Sugar Lowers I.Q.

How one doctor eliminated sugar from her student's diets and saw amazing results that "laughed in the face" of modern science.

Dr. Patricia Hardman, Director of Woodland Hall Academy (a school for children with learning disabilities)

Dr. Patricia Hardman from
Woodland Hall Academy

in Maitland, Florida, eliminated sugar from the diet of every child at Woodland Hall. What she found was startling.

Here is how sugar changed the I.Q. test results for one particular boy at Woodland Hall Academy:

I.Q. Test	Sugar intake	I.Q. Score	Duration in between tests
Test 1	---	140	---
Test 2	With	100	3 days later
Test 3	Without	140	3 days later

"It turned out that grandma had come home for a visit and, that morning [before test 2], had made the child pancakes for breakfast. Of course, they were smothered in store-bought sugary syrup." -Dr. Hardman.

The results were surprising since it's a commonly held belief that a persons I.Q. does not change. Even a twenty point change in adolescence is considered significant.

This boy's I.Q. not only changed, but he went from having an average I.Q. to having superior intelligence, twenty points below Einsteins!

"Sugar makes children poor learners." -Dr Hardman

Dr Hardman eliminated sugar from every child's diet at Woodland Hall Academy because of the role it plays on the children's ability to learn and focus.

The test extends beyond I.Q. and learning disabilities to how sugar effects a child's behavior in the classroom.

"We can change a child's behavior dramatically by lowering his or her intake of sugar. If a child comes to school extremely depressed or complains that nothing is going right, or if he flies off the handle and can't be controlled, we ask him what he's been eating. It's almost always the case that the night before he had ice cream or soda or some other food with a lot of sugar." -Dr. Hardman

Although one test is hardly definitive, it does seem to laugh in the face of modern science, which is sometimes too quick to reach conclusions. This study at least shows that we don't have all the answers and is a lesson in humility. As Einstein himself would say:

"The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and all science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead: his eyes are closed."

Finals are fast approaching, so why not experiment on yourself? Try going without sugar a few days before your exam and see if it has any effect on your ability to study. It may even alleviate test taking anxiety since sugar is known to poorly influence the adrenal glands, which are responsible for managing stress and anxiety in the body. I also don't find it a coincidence that the boy also ate grain before test 2. Try eliminating both for superior benefits.

And don't forget to share your results below!