Ultra-Processed Foods (UPFs) have racked up another entry in the ‘minus’ column: Science now says UPFs may be impairing attention and increasing dementia risk for middle-aged folks. And it doesn’t take much junk food to produce the effect…
A new Australian study shows as little junk food as one single-serving bag of chips can trigger a measurable decrease in your ability to pay attention. And it may also increase your risk of developing dementia.
What they did
Researchers selected a group of 2,192 Australian dementia-free adults aged 40 – 70 years for their study. Each participant filled out a specially-designed food frequency questionnaire.
“We aimed to examine the association of UPF consumption with cognitive performance and dementia risk scores, and whether these associations are independent of overall diet quality.”
What they found
The study produced several key findings:
- Higher ultra-processed food (UPF) intake is linked to poorer attention in midlife adults.
- UPF consumption is associated with increased modifiable dementia risk scores.
- Associations were independent of Mediterranean diet adherence. The Med Diet is believed to enhance attention performance and lower the risk of dementia.
- No significant link was found between UPF intake and memory.
Overall…
- The findings support food processing as a distinct factor in cognitive health
The takeaway
The main finding of the study was that each 10 percent increase in UPF intake (equal to about one single-serving bag of chips) was associated with lower attention scores.
The brain, like the body as a whole, needs ‘appropriate’ nutrition to function properly. Because UPFs often lack certain essential nutrients, their consumption may result in impaired brain performance.
While diet can influence mental focus, other factors, such as sleep stress and mood probably play a larger role.
“We live in a society where we’re constantly distracted and bombarded by various things, whether it’s social media, our devices, entertainment, or a myriad of other things that seek to claim our attent-ion,” Lealani Mae Acosta, Associate Professor of Clinical Neurology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center notes. “Anything we can do within our control, such as getting appropriate amounts of sleep and [following] a balanced diet, including whole foods, can help us stay more focused.”
My take
I’ve experienced the ‘brain fogging’ effects of consuming even a little junk food. And I can tell you from experience that it becomes more pronounced as you get older.
I’ve just about cut UPFs – particularly salty snacks – completely out of my diet. And I feel much better for it. In particular, I feel more ‘with it’, and less foggy – especially when other factors such as stress impinge upon my psyche…
~ Maggie J.