Eating a meal heavy in saturated fat can hinder the ability to concentrate, even five hours later, a new
study from the Ohio State University College of Medicine shows. Researchers tested 51 women on computer games that measured attention spans and response times, and then fed them a 930-calorie meal that mimicked the fare of fast-food restaurants. For half the subjects, their meal was cooked in saturated fat, and for the others it was cooked with sunflower oil that is high in unsaturated fat. Five hours later, the women that ate the saturated fat meal had erratic and slower response times on the 10-minute concentration tests and they were less able to maintain their attention.