t skip vegetables just because organic isn’t available — conventional vegetables are far better than none.
Organic Whole Fruits
Key nutrients Vitamin C · Fiber · Flavonoids
Whole fruit and refined sugar are not metabolically identical. Yes, fruit contains natural sugar — but also fiber, water, vitamins, minerals, and polyphenols, and a physical structure that requires chewing and slows digestion. It’s far harder to overconsume sugar from an apple than from soda, candy, or juice. Berries are especially attractive: a substantial phytonutrient payload with a relatively modest sugar load. Citrus, apples, kiwis, cherries, pomegranates, and avocados all contribute to a nutrient-dense diet. The right amount depends on your activity, glucose control, and goals.
Fermented Foods
Key nutrients Live cultures · Gut-brain axis · Probiotics
Fermented foods support the gut microbiome, which participates in the gut-brain axis. The microbes in your digestive system influence immune activity, intestinal-barrier integrity, nutrient metabolism, and the production of compounds that communicate with the nervous system. Unsweetened Greek yogurt, kefir, kimchi, sauerkraut, and traditionally fermented vegetables can introduce beneficial microbes and fermentation products. One caveat: not everything labeled “pickled” contains live cultures — look for raw, unpasteurized, or live and active cultures. And if you have a digestive condition or histamine intolerance, individual response still matters.
A repeatable pattern
Build a brain-performance plate
You don’t need all ten foods at every meal — only a pattern you’ll actually repeat.
- A high-quality protein — salmon, eggs, chicken, turkey, lean beef, bison, or lamb.
- A large serving of high-fiber vegetables.
- Extra-virgin olive oil or another minimally processed healthy fat.
- A modest serving of whole fruit.
- A fermented food several times per week.
From there, adjust carbohydrates and fats based on your activity, metabolic health, and how you actually feel. If most of what you eat is whole and nutrient-dense, there’s still room for meals chosen simply because they’re delicious. A healthy diet should support your life — not turn every birthday dinner into an existential crisis.
Nourishment changes the question
Optimizing nutrition isn’t about following a rigid list of forbidden foods. It’s about improving the quality of the decisions you make most often. Before a meal, ask: Will this give my brain protein, healthy fats, fiber, micronutrients, or protective plant compounds? Will it give me sustained energy, or a brief spike and a crash? Am I eating because my body needs nourishment — or because a hyper-palatable product was engineered to override my better judgment?
Over time, those questions change how you experience food. You begin to appreciate meals not only for how they taste, but for the energy, clarity, resilience, and performance they help make possible. Food can be pleasure. It can be culture, celebration, memory, and connection.
But it is also information. Every meal sends instructions to your metabolism, your microbiome, your cardiovascular system, and your brain. Choose those instructions carefully — your next thought may depend on them.
— Chris
This article is intended for educational purposes and is not a substitute for individualized medical or nutritional advice. People with medical conditions, food allergies, metabolic disorders, or medication-related dietary restrictions should consult a qualified healthcare professional before making significant dietary changes.
