High-fat diets may harm brain function in just weeks, study reveals

A new study from Tomsk State University has uncovered how a high-fat diet impacts mental health. Published in Modern Questions of Biomedicine, the research reveals that just six weeks of eating fatty foods can disrupt brain function and behaviour in mice.

The findings highlight the importance of diet in preventing conditions like anxiety, diabetes, and heart disease.

The experiment involved ICR mice, a strain often used to model human diseases. Researchers fed them a diet containing 40% saturated fats. By the third week, the mice showed clear neurological problems.

Their reactions to sounds became abnormal, and their movement slowed. Tests confirmed significant deficits in brain function. The study also found that a fatty diet altered the gut microbiome. This change reduced the production of short-chain fatty acids, which support communication between the gut and brain. Such shifts help explain why poor diets can worsen mental and physical health. Scientists stressed that controlling the diet of ICR mice is essential for reliable research. Without careful monitoring, results in studies of human diseases could be skewed.

The results confirm that diet directly affects both brain and behaviour. Adjusting food intake could help prevent disorders linked to metabolism and mental health.

The team’s work provides a clearer picture of how fatty foods harm the body—and how better eating habits might protect it.