Omega oils, healthy fats and supposed superfoods. All of these are things recommended for the average healthy diet, and they’re all things I imagine many bridge players would choose to load up on right before the bridge game for the extra boost.

But what about foods that are bad for your game instead?

Here are a few pre-game foods that are best avoided for your next bridge match and why.

The Sugary Snack Attack

Whether you get most of your kick from jelly beans or chocolate bars, a sugar overload before a bridge game isn’t a good thing. Sugar is energy and energy is fuel, but sugar also gives you a very short-lived type of energy that will have worn off before you know it – and subsequently, you’ll feel slow, irritated and might be a little tired, too.

Be careful if the consumption of sugar makes you feel instantly sleepy or leads to side-effects like a dry mouth, increased urination, swelling of the feet or ankles or pain in the lower back: These are potential signs of diabetes.

The Sugary Drink Fountain

The same things that can be said for sugar-containing snacks also applies to sugary drinks. It’s fine to drink the occasional soda, but it’s not fine to be hooked up to a bottle of soda for 24 hours (and yet there are many people who do it).

Sugar has the potential to wreck most of the healthy functions in the body. It also has the potential to dehydrate the body at a faster rate, which isn’t ideal for a bridge game on the way in a few minutes.

Remember that sugary can also apply to many types of fruit juice and not just to drinks that fizz.

Bread is Mostly Bad

Unless you’re allergic to wheat, it’s a worthy guess that your average diet contains bread. Even though bread is the easiest snack to grab on the way to a game, it might not be the best one.

The main problem with bread is the fact that it converts straight to sugar in the body,  and it can lead to the inevitable crash: The same one that you would get if you just consumed a few chocolate bars.

It’s terrible for focus and it’s going to come with a pretty hard comedown likely to hit you halfway through the day.

Beans, Beans…

Just don’t do it. Beans of most types are great for the average diet, but they’re not the ideal food for a bridge game, theater show, road trip or any other event where you want to avoid feeling bloated for most of the day.

They call them the musical fruit for a reason. Beans contain sulfur and sulfur is, well, one of the most effective ways to offend a large amount of people per square-inch.

It’s true for any other foods that have the same effect on the body even if they don’t fit the traditional rhyme above, including eggs.

So Much Sodium

If you want to stay in a state of good health, control your sodium intake – and switch to healthier forms of salt than traditional table-variety that aren’t known to be as high of an impact on the heart. Sodium tends to increase blood pressure, and this is bad for you even if you  don’t have a diagnosed heart condition (but even worse if you do).

Combine a heart condition with salt and a crowded bridge event in a warm environment and you have the perfect conditions for a potential heart attack or stroke.

A huge salt binge might seem like a good idea if you’re feeling peckish before a game, but make sure that you’re not pushing your intake over the top.

Consume Caffeine in Moderation

Caffeine can do a lot of good, but it can cause just as much destruction in the body.

It’s sold and used at many bridge games, but if you’re going to take any caffeine on the day of a bridge event, keep in mind that your heart rate and blood flow will be automatically increased when you do – and in a warm environment, it can put your body at risk of being overloaded.

Factors like heat and exercise can make the consumption of caffeine more risky and it’s known to dehydrate the body faster. Consume any caffeine responsibly and in moderation – and check the regulations of the game, event and club if you do.