Photo: Eric Thayer (Getty)
Dementia, it’s a problem. Remember when knowing when to swipe right was your biggest worry? Well, dementia is like the Loch Ness Monster of illnesses, as time goes by we get a little closer to unlocking where it lives and what gets it excited, but most of us live in denial that it ever existed at all. Those are the people who likely already have dementia.
Memory loss, along with other wavering brain functions that be the start of dementia. As we go along, we’re finding that, while some health disease is hereditary, a lot of what we eat and how we live can determine our likelihood of coming face to face with some of these health risks. And trust us, you don’t want to fuck around with things like Alzheimer’s disease and other brain and heart illnesses.
So what do we do? We look to the cookie! But more importantly, we look what’s inside the cookie, like refined sugars, processed dairy and any of the other foods, drinks, and ingredients linked to mental illness. We promise by the end of this, you’ll be in tears, but you probably won’t know why. Don’t worry, it’s probably just dementia.
These Food and Drinks Linked to Mental Illness Will Have You Quitting Cold Turkey
More of a bummer: 5 Rare Diseases You Don’t Want To Catch
Dementia Foods and Drinks
-
Diet Soda
Photo: via The Inquisitr
Recent news has pointed to the possibility that diet soda is linked to dementia and the increased likelihood of stroke. While some people drink it thinking it's helping with weight loss, chiefly its artificial sweetener, amongst other things, is linked to a new study where diet soda played a potentially substantial role in numerous cases of dementia and stroke.
-
Refined Sugar
Photo: via Livestrong
We all love our sweets, but white, refined sugar is the wrong kind of sweet. Unrefined and cane sugar are better substitutes, and while white sugar once in a blue moon isn't going to kill you, it is linked to weight gain, diabetes and a number of other unsettling illnesses, including the above dementia, which is caused by sugar's immediate relative, artificial sweeteners.
-
Beer
Photo: via phobia.wikia.com
Beer!? Anything but beer! Well, don't be alarmed, it's somewhat specific. Beer, taken down in heavy binges by mid-lifers, can agitate things like memory loss and unnecessary weight gain. Studies show heavy drinking later in life can more than triple the risk of dementia, while other studies claim that hops has the ability to slow the chance of dementia, so perhaps it's best to go with quality over quantity, especially if you get the hangovers we've been having since age 29.
-
Processed Carbs
Photo: via Doctor Oz
We don't want to sound racist (great way to start a sentence), but it's those damn white breads! White rice, white bread, white pasta, it's all going to get ya. Just kidding, as this is a more "excess" discussion. Carbs have actually been known to help fight things like dementia, but taking too many complex carbs can stimulate toxins in the body, which if not properly worked out, can lead to inflammation and other troubling things like damage to blood sugar levels and brain function, ergo, memory loss.
-
Mozzarella Sticks
Photo: via foxvalleyfoodie.com
Whenever you get six sticks and somebody helps themselves to one, they're lucky to walk away with that hand, yet now we're finding that too much processed cheese (dairy in general, especially magarine), along with baked foods, leads to a higher risk of dementia. Here, take the whole fucking basket!
-
Processed Meats
Photo: via CNN
This comes as a shock as grilling season fires up, but honestly we're not that shocked and will still probably barbecue in excess this grilling season. While you might be looking for protein, it may be that dirty kind that stirs up toxins in the body, so don't be afraid to throw some veggies next to your processed meats on the fire, or at least look into grass fed meats this year and wow your friends with how big of grown up you've become.
-
High Fructose Corn Syrup
Photo: via keywordsuggests.com
Feels like it's in everything, doesn't it? Well, everything that's dirty and good. When it comes to artificial flavoring, high fructose is one of the cheaper ways to go, which is why it exists in such great quantity. You'll either pay the grocer or pay the doctor, so why not save yourself the agony and find its healthy alternative when you can? No one is knocking your right to enjoy a little bit of the dirty purchased at the gas station once in awhile, but by now we've got a healthy version of everything, even peanut buttercups. It might be exactly the same, but it sure beats cognitive decline, obesity, diabetes and a myriad of other things.
-
Microwave Popcorn
Photo: via safebee.com
As simply as we can say it, get a popcorn popper. They're affordable, healthier and make you hate yourself a little less on movie night.
Microwaves are the devil, but you already knew that, didn't you? Didn't you!?!
Related: Literal Boner Killers
-
Trans Fat
Photo: via Harvard
Trans fat, along with high fructose, seems like a good way to round up these things, along with diet sodas and their other artificially sweetened things. Look, there's nothing wrong with trying to get your trans fats, your sweet tooth satisfied or a little caffeine in your veins, but you have to be smart enough to know which foods and drinks will get you what you need without harmful effects later. In life, our general model is "everything in moderation." And that includes moderation.
-
Tofu
Photo: via theodysseyonline.com
Lastly, this meat (and dairy) alternative is here as a curveball reminder that not everything vegetarian alternative is a healthy choice. While avoiding the processed meats and processed dairy, you're still coming into contact with soy, which consumed in large quantities by people in their 40s and older can be linked to cognitive decline. While there are studies that show soy is beneficial to brain function and warding off disease as a healthy alternative, the conversation usually steers towards the amount of consumption, along with the quality of the product. All this to say, nobody is safe and we're all basically screwed. Just be smart and don't live on any one thing, no matter how healthy you think it is, because eventually we'll find it its drawbacks. Even plants are screaming when you eat them, apparently.
