作為人體最重要的器官之一，大腦不但控制著人體其他器官的運作，存儲著你的思想和記憶，還左右著你的情緒。

那么，如何才能讓我們的大腦保持健康和活力，延緩大腦衰老呢？當然要多吃一些營養豐富的健康飲食啦。但是，下面這7類食物卻要少吃，因為它們對你的大腦都有害無益。

1. Trans Fats 反式脂肪

The good news is that not all fats are bad for you. However, a particular kind of fat called trans fat does have a detrimental effect on the brain. Trans fats are found naturally in animal products including meat and dairy, but even these are not as problematic as the industrially produced trans fats that get pumped into all sorts of packaged foods.

好消息是，不是所有的脂肪對你都沒好處。但是，反式脂肪確實會給大腦造成損害。反式脂肪天然存在于肉制品和奶制品等動物產品中，但這些脂肪都沒有各種包裝食品中的工業反式脂肪危害大。

Otherwise known as hydrogenated oil, people who eat a lot of trans fat in the form of margarine, store-bought baked goods, chips and crackers, frozen and canned meals, and creamy beverages are at a greater risk for Alzheimer’s and dementia. Studies have shown that high consumption of trans fats also leads to earlier cognitive decline, lower brain volume, and poorer memory.

工業反式脂肪又名氫化油，通過吃人造黃油、商店買來的烘焙食品、薯片和餅干、冷凍和罐頭食品、奶油飲料攝入反式脂肪的人更容易得阿爾茨海默病和癡呆癥。研究顯示，大量攝入反式脂肪還會導致認知功能過早衰退、腦容量降低和記憶力減退。

2. Sugary Drinks 含糖飲料

Sugary drinks like soda, sports drinks, energy drinks, and even fruit juice have little to no nutritional value. Regular consumption of sugary drinks can lead to a whole host of physical impairments, including type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and yes – Alzheimer’s disease or dementia.

汽水、運動飲料、能量飲料甚至果汁等含糖飲料都沒有什么營養價值。經常攝入含糖飲料會引發一系列身體損傷，包括2型糖尿病、高血壓、高膽固醇、阿爾茨海默病或癡呆癥。

A high intake of fructose that’s found in many sugary drinks, has been shown to reduce learning ability, memory, overall brain function, and the formation of new neurons in the brain. It may also lead to increased inflammation in the brain, which negatively affects all types of brain function.

研究顯示，大量攝入果糖（許多含糖飲料都含有果糖）會降低學習能力、記憶力、整體腦功能和大腦中新神經元的生成速度。攝入果糖也許還會加重大腦炎癥，對各種大腦功能產生負面影響。

3. Refined Carbs 精制碳水化合物

Refined carbohydrates are products made with processed grains. They may not necessarily taste sweet, but they break down into sugar in your body very quickly. That’s because the refining process strips all of the fiber and nutrition out of the original grain. A meal rich in refined carbs represents a high glycemic load that spikes your blood sugar.

精制碳水化合物是用加工過的糧食制成的產品。它們的味道也許不是甜的，但很快就會在體內分解成糖。這是因為精制過程中從原始谷物中剔除了所有的纖維和營養。富含精制碳水化合物的一餐意味著讓血糖飆升的高血糖負荷。

That causes all the same issues as if you had eaten straight sugar, including memory impairment, inflammation, and a higher risk of developing dementia. Studies have shown that children who consume diets high in refined carbohydrates score lower on nonverbal intelligence tests. And elderly people who take in more than 58% of their daily calories in refined carbs have twice the risk of mental impairment and dementia than those who eat more whole grains, fruits, and vegetables.

這就會引發和直接吃糖一樣的問題，包括記憶力減退、炎癥和更高的癡呆癥風險。研究顯示，攝入大量精制碳水化合物的孩子在非言語智力測試中得分更低。精制碳水化合物日常攝入量超過總熱量58%的老年人智力受損和癡呆的風險比吃更多全谷物、水果和蔬菜的人高兩倍。

4. Processed and Packaged Foods 高加工和包裝食品

Processed and packaged foods remove important nutrition from whole food and replace it with sugar, fat, and salt. This is our so-called Western diet, one which relies on convenience and fast foods. And we get it – people are busy and sometimes it just isn’t possible to make your own sauces, dressings, pastas, and baked goods.

高加工和包裝食品從天然食物中移除了重要營養，并用糖、脂肪和鹽取而代之。這就是我們所謂的依賴方便食品和快餐的西式飲食。我們理解，人們很忙，有時候沒辦法自己做醬汁、調料、面條和烘焙食品。

However, it is important to cook with whole nutritious foods as often as you can swing it, because the Western diet is notorious for causing an accumulation of fat around the vital organs. This, in turn, is associated with damage to the brain tissue and a reduction in the brain’s volume. It may also cause disruptions to the blood-brain barrier, the membrane that is responsible for protecting the brain from harmful substances.

但是，只要你能騰出空來，你應該盡量自己多做全營養食品，因為西式飲食會導致脂肪在重要器官周圍積聚，進而對大腦組織造成損傷，降低腦容量，也許還可能破壞血腦屏障，血腦屏障是保護大腦不被有害物質侵入的薄膜。

5. Alcohol 酒精

It’s probably no surprise that alcohol can harm the brain, considering how much stupid stuff people tend to do under the influence. Getting tipsy every once in a while probably won’t cause permanent damage, but alcoholism and bouts of binge drinking absolutely can.

酒精會損害大腦，這可能并不讓人意外，你只需要想一想人們在酒精的影響力下都干了多少蠢事。偶爾小酌也許沒事，但是酗酒絕對會造成永久性大腦損傷。

Chronic consumption of alcohol tends to shrink the brain and disrupt the neurotransmitters that your brain uses to communicate. Alcoholics also often experience a vitamin B1 deficiency, which can lead to the development of Korsakoff’s syndrome. That syndrome is responsible for severe brain damage that causes memory loss, confusion, unsteadiness, and intermittent loss of eyesight.

長期酗酒往往會導致大腦萎縮、破壞大腦用于溝通的神經傳遞素。酗酒的人通常還會缺乏維生素B1，這可能會引發科爾薩科夫氏綜合征（又稱健忘綜合征）。這種綜合征會帶來嚴重的腦損傷，導致記憶缺失、混亂、不穩定以及間歇性失明。

tipsy['t?psi]: adj. （非正式）微醉的，略有醉意的

binge drinking: 酗酒；豪飲

intermittent[??nt?r?m?t?nt]: adj. 間歇的；斷斷續續的；間歇性

6. Fish High in Mercury 含汞量高的魚類

Fish in general is a healthy addition to your diet. It is low in saturated fat yet contains healthy omega-3 fatty acids as well as vitamin B12, zinc, iron, and magnesium. However, some fish is especially high in mercury, which is a heavy metal contaminant and neurological poison. Mercury stays stored in animal tissue (including human) for a long time.

基本上，魚是一種健康的膳食。魚肉的飽和脂肪含量低，又含有健康的歐米珈-3脂肪酸和維生素B12、鋅、鐵、鎂。但是，有些魚的汞含量特別高，汞是一種重金屬污染物，會毒害人體神經。汞能在動物組織（包括人類）體內儲存很長時間。

Fish that are longer lived and predatory tend to have the highest concentration of mercury in their flesh. That’s because as long as they live, they are consuming other fish that contain lower levels of mercury. Over a lifetime, these fish can accumulate mercury levels of 1 million times the concentration in the water they swim in. It is best to avoid or seriously limit your consumption of tuna, swordfish, orange roughy, king mackerel, shark, and tilefish to prevent disruption of your brain’s neurotransmitters.

更長壽的捕食性魚類通常魚肉中的汞含量最高。這是因為只要它們活著，它們就會不斷攝入其他含汞魚。這些魚一生中體內所聚積的汞含量是它們生活的水體的100萬倍。為了防止大腦的神經傳遞素被破壞，最好避免或嚴格控制金槍魚、劍魚、橙連鰭鮭魚、國王鯖魚、鯊魚和方頭魚的攝入。

7. Aspartame 阿斯巴甜代糖

Unfortunately, it is not possible to avoid the harms of too much sugar by replacing it with an artificial sweetener – especially not aspartame. While producers of this sugar substitute swear that it is safe, several studies have linked aspartame to behavioral and cognitive problems. As a chemical stressor, it can cause deleterious effects on the ability to learn and regulate emotions.

不幸的是，用人工甜味劑來代替糖也無法避免對大腦的危害——尤其是阿斯巴甜代糖。盡管這種代糖的生產商宣稱它是安全的，但多項研究已經指出阿斯巴甜代糖和多種行為及認知問題之間的聯系。作為一種化學刺激物，它會對學習能力和情緒調節能力造成有害影響。

In one study, just 8 days of a high-aspartame diet cause participants to score lower on mental tests and feel more irritable and depressed to boot. Another study revealed that people who drink a lot of diet soft drinks, which replace the sugar with artificial sweetener, have an increased risk of dementia or stroke. For now, the FDA says aspartame is safe, but also mandates warning labels on products that contain it.

一項研究發現，只需連續8天攝入含有大量阿斯巴甜代糖的膳食就會導致參與者智力測試的分數下降，而且還讓他們感覺更煩躁更抑郁。另一項研究揭示，喝大量無糖軟飲料（用人工甜味劑代替糖）的人患癡呆癥或中風的風險更高。目前，美國食品及藥物管理局認為阿斯巴甜代糖是安全的，但同時也要求含有阿斯巴甜代糖的產品必須貼上警示標簽。

deleterious['d?l?'t?r??s]: adj. 有毒的，有害的

to boot: 再者；除此以外

英文來源：Welcome Organic

翻譯&編輯：丹妮