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Diet, alcohol consumption and cognitive disorders in Central Africa: A study from the EPIDEMCA program

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The journal of nutrition, health & aging

Abstract

Western research into dementia has focused on finding effective means of prevention, particularly through nutrition. To date, however, little is known about the relationship between diet and cognitive disorders in Africa, where the number of people with dementia is expected to increase most over the coming decades. The objective of the study was to investigate the relationship between diet and alcohol intake and cognitive disorders among elderly people in Central Africa. Between 2011 and 2012, a cross-sectional multicentre population-based study was carried out in rural and urban areas of the Central African Republic (CAR) and the Republic of Congo (ROC). Participants aged ≥65 years were interviewed using the Community Screening Interview for Dementia (CSI-D). Elderly people who performed poorly (COGSCORE≤24.5/30) were clinically assessed by neurologists and underwent further psychometric testing. DSM-IV and Petersen criteria were required for a diagnosis of dementia or mild cognitive impairment (MCI), respectively. A food frequency questionnaire assessed the intakes of dairy products, fruit, vegetables, starches, legumes, oleaginous foods, meat or fish, eggs and sweet foods over the previous three days. We also collected data on alcohol intake. Sociodemographic, vascular, and psychological factors were documented. Multivariate multinomial logistic regression models were used to estimate the associations. In fully adjusted models, a lower consumption of oleaginous foods was associated with MCI (OR=3.7 [1.4−9.9]) and dementia (OR=2.8 [1.0−7.7]) in a rural area of CAR. Alcohol consumption was associated with reduced probability of dementia in CAR (OR=0.3 [0.1−0.8]). In ROC, food groups and alcohol intake were not associated with MCI or dementia. In conclusion, our study provides new data about the association between diet and cognitive disorders in Africa. Further studies should investigate the relationship between diet and cognitive disorders at the level of specific foods rather than food groups.

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Abbreviations

ANR:

Agence nationale de la recherche

CAR:

Central African Republic

CI:

Confidence Interval

CN:

Cognitively normal

CSI-D:

Community Screening Interview for Dementia

DSM-IV:

Diagnostic and Statistical Manual

EDAC:

Etude des démences en Afrique Centrale (Study of dementia in Central Africa)

EPIDEMCA:

Epidemiology of Dementia in Central Africa

MCI:

Mild Cognitive Impairment

OR:

Odds ratio

RGPH:

Recensement général de la population et de l’habitat

ROC:

Republic of Congo

UA:

Unit of alcohol

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. INSERM, UMR 1094, Tropical Neuroepidemiology, Limoges, France

    S. Pilleron, Jean-Claude Desport, P. Jésus, P. -M. Preux & M. Guerchet

  2. Univ Limoges, UMR 1094, Tropical Neuroepidemiology, Institute of Neuroepidemiology and Tropical Neurology, CNRS FR 3503 GEIST, Limoges, France

    S. Pilleron, Jean-Claude Desport, P. Jésus, P. -M. Preux & M. Guerchet

  3. Department of Nutrition, CHU Limoges, Limoges, France

    Jean-Claude Desport & P. Jésus

  4. Department of Neurology, Amitié Hospital, Bangui, Central African Republic

    P. Mbelesso

  5. Department of Neurology, CHU Brazzaville, Brazzaville, Republic of Congo

    B. Ndamba-Bandzouzi

  6. INSERM U897, Bordeaux University, Bordeaux, France

    J. -F. Dartigues

  7. Hospital and University Federation of Adult and Geriatric Psychiatry, Limoges, France

    J. -P. Clément

  8. CHU Limoges, Centre of Epidemiology, Biostatistic, and Research Methodology, CEBIMER, Limoges, France

    P. -M. Preux

  9. Institute of Psychiatry, Health Service and Population Research Department, King’s College London, Centre for Global Mental Health, London, UK

    M. Guerchet

  10. Unité de nutrition, CHU Dupuytren, 2 Avenue Martin Luther King, 87042, Limoges Cedex, France

    Jean-Claude Desport

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  1. S. Pilleron
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  2. Jean-Claude Desport
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  7. J. -P. Clément
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For the EPIDEMCA Group

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Correspondence to Jean-Claude Desport.

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Pilleron, S., Desport, JC., Jésus, P. et al. Diet, alcohol consumption and cognitive disorders in Central Africa: A study from the EPIDEMCA program. J Nutr Health Aging 19, 657–667 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12603-015-0487-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12603-015-0487-y

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