In the Cloud of Stress- Revisiting the Complex Cycle of Junk Food Consumption, Micronutrient Imbalance and Cognitive Perturbation

Background:The escalating prevalence of chronic stress in modern lifestyle dismantles the body's adaptive capacity leading to a spectrum of significant cognitive anomalies.This compromised cognitive state diminishes individuals' ability to make rational and health-promoting dietary choices, creating a predisposition for the consumption of junk food, which, in turn, exacerbates cognitive deficits and perpetuates a self-reinforcing loop of maladaptive dietary patterns and cognitive deterioration.Objective: The present study, based on existing literature, explores the complex interplay encompassing stress-induced cognitive disruption, suboptimal dietary patterns, and micronutrient deficiencies. Methods:The present work undertook extensive literature review to synthesize the findings of literature retrieved from searches of computerized databases, hand searches and authoritative texts. Results:The study revealed confounding yet simultaneously occurring dual feedback loops which brings on surface the issues how appeal of unhealthy food is reinforced and taste-driven stress alleviation strengthens inclination toward such dietary choices.The neural circuitries in the whole affair unquestionably involve the mostly studied CNS areas, which collectively mediate their responses through dopamine in shaping reward-based motivation, emotional associations, and decision-making. Conclusion:Although information in the current context is available in pieces, a comprehensive and consolidated presentation is lacking.The present review is engrossed to cater the deeper psycho-physiological crosstalk intelligibly satisfying an overall objective of reaching the common readers and to generate public awareness. Highlights: Cognitive Perturbation Stemming Differentially from Stress in One Hand and Micronutrient Imbalance Due to Junk FoodConsumption on the Other Hand Have Common Mediator Though Follow Different Neural Loops.Cognition is representative of brain functions which psychology refers to as mental processes involving tasks like-thinking, attention and language, learning, memory, perception and motor skill.None of the processes, in isolation, claims to be discrete ability rather they are all intimately interactive elements in a web.Collective, systematic and sequential interactions of the mental functions allow individuals to perform as healthy adults as evident from the Abilities of solving problems, retrieval of memory and decision making.Lifestyle denotes the mode of living either of an individual or a group with all the inherent sensations and characters namely-habits, attitudes, emotion, morality, economic status, likings and disliking etc.All these attributes assemble under an umbrella called cognition.Thus, it is somewhat obvious that lifestyle factors will influence cognition.The present review aims to discuss cognitive effects under situations of life stressors and stress-driven unhealthy eating habit(s).Overlapping reports are available from extensive literature search that emphasize the involvement of brain regions starting from the prefrontal cortex, hippocampus, amygdala to areas of the mesolimbic system and explore the magic role of dopamine neurotransmitter in either mechanism.However, the present work describes comprehensively the novel stimulus-effect circuitry through which the ultimate result of cognitive perturbation ensues.