5 Foods That Are Bad for Your Brain

As a grad student it’s important to be on your A game, which can be difficult when you’re juggling school, friends, significant others, sleep, and just life in general. This got me thinking — am I working against myself? Are there things I’m doing unknowingly that are making it harder to be on my A game? Here are 5 foods you may be consuming that are keeping you from reaching peak performance.

High glycemic-index foods increase your risk of depression.

Consuming highly refined carbs is linked to side effects such as fatigue, mood swings and other symptoms of depression. If you’re going to indulge in a high-glycemic-index food, use portion control and try pairing it with a low glycemic index food, such as fruits, vegetables, legumes, or whole grains (American Diabetes Association).

Sugar reduces cognitive flexibility, as well as short and long-term memory.

Foods high in saturated fat hurt your memory and cause inflammation in the brain.

Fried foods increase your risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease.

The saturated fat in fried food has been shown to damage the blood-brain barrier. The blood-brain barrier is a highly selective semipermeable membrane barrier that separates the circulating blood from the brain and extracellular fluid in the central nervous system, and acts as a transport system for nutrients into the brain (Wikipedia).

Additionally, a 2014 study in the Journal of the American Medical Association revealed results that showed people who have high levels of bad cholesterol and low levels of good cholesterol have an increased likelihood of developing a build-up of beta-amyloid proteins in their brain. With Alzheimer’s, these proteins gradually build up into plaques that may block cell-to-cell signaling at synapses (Alzheimer’s Association).

Trans fats hurt brain function and memory.

Although some experts believe that the role that trans fat plays in brain health needs to be studied more to confirm current findings, it’s probably wise to try and steer clear of these foods. A 2011 study in the Journal of Neurology revealed two major consequences of eating too much trans fat — less favorable cognitive function and less total cerebral brain volume.