Overview

• A University of Sydney study links high-fat, high-sugar diets to impaired hippocampal-dependent spatial navigation and memory in young adults.
• The research highlights that unhealthy diets affect the hippocampus specifically, rather than the entire brain, disrupting key cognitive functions.
• The study demonstrates that dietary modifications can reverse these cognitive impairments, restoring hippocampal health and navigation abilities.
• Participants aged 18 to 38 completed VR maze tasks, with results showing that higher sugar and fat intake predicted poorer navigation performance.
• The findings underscore the critical role of diet in maintaining brain health during early adulthood, a period of typically intact cognitive function.