Higher nut consumption may prevent cognitive decline in elderly

REUS, Spain --Nuts are known to be high in healthy fats, protein and fibre with nutritional properties that can lower cholesterol and improve cognitive health. World Health Organization says that by 2020, the number of people aged 60 years and older will outnumber children younger than five years old. This will certainly lead to more people suffering from age-related neurodegenerative diseases including dementia faced by an ageing population.

A recent INC-funded study, published in Molecular Nutrition & Food Research, showed that a high intake of nuts may help protect the elderly from cognitive decline.

A team of researchers examined whether a diet high in nuts might help protect against age-related cognitive decline over a three-year period.

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A total of 119 participants aged 65 and over with dementia were selected from the InCHIANTI cohort, a representative population-based study of elderly residents of Chianti, Italy. Participants were selected based on their nut intake: non-nut consumers and regular nut consumers (≥2.9 g/day).

Nut exposure was measured at the beginning of the study with a validated food frequency questionnaire or with an analytical tool for the characterization of phenolic compounds. In addition, cognitive decline was measured using the Mini-Mental State Examination test.

Researchers found that, from 119 subjects, 38 participants experienced cognitive decline, 28 from the non-nut consumers group and 10 from the nut consumers group. Nut consumption estimated either by the dietary marker or by the urinary marker model was in both cases associated with lower cognitive decline.

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"The use of a panel of metabolites provides accurate and complementary information on nut exposure and reinforces the results obtained using dietary information," states Prof. Andrés-Lacueva, ICREA Academia at the University of Barcelona, Group leader of CIBERFES on Frailty and Healthy Aging and principal investigator of the study.

Journal: Molecular Nutrition & Food Research

For further reference log on to:

https://doi.org/10.1002/mnfr.201900532