I’ve always been told to get a good night’s rest and to start my day off with a good, balanced breakfast. However, over at Psychology Today, new research may support the idea that an empty stomach might actually enhance short-term learning:

Hunger Feeds the Brain

Cramming for a test? You may want to postpone dinner. Ghrelin, a hunger hormone produced by empty stomachs, enhances learning in the short term, at least in rats. Ghrelin speeds communication in the hippocampus, a brain region associated with spatial memory. The effect may have helped our human ancestors hunt and forage on while famished. So should you fast before strenuous mental activities? It’s definitely a strategy worth considering, says Yale University researcher Tamas Horvath.

Hmmmm, I wonder if Ghrelin is a part of my daily vitamin….