Western-style diet high in fat and sugar has a negative impact on brain development in children and adolescents

[메디컬투데이=이승재 기자] Research results have shown that a high-fat, high-sugar Western diet has a negative effect on brain development in children and adolescents.

The results of a mouse study examining the effects of a Western-style diet on brain development were published in the journal Brain, Behavior and Immunity.

The human brain develops and changes throughout life. Childhood and adolescence are times when the human brain undergoes significant growth. If the nervous system receives harmful stimulation during this period, brain growth may not occur properly.

American researchers investigated the effects of Western diet on brain development in children and adolescents based on mouse experiments. Mice in the experimental group were able to freely consume high-fat, high-sugar food, potato chips, peanut butter, and high-fructose corn syrup. On the other hand, control mice could only consume standard food and water.

When the mice became adults, the researchers conducted a memory test on place memory. As a result of the study, mice in the experimental group showed significantly lower memory and cognitive abilities than mice in the control group.

The researchers found that parts of the brain were damaged by the high-fat, high-sugar diet, with damage to the hippocampus being particularly noticeable. The hippocampus is a brain region that plays a key role in learning and memory.

As a result of analyzing the hippocampus of mice, the level of ‘acetylcholine’, a neurotransmitter important for learning, memory, attention, and awakening, was measured to be low in the hippocampus of the mice in the experimental group.

The researchers explained that these results suggest a link with Alzheimer’s disease, the most common form of dementia.

Additionally, even though they switched to a healthy diet as adults, the brain damage in the mice in the experimental group was not repaired.

Based on these results, the researchers concluded that a high-fat, high-sugar Western diet has a negative effect on brain development in children and adolescents.

Medical Today Video Editing Team ([email protected])

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