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Cognitive and behavioural effects of high-fat, high-sugar diet reversal: a systematic review and meta-analysis of animal studies
The implications of dietary choices extend beyond physical health, significantly influencing neurocognitive functions and behavior. High-fat, high-sugar (HFHS) diets, while detrimental to metabolic health, have also been linked to cognitive deficits. However, the question remains whether these cognitive impairments can be reversed through dietary changes. This systematic review and meta-analysis aim to address this issue by evaluating the impact of substituting unhealthy diets with healthier options.
The study encompasses 27 distinct rodent studies. Each study involved exposing rodents to HFHS diets for at least 2 weeks before switching them to healthy chow for at least 24 hours. Various cognitive and behavioral assessments followed this diet reversal, focusing on memory, anxiety, depression, motivation, and locomotor activity.
Findings from the meta-analyses indicate that dietary reversal leads to a significant improvement in memory performance compared with rodents that continued on HFHS diets. However, this improvement did not translate into cognitive performance levels observed in control groups maintained on healthy diets. Further investigation through meta-regression revealed that the effectiveness of diet reversal varied with the type of test employed and the specific dietary compositions. Notably, significant improvements in memory were observed in studies using the novel object location test and in those focused on high-fat diets, whereas no such improvements were found in studies examining high-sugar or combined HFHS diets.
Furthermore, the analysis revealed that diet reversal did not produce any significant changes in behaviors related to anxiety, depression, motivation, or locomotor activity. The heterogeneity across domains was moderate to high, and the overall risk of bias was low.
These results contribute to the understanding that cognitive impairments induced by unhealthy diets can be ameliorated through dietary intervention, specifically in controlled animal models. This underscores the necessity of public health initiatives to reduce consumption of high-sugar, high-fat foods. [NPID: HFHS, cognitive impairments, high-fat high-sugar]
Year: 2026
