Eating Ice Cream for Breakfast Makes You Smarter

Question

According to the Telegraph story, subjects were told to eat ice cream upon first awakening, and then had their mental acuity tested by performing tasks on a computer. Those who'd eaten ice cream performed better and had faster reaction times, researchers found.

Comments

It might also be worth considering the long-term effects of regularly eating sugary foods like ice cream. While the short-term boost in mental performance is interesting, it’s important to consider how sugar impacts health and cognitive function over time.

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Now off the bat I think this claim is a reach, one source is not enough to claim a singular food can you make you more intelligent. now I know sugar may give you a quick energy boost which has been proven I don't think ice cream as a whole has been studied enough to make this claim

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The conclusion of the article states, "As far as making ice cream your a regular breakfast goes, don’t do it. In fact, the less sugar you eat, the better brain function you’ll have in the long term." I agree with this response, but I couldn't find reliable sources in the article. A lot of the information that was given was not properly supported by other sources. CBS News has an article that discusses the possibility of eating ice cream for breakfast, increasing someone's reaction rate and ability to process information. "According to The Guardian, a similar test performed back in 2005 by researchers at the Institute of Psychiatry in London revealed that one spoonful of ice cream gives your brain the same type of pleasure as winning money or listening to your favorite music."

https://www.cbsnews.com/sacramento/news/study-ice-cream-for-breakfast-boosts-brain-performance/

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It's not hard to tell that the statement made in this article is untrue and meant to be clickbait. When something seems too good to be true, it often is. The fact that the study was first picked up by a website called "Excite News" raises much concern. A viable research study would include a dependent variable, an independent variable, and a control group. CBS News picked up on this ridiculous article to get more engagement on their site. The fact that they spent no time backing up their claim with evidence told me all I needed to know about this study. When researching this claim, I discovered a 2019 article from The Guardian that directly contradicts this claim. They state that heavily processed foods like ice cream increase the risk of disease and death. The study cited in the article by Professor Yoshihiko Koga claim eating ice cream in the morning improved alertness and mental performance. His conclusion was based on analyzing brain activity after eating different foods in the morning. If Ice cream is so good for brain health, then wouldn't I be able to eat a donut because it has similar amounts of fat and sugar? Lastly, a British nutritionist Katie Barfoot cited in The Telegraph article that the simple fact of consuming breakfast vs. not consuming breakfast could have a profound effect on mental awareness in the morning.

https://www.cbsnews.com/sacramento/news/study-ice-cream-for-breakfast-boosts-brain-performance/

https://www.inc.com/minda-zetlin/does-eating-ice-cream-for-breakfast-make-you-smarter-maybe-but-dont-make-a-habit.html

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/11/23/ice-cream-breakfast-makes-smarter-japanese-scientist-claims/

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While you proved a decent point on the topic, your title is very misleading. In an article by the “Business Insider”, A Nutritional Psychology Doctoral Researcher at Reading University claimed, "A possible explanation [for increased alertness]... is the simple presence of consuming breakfast vs. not consuming breakfast." While your claim is somewhat true, the real meaning isn’t that it truly makes you smarter, rather it just gives your body a sugar high, because food in general supports the body. Also, it would be interesting to see the long term effects of eating so much ice cream.

Answer 1

A study conducted by Professor Yoshihiko Koga at Tokyo's Kyorin University suggests that consuming ice cream immediately after waking up can enhance mental alertness and performance. Participants who ate ice cream upon waking exhibited faster reaction times and improved information processing compared to those who did not. 

The Telegraph

However, it's important to note that this study does not conclusively establish a direct cause-and-effect relationship between eating ice cream and increased intelligence. The observed improvements may be attributed to the act of eating breakfast itself, which provides glucose—a primary energy source for the brain. Additionally, the pleasurable experience of eating ice cream could contribute to heightened alertness. 

Inc.

While the study indicates a potential link between eating ice cream for breakfast and improved mental performance, it does not provide definitive evidence that ice cream consumption directly enhances intelligence. Further research is needed to fully understand the underlying mechanisms and to determine whether this effect is significant enough to recommend ice cream as a regular breakfast choice.

In summary, while there is some evidence suggesting that eating ice cream for breakfast may temporarily boost mental alertness, it is not accurate to claim that it makes you smarter. The effects observed are likely due to the combined factors of eating breakfast and the pleasurable experience associated with consuming ice cream.

Answer 2

The article mixes truth with speculation. Yes, ice cream can temporarily boost mood and alertness. The claim that it significantly enhances cognitive function over other breakfast foods lacks evidence. Over a large amount of time a high sugar diet is super damaging to brain health

https://www.heart.org/en/news/2024/09/27/food-for-thought-how-diet-affects-the-brain-over-a-lifetime

https://nutritionsource.hsph.harvard.edu/carbohydrates/

Answer 3

The claim that ice cream before breakfast makes you smarter is false. In the article by CBS News, they experimented with people waking up, eating ice cream, and then performing computer exercises with a control. The group that ate the ice cream performed better in the task but did not do enough research; they only tested again with water. This made me think that maybe it does make you smarter, but they are not taking into account the sugar in ice cream, which creates a short burst in energy and wakes you up fast. I would love to have seen this tested with other sugar driven foods, and we would likely see a similar result. Eating ice cream before breakfast does not make you smarter but does increase short term brain activity.

CBS News: https://www.cbsnews.com/sacramento/news/study-ice-cream-for-breakfast-boosts-brain-performance/

Answer 4

This Claim is ultimately incorrect. In the title of the article, it even says “maybe, but don’t make a habit of it.” There's a couple of red flags throughout this article that makes it feel like it’s been created on shaky terrain. 1, for example, says: “The study itself does not appear to have been published in English, so it’s tough to verify or review.” For an article making a claim, it feels weird to base your entire argument on a source you can’t even verify correctly. Even if the journalist is against the claim of ice cream making you smarter at the end. The article even said “As far as making ice cream your a regular breakfast goes, don’t do it.” Ignoring the typo for what this user thinks is an intelligent source, the article specifically says that making ice cream for breakfast is not a good idea.

Answer 5

At first I was not sure if this heading was false for if it was clickbait. I always say when something is too good to be true, it probably is. The article claims that “As far as making ice cream your a regular breakfast goes, don’t do it. In fact, the less sugar you eat, the better brain function you’ll have in the long term.” I agree with this closing statement, but I did not find any reliable resources within the article to support any of it. A lot of information was given, but I am not sure if it is true because there are no supporting resources. I researched the heading and came across a CBS article. CBS News says “According to the study, test subjects who indulged in ice cream immediately upon waking up and right before participating in a series of computer exercises had an increased reaction rate and were better able to process information.” But again they spent no time back the article up. 

https://www.cbsnews.com/sacramento/news/study-ice-cream-for-breakfast-boosts-brain-performance/

Answer 6

As much as I would love for this notion to be true, there is not enough scientific evidence that suggests eating ice cream for breakfast makes you smarter. “Reporters repeating it are, at best, irresponsibly elevating a single dubious study. At worst, they’re uncritically helping to spread what amounts to fake news.” (Business Insider) Most information regarding this topic is based on a singular 2016 study from Japan, which unfortunately leaves a lack of supporting evidence from other researchers to back up the theories.

Professor Yoshihiko at Kyorin University conducted a study wherein he compared the results of mental computer tests between people who had eaten ice cream for breakfast, and those who hadn’t. His research showed that those who ate the ice cream had better results and conducted a similar test with ice water instead of ice cream to see if there was any difference. While the results were similar -those who had ice water performed slightly better- the margins were still smaller than they had been when the individuals ate ice cream. However, this doesn’t necessarily mean that eating ice cream for breakfast makes an individual smarter. “Our brain needs glucose to function, and a high glucose meal will aid mental capacity considerably compared to a fasted brain.” (The Telegraph) This article explains how the disparity between results could have simply been because those individuals ate something and the others didn’t, which would explain the slower responses from individuals who ate nothing. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and not eating anything or fueling your body properly can definitely lead to lethargic and slower reactions. Despite how young this research is, there is still evidence that ice cream can have an influence on our neural and mental capacities. The article by “Your Tango” references research from the 2005 study from the Institute of Psychiatry in London where they studied the brains of test subjects who were eating vanilla ice cream. What they found was that eating ice cream activated specific pleasure spots in the brain, proving that ice cream and sugar can have at least an emotional effect on the mind. While I don’t know for sure that ice cream has any educational benefits, I do know that a scoop or two in the morning every once in a while, definitely wouldn’t hurt! I know it wouldn't hurt me! (And it would definitely boost your mood, helping your mental health in specific ways!)

Articles:

• https://www.businessinsider.com/dont-eat-ice-cream-breakfast-2016-11

• https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/11/23/ice-cream-breakfast-makes-smarter-japanese-scientist-claims/

• https://www.yourtango.com/health-wellness/eating-this-dessert-breakfast-makes-you-smarter-according-research

Answer 7

I have to acknowledge that the study conclusion is that these subjects did perform well but while I would love that sugar makes you smarter it just isn't true. Obviously there is evidence to support that sugar can make you energic and maybe that had something to do with the results. especially when consuming sugar on an empty stomach would allow you to reap the effects of a "sugar high". However, no sugar does not make you smarter.  This article alone rebukes the claim of the study by saying "Ironically, in the long run, it will increase your risk of depression, reduce your brain function, and make you more susceptible to Alzheimer’s. If you want to be smart (or have a long, healthy life), eating sweets every morning for breakfast is the last thing you should do." This explains the very reason why sugar does not make you smarter and that is because sugar, especially processed sugar found in ice cream is not a nutrient that your brain needs to function and thrive and actually can have the opposite effect on your brain and body.

Answer 8

Although this article attempts to give fact-based research on the benefits of eating ice cream, the evidence does not have enough to fully back up their claim. Such as what are the long term benefits, or whether or not the sugar intake will lead to an energy crash later on throughout the day. Due to the intake of sugar the risk of it leading to a poor diet or an overall loss of energy might cause problems down the line that is not shown in the article. Not only does it not give enough research; at the end of the article it states "As far as making ice cream your a regular breakfast goes, don’t do it. In fact, the less sugar you eat, the better brain function you’ll have in the long term." This leads me to believe that this could be more bias then factual and that there is not enough research and evidence to back the claim. 

Answer 9

Ermmm, this ends up being indirectly true. The food a person consumes can slightly impact their intelligence, however Intelligence is for the most part genetic and is affected by too many factors (MedlinePlus). Studies have a very difficult time pointing out any immediate affects on intelligence due to the nature of humans, but there are small things that we can test against to find out what by how much intelligence gets affected when performing tasks. One important factor when taking on a challenging task is a person's mental state. Researchers found a positive correlation between emotional clarity and task performance, and also found that emotional clarity predicts performance to the same degree as processing clarity (Otto & Lanterman 2005). To reiterate the study, researchers tested individuals on their ability to manage a tribe, and the participants were categorized between High vs low emotional state and high vs low complexity state (their initial intelligence). In the study they found that high complexity individuals performed significantly worse when in a low emotional state. I want to mention this against the claim that "eating ice cream for breakfast makes you smarter" because, to put it simply, eating ice cream makes you feel good and if you feel good then you can perform better. Albeit I may have skipped a few steps in the cognitive process.

The article referenced by the claim also does not suggest eating ice cream for breakfast and even pointed out how the study can easily be misinterpreted. Then there is the rest of the argument that eating breakfast at all improves mental performance, which is true. 

So, eating ice cream does not make you smart, but the timing of which you do could lead to results that make you "smarter" or so.

Is Intelligence Determined by Genetics?: MedlinePlus Genetics. https://medlineplus.gov/genetics/understanding/traits/intelligence/. Accessed 6 Feb. 2025.

Otto, Jürgen H., and Ernst-Dieter Lantermann. “Individual Differences in Emotional Clarity and Complex Problem Solving.” Imagination, Cognition and Personality, vol. 25, no. 1, Sept. 2005, pp. 3–24. DOI.org (Crossref), https://doi.org/10.2190/BUDG-Y02K-F254-YBGK.

Answer 10

Right off the bat -- sure, that's what the results of this one study say, but what would the long term effects of consistently eating sugar filled foods be? It would make sense that there's a bit of a boost right after having that sugar, but long term I'm sure the sugar would slow them down. This definitely needs more research and more sources. This source gives a bit more context to this:

https://www.inc.com/minda-zetlin/does-eating-ice-cream-for-breakfast-make-you-smarter-maybe-but-dont-make-a-habit.html