Can we eat for exam success?
The Food Chain
BBC
4.7 • 545 Ratings
🗓️ 22 April 2026
⏱️ 27 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
It's exam season in many parts of the world and with her own daughter studying hard, Rumella Dasgupta began wondering how much food matters during this difficult and stressful time.
Is there such a thing as a brain food and are there any foods in particular that we should be aiming to eat while studying hard?
Rumella talks to students and experts about the role diet plays and what happens to our eating habits when we're under intense pressure. Plus are energy drinks ever a good idea before an exam, and what should we do when the junk food cravings hit? Featuring Professor Julia Rucklidge, director of Te Puna Toiora, the Mental Health and Nutrition Research Lab at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand and Lucy Upton, a UK based paediatric dietitian who supports her teenage clients to eat better during this stressful phase of their lives.
Plus teenagers and university students in the US and India discuss what they like to eat and drink when studying.
With special thanks to Zumix in Boston.
Producer: Lexy O'Connor
Sound engineer: Andrew Mills Image: a dark-haired teenage girl is sprawled on her bed. She has a biscuit in her mouth and is writing in an exercise book. Credit: Getty images.
If you would like to get in touch with the show, please email: thefoodchain@bbc.co.uk
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | BBC Sounds, Music, Radio, podcasts. |
| 0:07.4 | I'm Dilley Carter, and I love organising. |
| 0:11.8 | In my brand new podcast, sort your life out, unpacked, celebrity guests join me to unbox three revealing items from their home. |
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| 0:26.2 | This is the tough love I need. Don't hold back. |
| 0:28.5 | I'm definitely tucking you with me back to my house. |
| 0:31.7 | Sort your life out, unpacked. |
| 0:33.5 | Watch on EyePlayer, listen on BBC Sounds. |
| 0:36.5 | It's that time of the year when many parents around the world are worried about their children's sitting exams. |
| 0:43.3 | I am as well. My daughter is back home from university studying for her exams. |
| 0:48.4 | It's stressful with the pressure to perform and get good results, |
| 0:52.9 | which got me thinking about what she can eat that provides her |
| 0:56.8 | with energy and nutrition during this difficult time. Can food help us manage stress and improve sleep? |
| 1:04.0 | Is there such a thing as brain food? So today, on the food chain from the BBC World Service |
| 1:09.7 | with me, Rameela Dasgupta, |
| 1:11.6 | we ask, does what we eat affect exam performance? |
| 1:16.4 | To find out what teenagers around the world are actually eating, |
| 1:20.6 | as they study for their tests, I spoke to Alex, Isabella and Kenny, |
| 1:25.1 | who attend Zumix, a youth community radio station in the US city of Boston. |
| 1:34.8 | I'm going to be completely honest with you. Sometimes when I'm studying for a test, I can either not eat something for a long period of time, |
| 1:42.3 | or sometimes I will be eating a lot of stuff just because |
... |
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