Make sure you are getting proper sleep: Sleep deprivation can adversely affect the brain and cognitive function. A 2000 study, by the UCSD School of Medicine and the Veterans Affairs Healthcare System in San Diego, used MRI technology to monitor activity in the brains of sleep-deprived subjects performing simple verbal learning tasks. The study showed that regions of the brain’s prefrontal cortex displayed more activity in sleepier subjects. Depending on the task at hand, the brain would sometimes attempt to compensate for the adverse effects caused by lack of sleep.

Adjust your environment: Create a study spot where all you do is study, for instance a secluded desk of some kind. Remove distractions by turning off the ringer on your phone.

Colour: A study from the journal ‘Science’ provided some intriguing results about how colours affect concentration. The study suggested that green lights improve concentration, and also claim that that the colour blue can wreck your concentration!

Play brain games: If possible, for at least 10 minutes each day play some brain games. They will prove a good habit that helps you have fun and get the benefits of staying alert too.

Set a time limit: Be honest with yourself, you know best what your limitations are and establish a time limit for activities.  This strategy will really help you stay focused on the material.

Motivate yourself with rewards: If concentration is a hard thing to achieve, it may be due to a lack of interest or dislike towards the task you have. It may help you to set up a reward system, be it your favourite show or something nice as soon as you complete your task,  like a lovely orange to gobble down from your lunchbox.

Enjoy!

The “Food for Thought” Lunchbox also comes with two pots, so you can put other treats in there…maybe some grapes, nuts, seeds or yogurt.

2. Instead of more unhealthy snacks, try fruit or vegetable snacks. You don’t have to have them by themselves, why not combine them with some proteins (like a piece of cheese, a cup of yogurt, or a tablespoon of peanut butter), you will benefit from the energy of the carbohydrates from natural sources. Research show when children’s blood-sugar levels go down, stress hormones kick in to raise it up again, which can cause behavioral problems and diminished concentration. We even have a cool Lunchbox to put your snacks in!

3. Try something new. A trip to your local greengrocer may uncover seasonal or undiscovered fruit and veg that break up your routine choice. Why not try out something new!

4. Double up your portion. When preparing your meal, try beefing up the quantities of fruit and veg you use.

5. Get creative and introduce more fruit and veg into new areas of your cooking. For example, bread can be made with vegetables like zucchini or olives. After all, homemade recipes usually taste best, and you may even be able to rival Heston Blumenthal with your wacky and mouth watering creations.

2. Chronic Stress cannot:
a. Prevent you from being creative
b. Kill brain cells
c. Prevent you from sleeping
d. Kill liver cells

3. What type of phys i cal exercise is the best for your brain health?
a. Weight lifting
b. Aerobic exercises
c. Flexibility exercises

4. Pick the ability, if any, that can not be improved as we age:
a. Con centration
b. Memory
c. Language
d. None

5. Which of these does NOT affect your risks of developing Alzheimer’s?
a. Your family history
b. Your education
c. Your head size

6. What type of brain training has been shown to help people who are afraid of spiders?
a. NovaVision
b. Cognitive Therapy
c. EmWave Stress Relief

Answers will be revealed in the next newsletter!

If your not already a subscriber, sign up now for your Newsletter.

You can also take the entire Brain quiz by Dr. Pascale Michelon on www.sharpbrains.com

Here are some suggestions that we have collected from our customers about how to enhance concentration:-

A quiet environment prevents unwanted noises from distracting your attention. Also, to avoid distractions, try to position yourself away from doors and windows, phones, TV’s or other sources of noise. Maybe get yourself a set of earplugs (we’re actually working on the design for some rather natty ones)

A structured environment provides the conditions to avoid distractions.  Working in an organised space, where you can readily find what you need, helps focus your attention on what you are doing. Thats one of the reasons that we worked on designing the Supercase!!

Clear objectives will help you define the main focus, prioritize the sections of the project and concentrate on the most important parts.

Divide up tasks - begin with breaking the project into smaller activities and establishing a clear sequence of actions. It will be an investment to save hours of your working time.

Set a deadline in order to focus on the essential and speed up your working time.

The last but not the least is to maintain a healthy body that can support optimal brain functions. And of course, get hold of some concentrate goodies!!

The Bottlecoolerpenholder – will remind you to drink plenty of water.

Obey the Mug of Authority! And stay focused with your work!

Check out our product range on the Concentrate website

Cheerybye!

So fear not…the Supercase will fight against mess to create one tidy space so you can keep all your stationary equipment together. It’s easy to use. No mess and no need to buy a pot and a pencil case. Its only £5.99 and available now.

Once again, Supercase saves the day!

A universal definition of good design may be difficult to find, but there are certain patterns that remain the same when applied to different industry sectors and product types.
Defining what makes a “Good Design” is difficult. However, there are some principals that certainly contribute to a product working well. So here are our top tips for getting a thumbs up when designing!

Usefulness – Everyone expects a product to do what it promises. Really good products exceed this, and are a delight to use. Take the packaging that Apple products arrive in. It is smartly designed, and adds to the child-like feeling of unpacking a new toy, and of course – it protects the products – exactly as it was designed to do.

Usability – Depending on people’s needs, the product really should have user-friendly interface or ergonomic design. Carefully researching how products are actually used (often called ethnography) provides information about people who may be interested in that particular product, and how they would use it.

Looking good – Of course, “looking good” is subjective. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. However weighing up factors such as the lifestyle, culture, age, gender, education, occupation of the users helps to design something appealing. It has also been observed by design writers that the easiest route to create something desirable, is to create something that is better looking than the competition! Hmmmm?

Producible – Producible products are “those manufactured in large volumes by using appropriate production methods that take into account the impact on the organisation of new components, assemblies and processes”. Well designed products show almost as much consideration of how they will be manufactured, (and dissassembled/recycled) as how they will be used.

We do our best to stick to these principals. Feel free to have a little look at our product range. We’d love to get your feedback!

Stuffed full of sweaty gym kits, and often forgotten for days in lockers or just under the desk, the gym bag is the perfect breeding ground for odour-causing bacteria, especially in this current warm weather. But finally there’s a solution to the gym bag whiff – the Anti-Smell Sports Bag. The Anti-smell sports bag is a unique product designed to help stop nasty niffs from PE kits, shoes and sports equipment that are left hanging around.

The bag works just like a shoe “odour eater” insole, utilising an active carbon filter sewn into the inside of the bag to help neutralise smells. The patented carbon filter, which we’ve called ”pong patch” will last a year, and can be easily cleaned using warm soapy water.

And…

They are incorporated 3M reflective stripes and are currently availablewith in red, yellowand alowkey black version for stricter schools.

BUY THE ANTI-SMELL SPORTS BAG NOW!

The Concentrate Supercase is a pencilcase that can be easily turned into a stationery pot.

• Pencilcase can be easily turned into a stationery pot: unzip the case until the fold and turn over the first part to make a stationery pot
• Washable in the washing machine – NB better handwashed
• Dimensions (approximately): 11cm x 22cm (WxH)
• Material: neoprene (the same material used to make wetsuits)
• Available in: red (outside) and black (inside)

Read more information about the Supercase in the Supercase FAQs.

BUY THE SUPERCASE NOW

Did you know that 2010 is the international year of the bottom?* Countries all over the world will be thinking of ways to make their posteriors as cozy as possible. This, of course, is not true.

However, we all know it’s not that nice sitting on a hard surface for too long – but for some reason, nearly all the chairs in school are hard, and a little bit uncomfortable.

How can you hope to concentrate properly if you are uncomfortable?

One day there will be robot teachers that can float, and mark 18 practice SAT papers at the same time. These floating robot teachers will go from house to house teaching stuff, and everyone else will be able to stay in their favourite armchair for as long as they like.

Until that happens, we’ve got a solution. How about carrying a little bit of padding around with you? Then, you can use it whenever you have to sit on an uncomfortable chair? Have a look at our Chairpadbag below.

The schoolbag “Chairpadbag” is a new way of staying comfortable in class. It is designed to hook over the back of a school chair, with a special padded flap that folds out over the backrest and seat to make even the hardest seat comfy. It is also expandable, ensuring there is enough room for everything a child might need for school.

• Makes the chair comfortable and keeps the child’s books close by: hook it over the back of your chair and fold out the lid
• Easily expandable bag space with zipper
• Ergonomic strap design
• Reflective strips running down the seams of the bag ensure it stands out on dark nights.
• Grippy rubberised logo stops the padded cushion from slipping around on chairs.
• Smart name tag makes it easy to identify whose bag is whose.
• Magnets sewn inside the padding to make sure the flap folds away easily.
• Dimensions: 30mm x 35mm WxH
• Material: nylon

For more information about the Chairpadbag read our Chairpadbag FAQS.

Happy Year of the Bottom!

We just started to sell our products on Ebay.

It’s actually pretty tricky to get started selling on the ebay site, and it requires lots of positive reviews.

If anyone is thinking of buying some lovely Concentrate goodies A. you’re clearly a marvelous. talented and good looking person, and B. Could you possibly try buying the products from ebay?

If you’ve had a positive experience, it would be EXTREMELY helpful if you could give us a positive review, and we’ll be eternally grateful.

Please by some of our products on Ebay now. Thanks very much!