High-fat and high-sugar diet during childhood rewires brain hunger cues, causing lasting changes even after switching to a healthy diet.
A childhood high-fat, high-sugar diet permanently rewires the gut-brain axis, disrupting appetite regulation and hunger cues in the brain region (hypothalamus) even after the unhealthy diet is stopped or weight is normalised.
The revelation was made by a groundbreaking study from the University College Cork (UCC).
However, targeting beneficial gut bacteria (Bifidobacterium longum APC1472) with specific probiotics and prebiotics can reverse these brain changes and restore healthy eating habits.(1✔ ✔Trusted Source
>Bifidobacterium longum and prebiotic interventions restore early-life high-fat/high-sugar diet-induced alterations in feeding behavior in adult mice
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The findings were demonstrated by researchers at APC Microbiome Ireland, and published in Nature Communications.
How Does a Childhood High-Fat, High-Sugar Diet Affect Brain Health?
This new research highlights the long-term impact of this early exposure, demonstrating that frequent consumption of energy-dense, nutrient-poor foods in childhood can shape preferences and establish unhealthy eating patterns that persist well into adulthood.
The study also demonstrates that microbiota-targeted interventions, including a specific strain of beneficial gut bacteria (Bifidobacterium longum APC1472) or prebiotic fibres (fructo-oligosaccharides (FOS) and galacto-oligosaccharides (GOS), naturally present in foods such as onions, garlic, leeks, asparagus and bananas, and widely available in fortified foods and prebiotic supplements), could help prevent these effects when administered throughout life.
The researchers found that exposure to a high-fat, high-sugar diet during early life in a preclinical mouse model led to persistent alterations in feeding behaviour in adulthood. These behavioural changes were linked to lasting disruptions in the adult hypothalamus, a key brain region involved in appetite control and energy balance.
Can Weight Normalization Reverse Brain Rewiring Caused by Early-Life Diets?
“Our findings show that what we eat early in life really matters,” said Dr. Cristina Cuesta-Martí, first author of the study. “Early dietary exposure may leave hidden, long-term effects on feeding behaviour that are not immediately visible through weight alone.”
The study showed that unhealthy diets early in life disrupted brain pathways involved in feeding behavior, with effects lasting into adulthood, suggesting an increased risk of obesity later in life.
Importantly, targeting the gut microbiota helped counteract these long-term diet-related effects. The putative probiotic strain Bifidobacterium longum APC1472 produced marked improvements in feeding behavior while inducing only minor changes in overall microbiome composition, suggesting a targeted mode of action.
In comparison, the prebiotic combination (FOS+GOS) drove broader shifts in the gut microbiome.
Why Gut Health is the Key to Reversing Long-Term Junk Food Damage
Dr. Harriet Schellekens, lead investigator of the study, added: “Crucially, our findings show that targeting the gut microbiota can mitigate the long-term effects of an unhealthy early-life diet on later feeding behavior. Supporting the gut microbiota from birth helps maintain healthier food-related behaviors into later life.”
Professor John F. Cryan, Vice President for Research & Innovation at UCC and collaborator on the study, said: “Studies like this exemplify how fundamental research can lead to potential innovative solutions for major societal challenges.”
“By revealing how early-life diet shapes brain pathways involved in the regulation of feeding, this work opens new opportunities for microbiota-based interventions.”
Reference:
- Bifidobacterium longum and prebiotic interventions restore early-life high-fat/high-sugar diet-induced alterations in feeding behavior in adult mice – (https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-026-68968-2)
Source-Eurekalert