Do you enjoy soft drinks, chips, cookies, or frozen meals?
A new study suggests that eating large amounts of these ultra-processed foods may increase your chances of developing dementia.
The research, published in the journal Neurology®, looked at people who ate a lot of ultra-processed foods and compared them to those who ate much less.
Ultra-processed foods include things like soda, ice cream, sausage, flavored cereal, ketchup, canned baked beans, packaged guacamole, and fried chicken.
These foods are convenient and tasty, but they often contain high levels of sugar, fat, and salt, and little fiber or protein. They are also packed with additives and substances from packaging that may be harmful to the brain.
Researchers in China followed more than 72,000 people in the United Kingdom who were over the age of 55. None of them had dementia when the study began. Over an average of 10 years, 518 participants developed dementia.
People who ate the most ultra-processed foods (about 28% of their daily diet, or 814 grams) were more likely to develop dementia than those who ate the least (about 9%, or 225 grams per day).
After adjusting for other health factors, the researchers found that every 10% increase in ultra-processed food intake was linked to a 25% higher risk of developing dementia.
On the flip side, replacing ultra-processed foods with healthy options like fruits, vegetables, legumes, milk, and fresh meat reduced the risk. A 10% substitution lowered the risk by 19%.
Even small changes made a difference. Eating just 50 grams more of unprocessed food per day—like half an apple or a bowl of bran cereal—while reducing 50 grams of ultra-processed food—like a chocolate bar or a serving of fish sticks—was linked to a 3% decrease in dementia risk.
Lead researcher Dr. Huiping Li said this study supports the idea that eating less processed food and more whole, natural foods can help protect brain health. But more research is still needed.
Some challenges include how to accurately classify foods as processed or not. For example, a homemade soup may be very different from a canned one, even if they seem similar.
While the study only shows an association—not proof—it adds to growing evidence that what we eat can affect how our brains function as we age. Limiting ultra-processed foods and choosing more natural options could be a simple and powerful way to reduce the risk of dementia.
If you care about dementia, please read studies about Common drug for constipation is linked to higher dementia risk and findings of Scientists find link between heartburn drugs and increased dementia risk.
For more about dementia, please read studies about Scientists find a drug related to Viagra may help treat vascular dementia and findings of link between body inflammation and dementia risk.
The study is published in Neurology.
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