Eat Lots of Sugar and You'll Be Stupider

Eating a lot of sugar can literally make you dumber by negatively affecting your brain, according to new research from UCLA. A study there found that rats who were fed large amounts of high-fructose corn syrup (one of the most common sweeteners in modern packaged foods) suffered a significant decline in mental power. Mice fed large amounts of healthy omega-3 fats -- including flaxseed oil and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) -- experienced a boost in thinking ability.

Researchers used a complicated mouse maze to measure learning ability, memory, and intelligence. The sugar-addled mice had a hard time getting through the maze after 6 weeks on their "junk food" diet. Also, the high-sugar diets caused the mice's brains to develop resistance to insulin, one of the most important hormones for controlling blood sugar levels and regulating brain function.

According to UCLA professor Fernando Gomez-Pinilla:

"The DHA-deprived animals were slower, and their brains showed a decline in synaptic activity... Their brain cells had trouble signaling each other, disrupting the rats' ability to think clearly and recall the route they'd learned six weeks earlier... Because insulin can penetrate the blood-brain barrier, the hormone may signal neurons to trigger reactions that disrupt learning and cause memory loss... Insulin is important in the body for controlling blood sugar, but it may play a different role in the brain, where insulin appears to disturb memory and learning."

We say: It's definitely no surprise that eating lots of sugar -- especially the evil HFCS -- hurts the brain as well as the body. It would definitely explain why American kids seem to be getting dumber and dumber by the week. Obviously if you want to be smarter, or at least think more clearly, you should avoid refined sugars and eat some more healthy omega 3 fats (fish and krill oil supplements are great options!).

Learn some mo': UCLA study shows high-fructose diet sabotages learning, memory