Students should avoid candy bars and soda, says a study conducted by UCLA, as it slows down the brain and memory functions, which in turn, can hamper learning.
While it is known that fructose (which is present in sodas and candy bars) has been known to cause diabetes, a fatty liver and obesity, this is the first time a study has revealed the effects of these snacks on the brain.
Fernando Gomez-Pinilla, a professor of neurosurgery at the David Geffen School of Medicine, and author of this study says, “Our findings illustrate that what you eat affects how you think … Eating a high-fructose diet over the long term alters your brain’s ability to learn and remember information.”
With the average American consuming at least 47 pounds of sugar and 35 pounds of high fructose corn syrup (as opposed to sucrose which is used in European products), the rising rates of obesity, diabetes and even cancer have been linked to this rise in consumption.
Since most products (not just candy bars and sodas) use high fructose corn syrup, it becomes difficult for people to avoid a sugary diet but there’s a solution; the consumption of foods that are rich in omega-3 fatty acids.
In the UCLA study conducted on rats, among the two groups that were part of the tests, the ones that received omega-3 fatty acids were able to navigate the maze that they were trained to remember before the experiment.
The other group shows a distinct decline of synaptic activity, thus leading the researchers to the ill-effects of a sugary diet and the benefits of the omega-3 fatty acid.