six Foods proven to cause memory loss and damage the brain your diet plays a significant role in brain health and certain foods have detrimental effects on cognitive function number one donuts donuts are a triple threat to brain health being high in sugar fried and unhealthy oils and made with refined flour excessive sugar consumption can impair cognitive function while fried foods can lead to inflammation in the brain making donuts one of the worst foods for memory and brain health two two sunflower oil highly processed oils like sunflower oil are often extracted using chemicals resulting in inflammation in the brain chronic inflammation is associated with cognitive decline and memory loss choose olive oil or avocado oil instead three energy bars despite their convenience many energy bars are loaded with added sugars artificial flavors and preservatives the full video is linked down below