New research indicates that people who eat healthy foods throughout their lives are more likely to have better cognitive abilities later in life.
A healthy diet in childhood and middle age could report significant cognitive benefits lateraccording to new research spanning almost seven decades in the United Kingdom.
The results come from the British Birth Cohort of 1946in which researchers recruited more than 3,000 people and analyzed their diets, cognitive outcomes, and other factors at various points in time between the ages of four and 70.
They found that people who ate more vegetables, fruits, legumes and whole grains, and less sodium, added sugars and refined grains throughout their lives had the higher cognitive abilities over time.
Among people with high cognitive abilities, 8% had low quality diets, while 36% had high-quality diets. For their part, 58% of people with low cognitive abilities followed low-quality diets and 7% followed high-quality diets. The people who started eat healthy before, especially during childhood and before age 50were the most affected, according to the study.
“This suggests that food intake early in life may influence our food decisions laterand that the cumulative effects of the diet over time are related to the progression of our global cognitive abilities“said Kelly Cara, who worked on the study as a nutrition researcher at Tufts University in the United States.
Cara presented the initial results, which have not yet been published, at the annual conference of the American Nutrition Society, held in Chicago. It is not clear whether the impact on childhood was due to the early formation of healthy habits that last over timeor whether young children benefited from a nutrition-driven cognitive boost that was maintained as they aged.
Previous research demonstrate that the first years of children’s lives are crucial for cognitive development and that nutrition plays a fundamental role.
The results also underscore the long-term influence of diet, as brain changes that lead to cognitive decline and dementia may begin. years or decades before the warning signs appear, he explained to ‘Euronews Health‘ Boushra Dalile, a postdoctoral researcher at the Catholic University of Louvain (Belgium) who studies the relationship between nutritionthe gut microbiome and stress.
Cognitive ability tends to improve in middle age, but decreases after age 65. Along with cognitive impairment More serious health problems, such as dementia, may occur.
“The diet must be modified over a long period of time to observe its effects and perhaps mitigate those related to aging“, affirmed Dalile.
The authors noted that since they studied a majority white population in the United Kingdom, More research is needed to understand the relationship between nutrition and brain health among different groups.
Overall, Dalile said the results highlight the role a healthy diet in childhood can have on people’s well-being, far beyond their formative years.
“The main message is to take care of children’s diet… in the schoolsduring development, at home, etc.,” Dalile said.
