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Does Sugar in Processed Foods Make You Dumber? New Study Says Yes.
In the series of articles entitled Dumbing Down Society, I described the many negative effects of High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) on general health. This high-powered sweetener is found in a great number of sugary processed foods such as jams, soft drinks and pre-packaged baked goods. It is also found in other products that are no so sugary such as soups, breads, pasta sauces, cereals, frozen entrees, meat products, salad dressings and condiments. Research links HFCS to increasing rates of obesity and diabetes in North America, especially among children. Fructose converts to fat more than any other sugar. And being a liquid, it passes much more quickly into the blood stream.
A recent study now claims that HFCS not only makes you fat, it also makes you dumb(er). According to a team from University of California, the sweetener actually disrupts basic brain functions. Fortunately, these negative effects can be reduced with the consumption Omega-3s, a fatty acid that was discussed in the article Dumbing-Down Society Part 3: How to Reverse its Effects. Here’s an article about the study on HFCS.
Does sugar make you stupid? Study suggests it sabotages learning and memory
- Fructose is commonly added to processed foods such as soft drinks
- It was found to hamper memory and slow brain activity
Too much sugar could be making you stupid, according to researchers.
The suggestion follows tests in the laboratory comparing high-fructose corn syrup, which is six times sweeter than cane sugar and a common ingredient in processed foods, with omega-3 fatty acids, known to aid memory and learning.
In an experiment on rats, one group had a sugary diet for six weeks and another was fed healthily.
At the start of the study, published in the Journal of Physiology, the University of California team tested how well the rats navigated a maze – placing landmarks to help them learn the way.
Six weeks later, the researchers tested the rats’ ability to recall the route.
Study co-author Professor Fernando Gomez-Pinilla said the rats fed just a sugary diet were slower and their brains had declined.
He said: ‘Eating a high-fructose diet over the long term alters your brain’s ability to learn and remember information.
However, the good news is that eating nuts and fish such as salmon can counteract this disruption.
‘Our findings illustrate that what you eat affects how you think,’ said Prof Gomez-Pinilla. ‘Adding omega-3 fatty acids to your meals can help minimise the damage.’
While earlier research has revealed how fructose harms the body through its role in diabetes, obesity and fatty liver, this study is the first to uncover how the sweetener influences the brain.
The researchers were studying the impact of high-fructose corn syrup on rats, who have similar brain chemistry to humans.
The inexpensive liquid is six times sweeter than cane sugar and is commonly added to processed foods such as soft drinks.‘We’re not talking about naturally occurring fructose in fruits, which also contain important antioxidants,’ said Prof Gomez-Pinilla.
‘We’re concerned about high-fructose corn syrup that is added to manufactured food products as a sweetener and preservative.’
Prof Gomez-Pinilla and co-author Rahul Agrawal found the brain’s of the rats that each consumed a fructose solution as drinking water for six weeks had changed.
Prof Gomez-Pinilla said: ‘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.’
A closer look at the rats’ brain tissue suggested that insulin had lost much of its power to influence the brain cells.
The authors suspect that eating too much fructose could block insulin’s ability to regulate how cells use and store sugar for the energy required for processing thoughts and emotions.
However, their study also suggests that eating foods rich in omega-3 regularly could protect the brain from the effects of fructose.
Prof Gomez-Pinilla said: ‘It’s like saving money in the bank. You want to build a reserve for your brain to tap when it requires extra fuel to fight off future diseases.’
– Source: Daily Mail
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then why is L so smart ??
Mary Poppins should definitely be ruled out! Anyway, this does not surprise me at all!
Shuger dusent make u dum. I no that becawse it hasent made mee dum. Of cors I no tha 1+1 is 11.
Lol jk! Luckily I've decided to eat healthier.
There's one more good reason to keep sugar consumption under control. So much for thinking a little sugar gives quick boost of energy.
GOVERNMENTS store all the healthy organic foods in storage areas while we are given the processed food that gives you cancer and more diseases over time… Like I'm in the UK and they have to tell you if your food is a GMO but I really don't know where my school gets its cheap crap food! A my school unbelievable has an all seeing eye on its webpage, '' LJHS''. 'I would really love to be at a protest about this stuff!'
i drink reverse osmosis purified water, take garlic turmeric with black pepper and fish oil, eat lots of organic fruits and vegetables now. i eat mostly 100 percent whole wheat pasta with organic sauce and low fat turkey or organic romain lettuce salad with turkey, plus wildflower honey, etc… i lost like 70 pounds and my thinking is way clearer. i thank God for this aspect of the truth learned on VC and other places. the pesticide ridden fruit tastes so bitter it makes you not want to eat fruit, then you turn to sugary foods instead which is even worse, another thing, the sugar in fruit is dealt with by the body differently then other sugars, it metabolizes differently, even weight watchers now lets you eat as much fruit as you want, they have fed us lies about health and weight loss, teaching us that we need to eat less and exercise more, exercise and how much you eat has nothing to with it, i lost 70 pounds and im telling you, its WHAT you eat. i could write a book on it but it would really only take like 1 page of the truth for ppl to findly… Read more »
Well it would certainly help to explain the vast numbers of complete pea brained morons out there…
HFCS has been used since the early 70's as a new cheap sweetener and was hailed as a new cheap sweetener, just what the world needs, another cheap sweetener. Of course it's a god-send for greedy and selfish food manufacturers who see no difference between food they're feeding to people and something inanimate like a hammer that you might use around your house. To them it's simply a product that people buy so they want to make it as cheap as they possibly can to increase their own profits at the expense of public health. Corn based products such as HFCS have also been shown to increase osteoporosis, tooth decay, anemia, osteoarthritis and more. Researchers found that Native American Indians who lived after the arrival of Europeans had far more of these health issues due to the shift in their diets over to a corn based diet as opposed to those who lived prior who previously ate a traditional hunter/gatherer well-balanced diet, rich in seafood including a variety of plants and animals too. Corn is also an inadequate source of various nutrients and minerals such as protein, is usually deficient in 3 of the 8 essential amino acids that the… Read more »
Woah! At first I started freaking out because I just finished two mini bottles Mtn. Dew. Plus my mom bought me and my sister some of those Omega 3 stuff. Good thing I have planned to start eating healthier sinmce my great metabolism won't last forever.
I "woke up" sometime ago but frankly stuff is still sinking in and I'm still in a kind of denial stage. It's really tough realizing so much of what I grew up on as a Gen Y kid has sinister intentions and not what they really are. It's hard dealing with the fact my childhood was basically a lie. My education, what movies I loved, what music I liked, what drinks I liked, almost everything. How do you even begin to cope with that? It just blows your mind.
I understand what you mean. I found out in January of 2011. I decided to check back in on this site since I was off for a while. I have prayed 2 times and am on the verge of tears while on this site. It's all a lie! The feeling of hatred from being decieved since from the craddle is overwhelming! I am just glad I have the good Lord on my side. 🙂 Bless you.
i like music that incoperates modern stuff into it like stuff featured on this site, like kendrick lamar.
or snick silva.
this new song
http://soundcloud.com/snicksilva/snick-silva-fluo…
weirdly enough, this is the scenario of the latest supernatural series. and i kind of felt like the show is quite the social commentary even before finding out about this site and reading some of its materials. would be interesting to know VC's thoughts on this.
At school, in 10 yrs. ago, they fed us donuts for breakfast & pizza/hamburgers for lunch EVERY day! But you could only have ONE. So many students were hungry & always passed out/fainted & threw up. They sold candy, chips & soda @ the concession stands. & they treated us like prisoners.
I just wanted to add that I was diagnosed with Crohn's Disease last September. Last September my doctor told me I was the first patient she has ever had with Crohn's Disease. This altered my diet, but I continued to drink Sprite like crazy, as I always have done. I cut out all cokes except for Sprite, and this was basically the only thing I ever drank (2nd ingredient being HFCS itself). I see a specialist now who encourages me to test my body's responce to different foods. After cutting out the HFCS, the results were immediate. Literally, no pain or irregularity. No loud, random dying whale noises from my stomach. Nothing. I felt completely normal. I have continued this and have found my body to have more energy as well as losing weight. Since I last saw my doctor, she has had many new patients with Crohn's Disease. I am convinced that the human body is not designed to digest HFCS since it is not natural. I also believe it to be the cause of diabetes and some other health issues. The proof is in the pudding, folks!
I go to the grocery store & people give me funny looks because I read the labels… I look for sodium, fat, and yes, high fructose corn syrup. If a packaged food has "too much" of these things, I put it back on the shelf and don't buy it. Once when I was shopping with another person, he snarled at me, "Stop reading the stupid labels! Just buy it!" But I still read the labels, and I still watch what I consume.
So, people, go ahead, read the labels on the packages. People will look at you funny, but you may be saving your health.
"So, people, go ahead, read the labels on the packages. People will look at you funny, but you may be saving your health."
Have you considered the possibility these people may be aliens?
i am 30 years old.. when i was 21 i drank soda almost EVERY DAY, an average of 2 cans i'd say. right before my 22nd birthday i cut out soda to less than 1 can a week. i started eating more fruits and vegetables, started swimming & riding a bicycle around town. i lost 30 pounds and have kept it off for 8 years. what i'm getting at is that HFCS is BAD NEWS and we're all better off without it!!!!
i must add that i used to eat junk food and fast food constantly (wendy's double bacon cheeseburger & fries, etc). now i cook most of my own meals and eat lots of salad with lots and lots and lots of veggies!! 🙂
"Does Sugar in Processed Foods Make You Dumber? New Study Says Yes."
You don't say…
Seriously, it isn't even sugar (Extracted from corn.). And the "It makes you dumber." We already had enough proof of that.
It's not just HFCS. All refined sugars are terrible for you. Take a look at this article:
http://www.globalhealingcenter.com/sugar-problem/…
According to the article, even naturally occurring sugars in fruit should be eaten separately from starches and proteins in order for the body to process the sugars properly, and it explains why:
"When starches and complex sugars (like those in honey and fruits) are digested, they are broken down into simple sugars called "monosaccharides", which are usable substances–nutriments. When starches and sugars are taken together and undergo fermentation, they are broken down into carbon dioxide, acetic acid, alcohol and water. With the exception of the water, all these are unusable substances–poisons. When proteins are digested, they are broken down into amino acids, which are usable substances–nutriments. When proteins are taken with sugar, they putrefy; they are broken down into a variety of ptomaines and leucomaines, which are nonusable substances–poisons. Enzymic digestion of foods prepares them for use by our body. Bacterial decomposition makes them unfit for use by our body. The first process gives us nutriments; the second gives us poisons."
Wow!
Thank you for this article!@ I've been trying to turn my diet around for some time – it is difficult as most know. This is very helpful information and enough to do the trick. Thank you VC.
What about the study Pepsi financed? What did those results say?