This Applesauce Squeezer Has the Brain Nutrients of Salmon & Broccoli
by Jamie Aderski
With kids home for the summer, the snacking seems to be endless (but isn’t it always?!). Finding a balance between “fun” food choices and eating healthy foods is high up on the list of daily fights we face. In particular, getting them to eat the foods known to be good for those active minds is a huge struggle (but if you’re lucky enough to have a kid that loves salmon and steamed broccoli, good for you!). For the rest of us, our kids are probably not getting the daily nutrients they need for healthy brain development. Good news: Help is on the way! Two dads who were on the same struggle bus created Brainiac®after discovering that their kids weren’t getting enough of the right brain nutrients from their daily meals.
Brainiac® Snacks are the greatest parenting hack: familiar healthy snacks kids love, powered with a blend of super nutrients for developing brains.Read on for five reasons why Brainiac® Applesauce Squeezers are the solution you need to keep your kids healthy as they return to school.
1. Food for Thought: Support Memory, Focus, Learning & Attention
Some food facts coming your way: Just like we need calcium for strong bones and protein for healthy muscles, our brains need Omega-3s and choline—the key nutrients in every Brainiac snack!
Omega-3 DHA: DHA is an essential building block of brain cells and makes up 15% of a child’s brain. It's critical for maintaining normal brain structure, function and metabolism. It also helps with memory formation and has been shown to improve cognition including reading performance, focus and verbal learning.
Omega-3 EPA: The body doesn’t produce EPA on its own so it’s crucial we consume it through diet. Omega-3 EPA helps reduce inflammation in the brain and helps improve mood.
Choline: Choline is critical in developing neurotransmitters in the brain and is shown to improve memory and learning.
Chances are even if you don’t have picky eaters, your child likely isn’t getting the daily brain nutrition they need for a thriving, happy and healthy mind. That’s because these important nutrients are really only found in things like fatty fish, liver, broccoli, Brussels sprouts and eggs—a lot of the foods on kids' "yuck" list. In fact, most children in the U.S. are only getting 20% of the recommended adequate daily intake of Omega-3s and two-thirds of the recommended amount of intake of Choline (*based on guidance by the World Health Organization and National Institute of Health).
Just one Brainiac® Applesauce Squeezer provides as much Omega-3 DHA as a kid’s serving of salmon and as much choline as two cups of broccoli. So if you have the time (and energy!) to go through the motions of cooking an entire meal we applaud you, but for all of those other days, you can now grab a Brainiac pouch!
Ever just throw a fish fillet in your bag and go? (We don’t recommend this.) Brainiac® Applesauce Squeezers are not only packed with brain nutrients but also don’t have any added sugar (or low, natural sugar), have natural ingredients and are easy to throw in a bag or a lunchbox for school and take on the go for all of your summer trips or soccer games.
4. Not Just Another Squeeze Pouch
Most applesauce pouches are just smashed apples (so not the worst snack by any means, but kind of empty calories) but Brainiac pulls double duty. Brainiac® Applesauce Squeezersnot only provide immunity-boosting Vitamin C but they add their proprietary BrainPack to each pouch—160 MG of Omega-3 DHA/EPA and 120 MG of Choline which is the equivalent Omega-3s as one kid’s serving of salmon and the same amount of choline as two cups of broccoli.
Shopping for high-quality fatty fish and fresh vegetables can be expensive. Brainiac® is committed to supporting communities and making brain food accessible to all. They’ve joined forces with Partnership for a Healthier America, Michelle Obama’s non-profit organization, and a portion of all Applesauce sales are donated to PHA to help fight food inequity.
*What We Eat in America, NHANES 2015-2016 (Ages 4-15), World Health Organization/UN-FAO (Daily Adequate Intake), US National Academy of Medicine (Daily Adequate Intake)