- Eating patterns and food choices can influence brain function, but the specific relationship between food and the brain is complex.
- Researchers are interested in finding out which diets optimize brain function and health.
- One study looked at four dietary patterns and found that a balanced diet that included a variety of food types had the greatest overall benefits for brain health.
What people eat affects their health, but sometimes it’s difficult to tell the exact impact of diet on health.
Recently, a study was published in
In an analysis of nearly 182,000 participants, researchers found that people who followed a balanced diet were more likely to have better mental health and cognitive function.
They also note that genetic differences may influence outcomes between different dietary groups.
While research in this area will continue, this study points to the importance of making smart nutritional choices to improve brain function and mental health outcomes.
People develop preferences for certain foods, which over time can affect overall eating patterns. Researchers are interested in discovering how these preferences affect brain function and mental health, and whether specific diets are better for mental health.
Some research supports the idea that certain diets and food choices are better for mental health. Conversely, others may contribute to poor mental health.
For example, following a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and fish may help
Likewise, eating more fruits and vegetables to get essential micronutrients may help reduce
Diet also affects brain function. For example, following a Mediterranean diet may help slow cognitive decline.
Isabel M. Vazquez, MS, RD, a registered dietitian at Memorial Hermann Health System who was not involved in the recent study, noted the following Medical News Today:
We know diet plays an important role in brain health. Research shows that a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean protein, and healthy fats can support cognitive function and reduce the risk of cognitive decline. Conversely, a diet rich in processed foods, saturated fats, and sugar may have negative effects on the brain.
Previous research has consistently shown that diet plays an important role in brain health, affecting cognitive function and emotional well-being. Vasquez added that a nutrient-dense, balanced diet is generally associated with a lower risk of cognitive decline and better mental health outcomes.
In the current study, the researchers looked at four main eating patterns by observing participants’ food preferences:
- People on no-starch or reduced-starch diets enjoy fruits, vegetables, and protein, but have a lower preference for starchy foods like bread or pasta
- Vegetarians This group prefers fruits and vegetables but has a lower preference for protein
- High protein and low fiber This group likes snacks and protein foods, with a lower preference for fruits and vegetables
- Balanced Diet This group showed similar preferences for all food groups.
The researchers found consistency between food preferences and actual food consumption characteristics.
The researchers who conducted the current study looked at data from the UK Biobank and focused on food preference data. The researchers asked about food preferences in several categories, including dairy products, fruits, condiments, alcohol, meats, snacks, starches and vegetables.
They then looked at the association between these dietary preferences and a number of brain-related outcomes. First, they assessed mental health, collecting data including symptoms of anxiety and depression, symptoms of mania, psychotic experiences, trauma, self-harm and well-being.
Higher scores indicate worse mental health, except for measures of well-being, where higher scores indicate better mental health.
The researchers further assessed cognitive function through multiple tests, looked at blood biochemistry and metabolic biomarkers, and examined brain structure through MRI.
Finally, they looked at
The study found that the balanced diet subtype had the greatest benefit among all four groups, with lower scores on most measures of mental health and higher scores on well-being.
This group performed best on measures of reaction time, while the high-protein, low-fiber diet group scored best on a cognitive test involving symbol substitution
People in the balanced diet group also had higher gray matter levels in certain areas of the brain compared to the high-protein, low-fiber group.
However, the vegetarian group also showed higher levels of gray matter in certain brain regions.
The balanced diet group also had relatively lower genetic risks for most mental illnesses. In contrast, vegetarians have a higher genetic risk for Alzheimer’s disease, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and several other mental illnesses.
People with high protein and low fiber have a higher genetic risk of ischemic stroke.
The researchers also found differences in several genes between the balanced group and the high-protein, low-fiber group.
These genes are enriched in biological processes related to mental health and cognition, suggesting how genetics may be involved in the observed outcomes.
Overall, the results show that eating a balanced diet can help improve brain health and mental health.
Molly Rapozo, RDN, RDN, senior nutrition and health educator at Pacific Neuroscience Institute in Santa Monica, California, who was not involved in the study, shared her thoughts on the findings with: motor neurons.
She explained that the study found that a healthy diet that balanced a preference for a variety of foods (fruits, vegetables, starches, proteins and snacks) was associated with better mental health, higher levels of cognitive function and less risk of mental disorders Related.
It is exciting to see this result in such a large study (181,990 participants), which included a wealth of data from behavioral, neuroimaging, biochemical and genetic analyses. The study also found that a high-protein, low-fiber diet based on snacks was associated with lower health scores, higher levels of inflammatory markers and an increased risk of stroke. These findings appear to be consistent with what we already know about diet and brain health.
Molly Rapozo, RDN
This study adds to evidence that what people eat affects multiple areas of health. However, the study also has certain limitations.
First, it draws on UK Biobank data, which does not fully reflect the diversity of the UK population for which Biobank collects these data.
The cohort was recruited over 20 years ago, and although the cohort reflects the ethnic composition of the UK in 2001, this has changed since then. The cohort also consisted of older adults, with all members of the cohort aged between 53 and 87 years.
Then, research mainly focused on healthy individuals. People who responded to similar food questionnaires and those who did not may also have influenced the results.
The nature of the study also means it cannot prove cause and effect. The average age of participants was approximately 71 years old, so future research could focus on younger participants.
The researchers further noted that while they were able to examine levels of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, they did not examine
They also did not collect detailed information on how omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids participate in dietary patterns. These choices may have resulted in data being overlooked because these elements are important for serotonin synthesis and therefore for overall mental health.
Finally, some data collection relies on participant reporting, which is not always true. The researchers also focused on food preferences rather than data on what participants actually ate, and they used simplified measures of mental health factors.
However, even taking these drawbacks into account, the results demonstrate the importance of following a healthy eating pattern to support positive outcomes for brain health.
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