There’s no question that what we eat affects our mental clarity. There’s no other way to say it: If you’re powering through your day with sugar-laden toaster pastries, after-lunch doughnuts, and caffeinated sodas loaded with high fructose corn syrup and artificial colorants, you’re hobbling your brain. Consider this: A 2019 study of 1,209 older adults in Malaysia found that the participants who reported the most sugar consumption (including sugar-sweetened drinks, cakes, and desserts), scored most poorly on cognitive tests. Other research, from the Framingham Heart Study, followed more than 4,250 participants, testing them for memory and mental acuity. The 2017 study, published in the journal “Alzheimer’s & Dementia,” found a correlation between poor memory and reduced brain volume with consumption of sugary drinks. Though the sugar high you get from eating sweets will give you some fleeting energy, eating calorie-packed sugary foods can lead to too much glucose in your …