Phil Thompson discusses his fears of dementia
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Dementia is characterised by a gradual deterioration of mental agility, putting the independence of sufferers on the line. No cure is able to reverse the disease but increasing evidence suggests diet could help evade it. Research into the relationship between food and the risk factors for dementia so far has unearthed myriad antidotes to ward off decline. One study has warned which four foods should never be omitted from your diet.
The study, published in the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology, showed that those who ate a diet low in fruits, vegetables, beans, and tea had a three times greater risk of dementia.
For the randomised trial, researchers recruited a total of 1,059 who were followed for a mean of 3.05 years.
Dietary intake was observed through a set of questionnaires standardised to represent normative diets in 11 different countries.
The questionnaires set out to determine information on the main foods consumed during the previous month.
READ MORE: Dementia: The mental health disorder that quadruples your risk of dementia – study warning
This mainly included dairy products, cereals, fruits, vegetables, meat, fish, legumes, which included beans, lentils and peas, added fats, alcoholic beverages, stimulants and sweets.
Dietary inflammatory scores were obtained using the Dietary inflammatory index, which typically ranges from -8.87 to 7.98, with numbers in the higher range indicating a more inflammatory diet.
Such inflammatory diets typically include fewer servings of fruits, vegetables, beans, tea, or coffee.
Participants were split up into three separate equal groups: those with a low dietary inflammatory score, medium scores and high scores.
Those in the group with scores of 1.76 and lower typically consumed higher amounts of anti-inflammatory foods.
Usually, this diet would comprise an average per week of 20 servings of fruit, 19 servings of vegetables, four of beans or other legumes and 11 of coffee or tea.
Among the participants, 62 went on to develop dementia, which equated to six percent of the cohort.
Those with the disease had an average dietary inflammatory score of -0.06, compared to an average score of -0.70 for those who remained healthy.
After adjusting for all risk factors for dementia, researchers determined that every one-point increase in dietary inflammatory score equated to a 21 percent increase in dementia risk.
Based on this scoring system, the team established that individuals who consumed the least anti-inflammatory diet were three times more likely to develop dementia.
Study author Nikolaos Scarmeas, of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens in Greece, said: “There may be some potential nutritional tools in your home to help fight the inflammation that could contribute to brain ageing.
“Diet is a lifestyle factor you can modify, and it may play a role in combating inflammation, one of the biological pathways contributing to risk for dementia and cognitive impairment later in life.
Doctor Scarmeas added: “Our results are getting us closer to characterising and measuring the inflammatory potential of people’s diets.
“That, in turn, could help inform more tailored and precise dietary recommendations and other strategies to maintain cognitive health.”
One of the limitations of the study was the duration of the follow-up period, which only lasted three years.
However, many other studies have confirmed that the polyphenols and anthocyanin found in fruit, vegetables and tea are key to staving off decline.
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