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Dietary Patterns and Cognitive Health in Older Adults: Findings from the Sydney Memory and Ageing Study

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The journal of nutrition, health & aging

Abstract

Objectives

Systematic reviews report dietary patterns may be associated with cognitive health in older adults. However, inconsistent findings have been reported and relevant research lacks large scale studies. This study aims to examine the associations of dietary patterns and cognitive function among older adults in an Australian ageing cohort.

Design

A population-based, cross-sectional analysis of the baseline phase of the Sydney Memory and Ageing Study, a well-characterised Australian ageing study.

Setting

The Sydney Memory and Ageing Study was initiated in 2005 to examine the clinical characteristics and prevalence of mild cognitive impairment (MCI).

Participants

Non-demented community-dwelling individuals from English-speaking background (N = 819) aged 70–90 recruited from two areas of Sydney, following a random approach to 8914 individuals on the electoral roll in the Sydney Memory and Ageing study.

Measurements

The Cancer Council of Victoria Food Frequency Questionnaire was used to assess dietary intake. Scores for Mediterranean diet, Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diet and the Dietary Guidelines Index (DGI 2013) were generated. Two patterns — a Prudent healthy and a Western dietary pattern — were derived using principal components analysis (PCA). Neuropsychological tests were used to assess global cognition and six cognitive domains. Multivariate linear modelling assessed the relationship between dietary patterns and cognitive domain scores.

Results

Mediterranean diet and DASH diet were both positively linked to visuospatial cognition (P=0.002 and P=0.001 respectively). Higher intake of legumes and nuts was related to better performance in global cognition (β=0.117; 95% CI:0.052, 0.181; P<0.001) and language and visuospatial cognitive domains.. The Prudent healthy diet was associated with better global cognition (β=0.307; 95% CI: 0.053, 0.562; P=0.019) in women and a Western diet was related to poorer global function (β=-0.242; 95% CI: -0.451,-0.034; P=0.023) and executive function (β=-0.325; 95% CI: -0.552,-0.099; P=0.005) in men.

Conclusion

In this analysis, higher adherence to the Mediterranean diet, DASH diet, Prudent healthy diet and greater consumption of legumes and nuts were associated with better cognition among older adults.

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Acknowledgements

Participants, staff and investigators of the Sydney Memory and Ageing Study are gratefully acknowledged.

Funding

Funding: Sydney Memory and Ageing Study received funding from the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Australia.

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Author notes

  1. Equal senior authors.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dementia Centre for Research Collaboration, School of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia

    X. Chen & Henry Brodaty

  2. Mark Wainwright Analytical Centre, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia

    Z. Liu

  3. Centre for Healthy Brain Ageing (CHeBA), School of Psychiatry, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia

    P. S. Sachdev, N. A. Kochan & Henry Brodaty

  4. Nutrition and Dietetics Group, School of Life and Environmental Science and The Charles Perkins Centre, Faculty of Science, The University of Sydney, NSW, Sydney, 2006, Australia

    F. O’Leary

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  1. X. Chen
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Contributions

Author contributions: XC designed the research protocol, conducted data analysis, drafted the protocol and report, including creating reference list and tables. ZXL was responsible for technical support on statistical analysis, interpreting results and providing comments on manuscript. PS and NK were responsible for project design, data collection and study coordination, critical revision of manuscript. FOL provided support on dietary pattern score construction, data analysis, interpretation of results, critical revision of manuscript and approval of report. HB was responsible for designing the research protocol, interpreting results, critical revision and final approval of report. All authors reviewed the final draft.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Henry Brodaty.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest: Henry Brodaty is an Advisory Board member for Nutricia. None declared by other authors.

Declaration: This study complies with the current laws of Australia where research was performed.

Ethical standards: The study was approved by the Ethics Committees of the University of New South Wales and the South Eastern Sydney and Illawarra Area Health Service.

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Chen, X., Liu, Z., Sachdev, P.S. et al. Dietary Patterns and Cognitive Health in Older Adults: Findings from the Sydney Memory and Ageing Study. J Nutr Health Aging 25, 255–262 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12603-020-1536-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12603-020-1536-8

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