Diet may help preserve cognitive function

Analysis of data from the Age-Related Eye Disease Study (AREDS) and AREDS2, involving a total of around 8,000 older adults, has found that those with the greatest adherence to the Mediterranean diet had the lowest risk of cognitive impairment. High fish and vegetable consumption appeared to have the greatest protective effect. At 10 years, AREDS2 participants with the highest fish consumption had the slowest rate of cognitive decline.

Those with the Alzheimer's gene ApoE4 on average had lower cognitive function scores and greater decline than those without the gene, but close adherence to a Mediterranean diet had similar benefits for people with and without the ApoE4 gene.

https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2020-04/nei-dmh040920.php

Reference: 

Keenan TD, Agron E, Mares J, Clemons TE, van Asten F, Swaroop A, and Chew E, for the AREDS and AREDS2 research groups. Adherence to a Mediterranean diet and cognitive function in the Age-Related Eye Disease Studies 1 & 2. April 14, 2020. Alzheimer's and Dementia.

Related News

Dementia trend shows later onset with fewer years of the disease

A large study using data from the famous Framingham Heart Study has compared changes in dementia onset over the last three decades. The study found that over time the age of onset has increased while the length of time spent with dementia has decreased.
Daily crosswords linked to sharper brain in later life

Data from more than 17,000 healthy people aged 50 and over has revealed that the more regularly participants engaged with word puzzles, the better they performed on tasks assessing attention, reasoning and memory.
How risky is surgery for older adults' cognitive function?

Unplanned hospitalizations accelerate cognitive decline in older adults

Data from the Rush Memory and Aging Project has found that emergency and urgent hospitalizations are associated with an increased rate of cognitive decline in older adults.
Greater muscle strength = better cognitive function

A Finnish study involving 338 older adults (average age 66) has found that greater muscle strength is associated with better cognitive function.
Rapid blood pressure drops in middle age linked to dementia in old age

Data from over 11,500 participants in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) cohort has found evidence that orthostatic hypotension in middle age may increase the risk of cognitive impairment and dementia 20 years later.
Both aerobic exercise & strength training improves older brains

A review of 39 studies investigating the effect of exercise on cognition in older adults (50+) confirms that physical exercise does indeed improve cognitive function in the over 50s, regardless of their cognitive status.
Spatial impairment early sign of Alzheimer’s

A Canadian study involving 40 older adults (59-81), none of whom were aware of any major memory problems, has found that those scoring below 26 on the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) dementia screening test also showed shrinking of the anterolateral

Aerobic exercise preserves brain volume and improves cognition in those with MCI

A study involving 35 adults with

One in 4 elderly Australian women have dementia

In Australia, it has beens estimated that 9% of people aged over 65, and 30% of those aged over 85 have dementia. However, these estimates are largely based on older data from other countries, or small local samples.
Smell tests provide early evidence of dementia

In the past few months, several studies have come out showing the value of three different tests of people's sense of smell for improving the accuracy of

Pages

more
Subscribe to Latest newsSubscribe to Latest newsSubscribe to Latest health newsSubscribe to Latest news