Mind
SMART WAYS TO STAY SHARP, CALM AND POSITIVE
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The easy diet tweak that could save your brain ATTENTION DEDICATED SOFT DRINK LOVERS! A diet high in fructose doesn’t just make your favourite jeans a little snug. Surprisingly, it can also damage genes in the brain. At least that’s according to genius scientists at the University of California, Los Angeles. What that means in reality? Changes to these genes can have huge implications and are linked to conditions like heart disease, diabetes and Alzheimer’s. But before you bin every bit of sugar in the house, know this: we’re definitely not talking about fruit. The fibre in that actually slows sugar absorption. Rather, this study highlights fructose added to things like soft drinks, desserts and syrups. In more heartening news, the team also discovered that omega-3 fatty acid DHA may actually reverse fruc-induced damage. That’s the one found in the likes of wild salmon, fish oil and walnuts. The disclaimer: DHA isn’t a magic bullet for curing disease and more research needs to be done to see how powerful it really is. Still, a few walnuts on tomorrow’s rocket and parmesan salad can’t hurt!
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