Gretchen McKay | Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (TNS)

Can’t resist that jar of artisan chili crisp? Willing to fork over 10 bucks for a bottle of water “restructured” with quartz crystals? Maybe you’re determined to go plant-based or want to buy food with a mission. Either way, you’re in good company.

Specialty foods — a category comprised of unique or artisan foods and beverages made with high-quality ingredients from suppliers across the globe — have never been more appealing to American consumers.

According to the Specialty Food Association, which held its Summer Fancy Food Show in New York City during the last week of June, U.S. specialty food sales across retail, food service and e-commerce reached a whopping $206.8 billion in 2023. That’s up more than 6% from around $195 billion in 2022.

As evidenced by the many products on display at the show, we’re hungrier than ever, not just for innovative flavors that excite the palate — sometimes in unexpected ways (i.e. aperitifs infused with mushroom or coffee powered with protein) — but also for foods and beverages that are healthy, kind to the earth and sustainably produced.

More than 2,000 specialty food producers from 60-plus countries trotted out new and not-so-new products at the sprawling show, which took up both levels of the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. After 40,000-plus steps up and down its aisles over nearly three days, during which I sampled half my body weight in imported Italian cheeses and freshly sliced prosciutto, here are some initial observations:

—Plant-based proteins and organic and gluten-free foods and snacks continue to grow in popularity. Products include everything from cauliflower chips to chef-crafted packaged vegan soups to savory vegan protein bars and sticks, plant-based cheese slices, oat-based granola butter and Lentiful’s high-protein, high-fiber “Instant Lentils.” (Just add water, stir and microwave.) Non-GMO is another buzz word.

Protein-infused products were among the trends at the 2024 Summer Fancy Food Show in New York City. (Gretchen McKay/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette/TNS)

—Prebiotic and probiotic sodas and drinks that are focused on supporting gut health are also on the rise. Examples include ReCoup’s gut healthy rehydration sparkling beverages and Reset Kombucha’s powdered beverage mixes. Protein-enhanced foods also dominated. Projos’ Instant Power Coffee (organic, of course) comes stacked with 12 grams of complete protein alongside 175 mg of caffeine and is infused with collagen, which may help reduce joint inflammation and prevent aches and pains. Wilde Chicken & Waffles protein chips are made with chicken breast, egg whites and bone broth.

—Americans still love to spice things up; hot sauces, hot honey and chili-based condiments are still on the upswing. Multicultural sauces that bring a piece of global culinary heritage to the table seem especially hot. Two outstanding examples include Chingonas’ oil-based Salsa Macha from Mexico and Djablo Filipino Hot Sauce, the first U.S.-produced, family-owned, small-batch Filipino hot sauce in this country.

—Dry January isn’t a one-off. Non-alcoholic cocktails continue to trend and unique and exotic beverages such as bubble tea and boba — Asian tea drinks served with tapioca pearls — are growing in popularity. At the show, they were offered both in cans and in “instant” tea kits.

—Sustainability continues to be a factor for many consumers, both in packaging and in portioning to prevent food waste.

—Nostalgia rules. Consumers want products that come from a place they know, with personal backstories — say, a salsa or dumplings with roots in a family recipe or a sauce from a famous restaurant.

12 tastes to try

It was impossible for a reporter to see and taste everything at the 68th show, but here are the ones that caught my eye and/or dazzled my taste buds:

Flour & Olive Cake Mixes: Former attorney Estelle Sohne created her line of premium cake mixes with extra-virgin olive oil to celebrate cultural diversity. OIive oil, she notes, is a symbol of peace and sustainability. “I wanted to bring people together with cake as a vehicle for collaboration through recipes that celebrate cultural diversity and global connection.”

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To that end, an interactive of more than 70 international recipes on the company website allows bakers to use the four mixes with other ingredients to create cakes from around the world, with a personalized, downloadable label. “My mission is to put us all on the same table,” she says, “with our differences and similarities.” The chocolate cake was especially delicious.

VICUS water: Did you know that modern methods for making water safe to drink breaks apart the natural arrangement of water molecules? Me neither. This product “restructures” natural mineral water from Canada to its original state using quartz crystals. The end result is water that supposedly tastes smoother and silkier — and costs $9 for a 750 ml bottle.

Aaji’s Lonsa: Salsa isn’t the only thing worth dipping. Each 8-ounce container of this small-batch, spicy-sweet-tart condiment made in Philadelphia contains 1 pound of fresh tomatoes cooked down with a distinct blend of coastal Indian spices. The recipes are based on co-founder Rajus Korde’s grandmother’s tomato lonsa recipe. (“Aaji” means “grandmother” in Marathi.) They can be spread on sandwiches, spooned on toast or add a wonderful umami flavor to eggs. They’re incredibly craving-inducing.

CauliPuffs: Just as with Lay’s potato chips, there’s no way you can eat just one of these gluten-free, GMO-free puffed snacks made from corn, rice and cauliflower. The fact they’re baked in the healthy fat of avocado oil means you’ll you feel less guilty when you polish off a bag on the couch.

Tamarind Heads Masala BBQ Sauce: This next-generation sauce was named the best barbecue sauce at the 2024 show for a reason — it’s pretty incredible. Created to celebrate the culinary versatility of tamarind, a pod-like legume that’s both sweet and tangy, it’s a refreshing take on the ubiquitous summer condiment that offers a hint of smokiness, a touch of sweetness and a punch of heat.

Ceybon Chill AF, an alcohol-free aperitif infused with mushroom, can be enjoyed neat, over ice or as a mixer. (Gretchen McKay/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette/TNS)

Ceybon Chill AF: This alcohol-free, mushroom-infused aperitif is meant to promote calmness and relaxation. It’s crisp and spicy and definitely interesting — think a fizzy “gin and tonic” that’s good for you. A bottle costs $40, but it’s multifunctional: You can drink it straight up, over ice, or use it as a mixer.

MMMJerky: Most beef jerky varieties are chewy. This teriyaki-flavored beef snack crafted with USDA prime-grade brisket boasts the unique crunchy texture of a potato chip. One bite, and you’ll be hooked. The crispy, savory fat of the beef dissolves on your tongue when you bite into it, making you instantly want more.

Oishii Omakase Stawberries: It’s hard to believe these delicate, super-sweet berries — which hail from the foothills of the Japanese Alps — are vertically farmed in New Jersey. At about $2 a piece, they’re definitely a splurge, more suited to topping a fancy dessert than a bowl of Cheerios. But the berry’s incredible aroma, sweet taste and creamy texture make it worth it.

Genio Della Pizza: It’s pretty tough to find a frozen pizza that doesn’t taste like cheese-and-sauce-topped cardboard. These Neapolitan pies, which are hand-stretched and baked in a wood-fired oven in Italy, are the exception. The slow-rise dough is soft in the center and pillowy on the edges, and the Italian tomatoes and buffalo mozzarella are top-notch and full of flavor. They will definitely change your thoughts on frozen pizza.

Sunday Night’s Vegan Chocolate Sauce is the ultimate plant-based indulgence. (Gretchen McKay/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette/TNS)

Sunday Night Vegan Chocolate Sauce: Want to give in to hankering for chocolate with zero guilt? This silky, small-batch vegan chocolate sauce bills itself as “the ultimate, plant-based indulgence.” Crafted with Callebaut unsweetened chocolate and cocoa, coconut oil and cream and vegan-certified cane sugar, the boast is warranted. It tastes like something my mother made during the holidays to drizzle on ice cream. No wonder it walked away with an SFA award for best dessert topping.

Natural Blonde Bloody Mary Mix: The label hints at the bright ingredient that makes this Bloody Mary mix such a winner. Born in South Carolina’s Lowcountry, it’s made from fresh, sun-ripened golden tomatoes, which are milder and lower in acidity than red tomatoes. The mix also doesn’t include any paste or artificial ingredients and is low in sodium. It comes in golden and spicy flavors.

Good Hair Day Pasta: You can’t help but be charmed by this line of pasta’s clever packaging, which uses the strands and shapes of pasta to create various hairstyles (and has won numerous international awards for design). It’s on the pricey side — most boxes start at around $13 — but all varieties are handmade in the Umbria region of Italy according to the traditional “al bronzo” process.

©2024 PG Publishing Co. Visit at post-gazette.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

There’s a Minnesota native in the Baseball Hall of Fame who was known for his clutch pitching in the World Series — the pitcher who couldn’t be dragged from the mound even when the biggest games stretched past the ninth inning.

And that’s not even counting Jack Morris.

You’ve probably read a few times this week that Joe Mauer is the fourth St. Paul native to be inducted into the Hall, along with Dave Winfield, Paul Molitor and Jack Morris. It’s an incredible claim for the city — especially when considering the entire state has produced only one other hall of famer born here.

RELATED: St. Paul vs. Mobile, Alabama: Which is the capital for Hall of Famers?

On Monday morning, after the streets of Cooperstown were open again and most of the crowds had left, still basking in the memories of Mauer, Beltre, Leyland and Helton, I went back to the Hall to find that fifth Minnesotan native’s plaque and found him right there between Dizzy Dean and Paul “Big Poison” Waner.

Charles Albert Bender.

And right under that, the nickname that (almost) everyone in baseball called him, the nickname he disdained.

“Chief.”

Charles Bender was born in Crow Wing County in 1884, exact day and location unknown, and grew up on the White Earth Reservation in northern Minnesota. His mother was Ojibwe and his father German. His family was large and poor, and young Charles probably didn’t play baseball until after he’d been sent to the Carlisle boarding school in Pennsylvania, a place designed to “assimilate” Native American children into the dominant white culture. Bender later said, though, that he had unknowingly begun his training as a pitcher by throwing rocks at gophers on the reservation.

After being sent east, Bender rarely returned to Minnesota throughout the rest of his life, but he put together one of the more unlikely Hall of Fame careers in baseball history.

At Carlisle, he became a pitcher under the coaching of Pop Warner. He joined Connie Mack’s Philadelphia Athletics in 1903 and defeated Cy Young in his first game, and was a rising star by 1905. That’s when he began a remarkable run as a big-game pitcher. In the 1905 World Series, he pitched a shutout in Game 2 to beat future hall of famer Joe McGinnity, and he pitched another complete game in Game 6, though he and the A’s lost to one of the greatest ever, Christy Mathewson, who threw three shutouts in three starts for the New York Giants.

Bender had established himself as Mack’s go-to pitcher for big games, in an era when Mack had hall of famers such as Rube Waddell and the great “Gettysburg Eddie” Plank on his rosters.

Philadelphia Athletics pitcher Charles Bender is seen in this 1909 photo. He won six World Series games and was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1953. (Associated Press)

When Philadelphia next reached the World Series in 1910, Bender was Mack’s choice to start Game 1 over 31-game-winner Jack Coombs. Bender rewarded him with a complete-game victory. He lost Game 4 in a duel with “Three-Finger” Brown of the Cubs, but again Bender threw a complete game – all 10 innings. The Athletics won the series the next day.

Bender was again Mack’s choice over Plank for Game 1 of the 1911 Series, a rematch against Mathewson and the Giants. Mathewson prevailed again, 2-1, though Bender went the distance, of course. He finally beat Mathewson in Game 4 with a 2-run complete game. Then Bender returned to the mound two days later to throw another 4-hit complete game to clinch the championship.

Bender again started Game 1 of the 1913 World Series and also Game 4, winning both and going the distance each time (also pitching for the A’s in that series was Brainerd native Bullet Joe Bush).

It wasn’t until 1914 that Bender faltered, losing Game 1 and failing to finish a World Series start for the first time, and the Giants lost the series in an upset. Mack let him go after that, as he sold off and dismantled the Philadelphia dynasty that was about to become a lot more expensive.

Bender succeeded on the mound largely through his command of the strike zone, his large and varied repertoire of pitches, and his ability to read and exploit batters’ weaknesses. His knowledge of the game and attention to detail put him in demand as a major-league pitching coach in the second half of his life — especially his ability to pick up small “tells” that gave away opponents’ intentions.

Bender also might have invented the slider — though it was often called a “nickel curve” in his day.

Bender bounced around the league a bit after Mack let him go, though his glory years in big-league baseball were over. He kept pitching for years with minor league and semipro teams, and was in demand as a coach in the major leagues as the decades went on. He was also at the wheel when his car struck a man crossing a Philadelphia street, killing him, but after a controversy over whether Bender left the scene or had been sent away by a police officer, charges were dropped against him.

In an era of fiery, hard-fighting and foul-talking ballplayers, Bender was known for his cool and unflappable demeanor, especially under pressure, a trait he might have honed originally to deal with the abuse he encountered as an Ojibwe man competing in the “white” big leagues.

Tom Swift, a writer in Northfield, Minn., wrote a 2008 biography of Bender, “Chief Bender’s Burden,” that goes into wincing detail about the racism and prejudice Bender faced as an Ojibwe man. Though he was allowed to play in the “white” major leagues at a time Black ballplayers couldn’t, he still faced all the predictable taunts, slurs and slights from fans and opponents.

It’s all painful and infuriating to read, of course — but a strange thing happens as the book goes on. The prejudice doesn’t disappear, but as Bender goes through his life in the overwhelmingly white world of professional baseball at the time, he just keeps quietly winning over people, turning people who at first see him at best as some sort of mascot into lifelong friends. The quotes of esteem and respect from teammates and opponents pour out as the years go on.

Bender lived long enough to know that he had been inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1953, though he died before the ceremony and didn’t have to wince at seeing “Chief” on that plaque.

In the biography, Swift points out that just about every one of the few Native American players in the big leagues in this era was saddled with the “Chief” nickname. Bender was no different — though he spoke out against the moniker: “I do not want my name to be presented to the public as an Indian, but as a pitcher.”

But he eventually, grudgingly, surrendered to it, allowing it even on his gravestone. And it’s there on his Hall of Fame plaque.

Pitcher Charles Bender’s plaque in the Baseball Hall of Fame, photographed on July 22, 2024. (Mike Decaire / Pioneer Press)

There was at least one baseball person who didn’t use the nickname, at least not around Bender. His longtime manager and friend Connie Mack called him “Albert,” his middle name and the last name Bender was playing under to preserve his amateur status at the time Mack acquired his contract.

Mack also said something else:

“If everything depended on one game,” Mack said, “I just used Albert.”

“From St. Paul to the Hall”: the Pioneer Press chronicled the careers of Dave Winfield, Paul Molitor, Jack Morris and Joe Mauer, and we’ve compiled the best of our coverage into a new hardcover book that celebrates the legendary baseball legacy of Minnesota’s capital city. Order your copy of “From St. Paul to the Hall.”

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There is a time and place to relax on a cruise ship, but Royal Caribbean’s Utopia of the Seas figures its guests will sleep when they get home.

Leaning into short three- and four-night Bahamas trips, each with a stop at the cruise line’s private Bahamas island Perfect Day at CocoCay, the line is combining its newest ship with its most popular port of call for what it dubs “The World’s Biggest Weekend.”

“You’re going to leave this ship with a couple of days, exhausted. That is our mission — all weekend,” Royal Caribbean International President and CEO Michael Bayley said during a preview cruise ahead of the ship’s debut Friday with paying customers.

Royal Caribbean’s Utopia of the Seas dwarfs the older cruise ship Vision of the Seas as both are seen docked at the cruise line’s private island resort Perfect Day at CocoCay in the Bahamas on Wednesday, July 16, 2024 during a preview sailing from Port Canaveral. (Richard Tribou/Orlando Sentinel)

The behemoth ship is the second largest in the world behind Icon of the Seas that debuted out of Miami in January, but it’s the largest ever to sail from Port Canaveral and the first time Royal has assigned a new ship short itinerary duties.

As such, the line has taken the 18-deck, 236,473-gross-ton ship with room for 5,668 guests based on double occupancy and crammed the days with shorter, punchier live shows and a cavalcade of parties and live music.

The sixth Oasis-class ship takes on all the best aspects of its recent predecessors including the three-slide water park The Perfect Storm, FlowRider surf simulator, rock climbing wall and the 10-deck twisting dry slide The Ultimate Abyss.

A view of The Boardwalk neighborhood on Royal Caribbean’s Utopia of the Seas after the ship made its inaugural arrival at Port Canaveral, Fla., Thursday, July 11, 2024. At 236,860 gross tons – with a passenger capacity of 5,668 – the ship is the second largest in the world and the largest to call Port Canaveral home. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel)

A sign of amping up things where it can, Royal added rollers and extended the length of the slide for an even faster run with stretches of tube that alternate from pitch black to psychedelic flashing lights to translucent for a brain-thumping ride.

The high energy also flows into all three of its main entertainment venues which lean into song, dance and acrobatic spectacle married with technology for quick-hit performances that run under an hour. That means leaving behind the longer-running Broadway or other original stage productions found on Royal’s longer cruises.

“I don’t think we could sit in a theater for 90 minutes here,” said Christi Coachman, Royal Caribbean’s vice president of entertainment. “Because obviously that’s that’s our key timeframe, 90 minutes, with all of the other things that we want to experience.”

The main Royal Theater show on board Royal Caribbean’s Utopia of the Seas is titled “All In,” seen here during a preview sailing from Port Canaveral on Tuesday, July 16, 2024. (Richard Tribou/Orlando Sentinel)

That said, the Royal Theater hosts a show called “All In” that takes all the technological toys Royal has developed over its last decade of stage productions and combines them into a journey thematically tied as global musical hotspots, running from Studio 54 in New York to a neon-lit Miami to Burning Man in California and a gothic masquerade ball in Venice — all dipping musical toes across different eras.

“In the theater, it was all about hit ’em hard, all about technology. We have drones, we have performers flying, we have incredible video projection, lasers,” Coachman said, while also using a technology that tracks performers’ positions through sensors that trigger interactive video or laser projection.

The AquaTheater show on board Royal Caribbean’s Utopia of the Seas is titled “Aqua80Too,” seen here during a preview sailing from Port Canaveral on Monday, July 15, 2024. (Richard Tribou/Orlando Sentinel)

Unique to Royal Caribbean are both the ice skating show venue and the AquaTheater that combines divers, synchronized swimmers, slackliners, aerialists and dancing amid jets and fountains of water.

For Utopia, the AquaTheater show embraces Gen-X with a show titled “Aqua80Too” that leans into 80s hits with one seamlessly mashing up Phil Collins’ “Sussudio,” Eddy Grant’s “Electric Avenue” and Michael Jackson’s “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough.” One number with slackliners gleefully bounce to the beat of a medley from the Beastie Boys, David Bowie, Kool & The Gang, Sugar Hill Gang and Young MC. A more poetic aerobatic performance beautifully mixes U2’s “With Or Without You,” Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush’s “Don’t Give Up” and Thomson Twins’ “Hold Me Now.”

Children of the 80s will approve.

The ice skating show on board Royal Caribbean’s Utopia of the Seas is titled “Youtopia,” seen here during a preview sailing from Port Canaveral on Monday, July 15, 2024. (Richard Tribou/Orlando Sentinel)

The hardest show conceptually to get one’s head around may be one of the most impressive artistically. The ice show titled “Youtopia” features skaters in a series of quick-change outfits with impressive choreography under an intense projection system that interacts with the skaters zipping around the small rink performing jumps, spins and turns.

“This is my definition. When you think about Utopia, what is the definition of Utopia? It’s perfect place. It’s ideal perfection, and what does that mean to you?” Coachman asked. “So why is it ‘Youtopia’ — Y-O-Utopia? So is that the perfect car, the perfect house, the perfect love? And candy, because that’s perfect, because there’s a whole section on candy. So it’s really kind of what Utopia perfection means to you.”

The shows, though, almost play second fiddle to the arsenal of musical options on board.

“We’ve noticed guests on three- or four-day cruises, many times, as incredible as the shows are, they much rather gravitate toward loud music … They’re here to have fun,” said Allison Rider-Davidoiu, director of headliner entertainment, live music and enrichment.

The ship has 29 of more than 200 entertainment staff dedicated to music.

“The energy is definitely, you know, we amp it up,” Rider-Davidoiu said. “So it’s one of our entertainers, still incredibly talented, but maybe a bit more upbeat than what you would experience in a 14-day cruise or a seven-day cruise.”

The French string duo Enchanté perform in Central Park on Royal Caribbean’s Utopia of the Seas on Tuesday, July 16, 2024 during a preview sailing out of Port Canaveral. (Richard Tribou/Orlando Sentinel)

She said there are still moments of more chill music across the ship, such as the French violin and guitar duo Enchanté that migrates to more calm venues such as the greenery found in Central Park.

“There’s a lot of parties. There’s a lot going on. Everything’s super loud everywhere, but sometimes you need that alternative,” she said.

She’s not wrong about the parties. The ship now employs staff called party influencers that can be found among the sundry celebrations such as the Rezolution Dance Party held in the ice skating rink venue so the projection system casts onto those on the dance floor.

There’s also a fraternity-themed party called Royal Kappa-Chi, a silent toga party, poolside plunge party and the sail-away party.

“Utopia is a taste, right, of what possibly you could experience on maybe a longer itinerary,” Coachman said. “It was really important not only to continue to create the family experiences, because that’s very important for our brand, but also to go in a little bit of a different direction and have one party after the other to where you don’t ever stop.”

So amid the parties, live music, comedy shows, game shows and performances are all the other things that Royal Caribbean can shoehorn in into the world’s second largest cruise ship.

A view of Pesky Parrot in the Promenade of Royal Caribbean’s Utopia of the Seas after the ship made its inaugural arrival at Port Canaveral, Fla., Thursday, July 11, 2024. At 236,860-gross-tons –with a passenger capacity of 5,668– the ship is the second largest in the world and the largest to call Port Canaveral home. Utopia of the Seas is scheduled to sail on its first passenger cruise on July 19. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel)

That includes more than 40 places to eat and drink including what has already become a crowd-inducing new bar concept called the Pesky Parrot on the Promenade deck. It’s what Royal calls a Caribbean-inspired Tiki concept.

Bayley enjoyed telling the story of the Pesky Parrot’s origins.

“Somebody came up with the idea of, well, why don’t we have like a drunken parrot,” he said. “And so the pesky parrot really is this parrot, you know, is getting on in life, likes a few drinks, and as the day progresses, the parrot kind of becomes a little belligerent, rude. … You come on vacation, it doesn’t need to be serious. It’s just meant to be stupid. Some things can just be plain stupid. And you know, you go in a bar and this parrot just starts mouthing off at you.”

The line is bringing a live parrot named Brian on board for the first revenue sailing.

New cruise line dining experiences make you forget you’re on a cruise

Another venue unique to the ship is a themed dining concept called “Royal Railway — Utopia Station.” It builds off the thematic Empire Supper Club introduced on Icon of the Seas, but adds theme park-esque elements to mimic a train trip complete with digital screen projections of passing landscapes, piped in track sounds and vibrating seats.

The first railway trip is themed to the Wild West and has actors playing out a train heist during a 90-minute dinner. Future sailings will tackle other themes, such as the Asian Silk Road, along with shorter offerings tied to things such as wine tastings and holidays.

Bayley said he expects the line to do well offering this size ship in the Central Florida market.

“One of the reasons we put this brand new Oasis class into this market is that we really expect to see a certain amount of demand coming from tourists who are going in for … some kind of combo. They’re doing Disney or Universal or doing something in Orlando, and then they can tag on,” he said. “What kids wouldn’t be happy with that idea. … I wish I was a kid. That’s pretty good.”

Avery Newmark | (TNS) The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The early bird may not always get the worm, at least when it comes to cognitive performance. A study from Imperial College London suggests night owls — those who feel more alert and productive in the evening — tend to outperform their early rising counterparts on brain tests.

Researchers analyzed data from more than 26,000 participants and found evening people scored up to 13.5% higher than morning people on cognitive assessments. Even those without a strong preference for morning or night still performed better than early risers.

“Our study found that adults who are naturally more active in the evening tended to perform better on cognitive tests than those who are ‘morning people.’ Rather than just being personal preferences, these chronotypes could impact our cognitive function,” lead author Dr. Raha West explained.

The study accounted for age, gender, smoking, drinking, health conditions and other factors. Younger people and those without chronic illnesses generally did better on the tests. Healthier lifestyle choices were also linked to better brain performance.

But don’t stay up all night just yet. The study also found that getting the right amount of sleep is crucial for everyone. People who slept between seven and nine hours a night had the best brain function. Those who slept too little or too much showed decreased cognitive performance.

“While understanding and working with your natural sleep tendencies is essential, it’s equally important to remember to get just enough sleep, not too long or too short,” West said. “This is crucial for keeping your brain healthy and functioning at its best.”

Although these findings are interesting, the study notes more research is needed to fully understand how sleep patterns affect brain performance. So whether you’re a night owl or an early bird, focus on getting quality sleep to help keep your brain sharp.

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©2024 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Visit at ajc.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.