Dieting could be bad for your brain, according to a new study from Harvard University. The study, which combined results obtained by previous studies with new experiments, found that the
psychological effects of dieting can take a negative toll on one’s cognitive abilities. Essentially, being on a
diet can diminish your brainpower and possibly make you dumber. Scary!
The study, “Poverty Impedes Cognitive Function,” was conducted as part of a larger joint research effort between Eldar Shafir of Princeton University and Sendhil Mullainathan of Harvard. Shafir is a psychology professor, while Mullainathan is an economist, bringing a unique dynamic to their research perspective. The pair analyze how hunger, poverty and loneliness influence one’s mental state and look at why these problems tend to lead to more complicated issues.
The researchers explained that cravings and stress caused by limiting your food intake could reduce your mental abilities, with similar side effects to sleep deprivation. These findings will likely influence a surge of new revamped weight loss programs in addition to new strategies for combatting global famine.
Although the study didn’t gain its results from first-world dieters attempting to lose weight—they studied the annual cycle of Indian sugar cane farmers who experience seasons of scarcity and abundance—there are certainly implications for dieters of all walks of life. Thinking about
dieting makes it more difficult to diet, so a more successful approach would be to limit one’s thoughts about food rather than simply limiting food intake.
If you constantly count calories and force yourself to think about the restrictions of your diet, your cognitive abilities are affected by the stress and
strain of dieting. But if you can find a way to eat healthily without constantly thinking about food and your desire to eat less, your brain will not feel as taxed and exhausted.