Robert Lustig explains how fructose creates methylglyoxal, a compound that permanently disables AMPK, the enzyme that powers your mitochondria. Without working AMPK, your cells can't generate energy efficiently, which may affect mood and cognition if it happens in the brain.
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A compound that is made from an intermediary metabolite of fructose called methylglyoxal is the breakdown product of dihydroxyacetone phosphate, and it is an aldehyde. So methylglyoxyl is a bad guy, okay? Because it is binding to proteins whether you like it or not. The methylglyoxal gets made from dihydroxyacetone phosphate, from fructose, fits inside there. And then you turn off your AMP kinase irreversibly, you have basically killed your AMP kinase. So your AMP kinase goes down. What does that mean for mitochondrial biogenesis? Means it's in the sewer. Means you have decreased your mitochondrial function. And if you decrease your mitochondrial function, what does that mean for your cell? Means your cell's starving. And is that going to have any behavioral effects? If it's in your brain, you bet it will.