There are several herbs and nutritional supplements that can help to enhance your memory, concentration and cognitive performance and get your brain ready for mentally demanding tasks. Whatever your situation, whether it’s studying for an exam or preparing a report or presentation for work, it usually means a period of high stress, anxiety and fatigue, which not only deplete your immune system, making you more susceptible to illness, but also impact on your ability to effectively prepare yourself.

The brain boosters

Ginkgo (Ginkgo biloba) has long-standing roots in herbal medicine with the first medical uses of ginkgo traced back to 2800 BCE through traditional Chinese medicine. Ginkgo enhances peripheral circulation and promotes normal blood flow and circulation to the brain, thereby increasing mental alertness and clarity and improving attention. Studies have shown that ginkgo is able to produce a significant improvement in memory and abstract reasoning as well as increase cognitive processing speed. A double-blind clinical study showed that large doses of ginkgo extract can enhance performance on memory tests and increase the speed of information retrieval from short-term memory.

The combination of ginkgo with Korean ginseng (Panax ginseng) can also pack a mighty punch and get your brain cells firing. Results from a recent clinical trial showed that a combination of Korean ginseng and ginkgo significantly enhanced mental performance. The 14-week, double-blind, placebo-controlled randomised trial studied the cognitive effects of the herbal combination in 256 healthy volunteers between the ages of 38 and 66 years. Trial participants performed a battery of tests and it was shown that those receiving the ginseng and ginkgo combination demonstrated statistically significant improvements in cognitive function compared with the placebo group.

Bacopa (Bacopa monnieri) is a herb used in traditional Ayurvedic medicine to relieve nervous exhaustion due to stress. In addition to its use in the relief of mild anxiety, it also helps to improve both short- and long-term memory. Clinical trials have confirmed its ability to enhance mental alertness and optimise concentration and learning ability.

In a well-designed trial of 12 weeks duration, bacopa significantly improved early information processing and enhanced verbal learning and memory consolidation while significantly reducing anxiety. In another trial, bacopa demonstrated a significant effect in assisting with the retention of new information.

Gotu kola (Centella asiatica) has also been used for centuries in Ayurvedic medicine. It not only improves mental function and enhances learning and memory but is a brain and nervous system restorative that helps to alleviate anxiety and bolster the body’s ability to cope with stress.

Cacao is the unprocessed cocoa bean from the plant Theobroma cacao. It was first discovered by the Mayans when they used the bean from the cacao tree as an ingredient in their favourite drink, xocolatl, which was revered for its ability to make them feel awake, alert and strong. The raw, unprocessed cacao powder with its restorative and mood-enhancing qualities quickly gained a reputation as food vital for health that could help build resistance and fight fatigue.

In order to manufacture the modern-day cocoa powder, the cacao bean is processed and the powder is alkalised to make it easier to mix into your hot chocolates and other recipes. This manufacturing process, however, reduces its total flavonoid content, thereby lowering its antioxidant potential.

In 2007, a study was undertaken at Northumbria University on the effects of cocoa flavonols on cognitive performance, anxiety and mental fatigue. It was found that the consumption of drinks rich in cocoa flavanols was able to significantly improve cognitive performance during a mentally demanding series of tests designed to measure cognition.