The brain is the most critical organ in the body. It controls your thoughts, keeps your heart beating, your lungs breathing and ensures that every other organ is performing the roles it needs to.
Therefore, a healthy brain leads to a healthy person, and that is why it is so important to have a diet that helps your mind get all the nutrients it needs in order to function properly.
It almost goes without saying that some foods and drinks can have a detrimental effect on the brain. They can impact on memory, affect moods and even lead to cognitive problems such as dementia down the line. So, with that in mind, here are five foods to avoid for a healthy brain.
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Sugary drinks
Drinks, such as soda and energy drinks that are high in sugar, can have a devastating effect on our health. Not only do they lead to dangerous weight gain, but they also increase the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Diabetes affects over 371 million people globally and has been shown to increase the risk of Alzheimer's disease. That's not all; sugary drinks contain staggering levels of high-fructose corn syrup which can cause brain inflammation and impair both memory and learning.
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Highly processed foods
Foods such as ready meals, chips, sweets, instant noodles, and fast food may have a convenience factor, but they also have a brain-damaging factor as well. Processed foods add excess fat around the body's organs, which is associated with a decline in brain tissue. They can also increase brain inflammation and adversely affect learning, memory and brain elasticity.
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Alcohol
You don't need us to tell you that alcohol is bad for you - but do you know just how bad it is for your brain in particular? Chronic alcohol use results in a reduction in brain volume and disrupts the production of the chemicals that the brain uses to communicate. It can cause sleeplessness which leads to depression, anxiety, and stress and can result in out-of-character behavioral changes. If you think you may have an alcohol addiction, then please read about this treatment which can help you overcome the problem, leading to a healthier brain as a result.
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Trans fats
Trans fats are a type of unsaturated fat that occur in meat and dairy. When they are found naturally, they're fine. It's when they are produced artificially in foods such as margarine, frosting, ready-made cakes and cookies and snack foods that they become a problem. When people consume high amounts of trans fats, they are at an increased risk of Alzheimer's disease and have a lower brain volume.
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Fish high in mercury
Yes, you're meant to eat fish as part of a healthy diet but you must also be aware that not all fish is good for you if you have too much of it. Take shark or sword fish, for example. Both are high in levels of mercury, a neurotoxic element that spreads around the body but largely congregates in the brain, liver, and kidneys. Mercury can cause disruption to the central nervous system and the brain's neurotransmitters.
