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Oily food causes lethargy and drowsiness

 
, medical expert
Last reviewed: 23.04.2024
 
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20 May 2013, 09:00

American scientists have found a relationship between caloric intake of food and daytime activity of an adult. It turns out that the more fatty foods we eat, the lower the capacity for work and the more difficult it is to lead an active lifestyle.

A large number of consumed fatty foods adversely affects the quality and efficiency of work, a person who prefers dishes fatter, throughout the day will be sleepy and sluggish. Recent studies of nutritionists have once again proved the harm of fatty foods and the opposite effect of carbohydrates useful to the body.

Specialists from the University of Pennsylvania have proved that the nutritional value of daily consumed foods can affect the performance and productivity of human labor. Those people who prefer fatty foods protein and containing beneficial complex carbohydrates, are more sluggish and sleepy throughout the whole working day.

Experiment. Conducted at the University of Pennsylvania (United States) consisted in that during one working week (5 days) under the supervision of specialists were 30 adults aged 18 to 65 years. Within five days the experiment participants were in the laboratory of the university. Nutritionists divided the volunteers into three groups, which throughout the experiment were fed a differently balanced diet. The diet of the first group was dominated by protein foods, in the diet of the second - containing carbohydrates, in the diet of the third - the most fatty.

The goal of the experiment was to measure the degree of lethargy and drowsiness in people who adhere to different feeding systems. According to experts, the amount of energy and human performance depends on the food consumed. Indeed, after specialists with the help of the multiple latency test of daily sleep could measure the level of daytime drowsiness of each participant in the experiment, they could confidently report that food affects the daily activity of each person.

The results of a comparative analysis of the indicators confirmed the assumptions of dieticians and study leaders. The experiment proved that protein food has no influence on the person's working capacity and vigor. With regard to carbohydrates and fats, a large amount of fatty food significantly reduced activity, working capacity and desire to do something, and complex carbohydrates had the opposite effect. Those participants who ate products containing carbohydrates were full of energy.

Specialists emphasize that such indicators as the duration of sleep, age, health status, sex and the presence of chronic diseases were taken into account and did not affect the results of the study in any way.

In connection with the results of the study, dieticians strongly recommend limiting the amount of fat consumed and trying to include more protein and carbohydrate foods in the daily diet. For breakfast, according to experts, complex carbohydrates are best suited, since it is on them that their energy, efficiency and vital activity depends.

trusted-source[1], [2]

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