Study finds ‘sugar comas’ are real and everything makes sense now

If you've ever found yourself with a bad case of brain fog after milling into a share-size bar of chocolate, you're not alone.

A new study has found that certain types of sugars can seriously decrease our cognitive performance, meaning that a 3pm trip to the biscuit cupboard is probably the worst way to get over the afternoon slump.

Researchers at the University of Otago in New Zealand took 49 participants and tested how sugars affected their ability to perform cognitive tasks.

For the purpose of the study, the three most common dietary sugars, glucose, fructose and sucrose, were tested against a placebo sweetener, sucralose.

After consuming the sugars, subjects were asked to complete simple response time, arithmetic and Stroop interference tests.

Results showed that those who ingested glucose and sucrose performed worse in the tasks when compared to those who ingested fructose and sucralose.

Speaking to PsyPost, Mei Peng, one of the study's authors said: “I am fascinated by how our senses influence our behaviour and affect our everyday lives.”

“In particular, how sugar consumption might change the way our brains work.”

“Our study suggests that the ‘sugar coma’ – with regards to glucose – is indeed a real phenomenon, where levels of attention seem to decline after consumption of glucose-containing sugar.”

So, the next you're in need of a little pick-up-me, try skipping the sweet stuff.