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Excess Sugar May Cause Lasting Memory Damage, Study Finds
🇷🇸 Serbia /Health & Science

Excess Sugar May Cause Lasting Memory Damage, Study Finds

From N1 Serbia · () Serbian

Translated from Serbian, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Documents & data Context piece
  • A new study suggests that excessive sugar intake can lead to memory impairment, even if dietary habits improve later.
  • Researchers analyzed 27 preclinical studies on rodents, finding that while healthier diets can improve memory, the effects are not fully reversible.
  • The hippocampus, a brain region crucial for memory and appetite regulation, appears particularly sensitive to dietary changes, especially high sugar consumption.

Excessive sugar consumption may have lasting negative effects on memory, with a recent study indicating that improvements in diet may not fully reverse the damage. The research, which analyzed 27 preclinical studies involving rodents, suggests that while a healthier diet can enhance memory, it does not entirely restore cognitive function to the levels seen in individuals who have always maintained a healthy eating pattern.

Scientists focused on how transitioning from a high-sugar and high-fat diet to a healthier one impacts cognitive abilities. The findings, published in the journal *Nutritional Neuroscience*, indicate that memory improvements were observed after switching to a healthier diet, but these gains were incomplete. Even after several weeks of improved nutrition, memory function did not reach the baseline levels of animals that never consumed unhealthy food.

Our results show that improving the quality of diet does help memory. However, these improvements were not complete.

— Simone ReinLead author of the study and biopsychologist at the University of Technology Sydney, discussing the findings on memory recovery after dietary changes.

Lead author Simone Rein, a biopsychologist at the University of Technology Sydney, highlighted that while healthier diets generally benefit memory, the recovery is not absolute. "Our results show that improving the quality of diet does help memory. However, these improvements were not complete," Rein stated. The study specifically noted that diets high in added sugar showed very little sign of recovery, suggesting sugar might be a key factor limiting memory restoration.

Further analysis indicated that while diets rich in fats also impacted memory, the effects of high sugar intake were more persistent. The hippocampus, a brain area vital for learning, memory, and appetite control, appears to be particularly vulnerable. Previous human studies have linked high-fat and high-sugar diets to reduced hippocampal volume and function. This latest research reinforces the idea that the hippocampus is highly sensitive to dietary shifts, with spatial memory associated with this region showing the most notable improvements after dietary changes.

That indicates that sugar could be the key factor limiting memory recovery.

— Simone ReinExplaining the specific impact of sugar consumption on memory restoration based on the study's analysis.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by N1 Serbia in Serbian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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