This Diet May Just Help Reduce Cognitive Decline

What we put in our mouths has a huge impact on our bodies. Diet can totally change the function of the systems within us, for good or bad. This is why it is very  important to monitor what we eat and how much we eat of it. But what if the foods you thought were bad for you could actually be good for you? There are some components in food, the frequency of which you eat it, that can surprisingly change how it affects your body. One study has shown that there are particular foods we can consume that can help our brains function better.

This study was completed and led by Auriel Willette, who is an assistant professor of Food Science and Human Nutrition, and Brandon Klinedinst, a Neuroscience Ph.D. candidate in Food Science and Human Nutrition. The study focused on data collected from 1,787 adults from the United Kingdom. It was collected through the UK Biobank, a biomedical database that contains genetic and health information from half a million participants. Through a Fluid Intelligence Test, the participants answered questions that analyzed their ability to “think of the fly.” These tests were administered from 2012 to 2013, and then repeated again in 2015 and 2016. The general database that these participants were pulled from have helped create a baseline of research for progress in some of the most life threatening diseases.

Within this test, they also answered questions about their consumption of foods and alcohol like fresh fruit, raw vegetables, oily fish, beef, cheese, bread, beer, coffee, white wine, champagne, liquor, and many more.