"A University of Illinois study has established a possible link between high-fat diets and such childhood brain-based conditions as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and memory-dependent learning disabilities.
"Gregory Freund, a professor in the U of I College of Medicine and a member of the university’s Division of Nutritional Sciences, said: “We found that a high-fat diet rapidly affected dopamine metabolism in the brains of juvenile mice, triggering anxious behaviors and learning deficiencies. Interestingly, when methylphenidate (Ritalin) was administered, the learning and memory problems went away.”...
"...They saw evidence that a high-fat diet initiates chemical responses that are similar to the ones seen in addiction, with dopamine, the chemical important to the addict’s pleasurable experiences, increasing in the brain...."
Kaczmarczyka, et al. (2013). "Methylphenidate prevents high-fat diet (HFD)-induced learning/memory impairment in juvenile mice." Psychoneuroendocrinology. Abstract.
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