Institute for Global Food Security, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast, Northern Ireland.
Department of Twin Research & Genetic Epidemiology, King's College London, St Thomas' Campus, London, UK.
BMC Med. 2021 Aug 23;19(1):185. doi: 10.1186/s12916-021-02057-7.
Although the pathophysiology of cognitive decline is multifactorial, and modifiable by lifestyle, the evidence for the role of diet on cognitive function is still accumulating, particularly the potentially preventive role of constituents of plant-based foods.
We aimed to determine whether higher habitual intake of dietary flavonoids, key components of plant-based diets, were associated with improved cognition and medial temporal lobe volumes using three complementary approaches (longitudinal, cross-sectional and co-twin analyses). In 1126 female twins (n=224 with a 10-year follow-up of diet and cognition data) aged 18-89 years, habitual intakes of total flavonoids and seven subclasses (flavanones, anthocyanins, flavan-3-ols, flavonols, flavones, polymeric flavonoids (and proanthocyanidins separately)) were calculated using validated food frequency questionnaires. Cognition was assessed using the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery test. Hippocampal volumes were measured in a subset using magnetic resonance imaging (16 monozygotic-twin pairs). Statistical models were adjusted for a range of diet and lifestyle factors.
Higher intakes of flavanones (tertile (T)3-T1=0.45, 95%CI 0.13,0.77; p=0.01) and anthocyanins (T3-T1=0.45, 95%CI 0.08,0.81; p=0.02) were associated with improvements in age-related cognition score over 10 years. In cross-sectional analysis higher intake of flavanones (T3-T1= 0.12, 95% CI 0.02, 0.21; p=0.02) and proanthocyanidins (T3-T1= 0.13, 95% CI 0.02, 0.24; p=0.02) were associated with improved paired-associates learning. Higher intake of anthocyanins was significantly associated with improved executive function (T3-T1= -0.52, 95% CI 0.19, 0.84; p=0.001) and with faster simple reaction times (T3-T1= -18.1, 95% CI -35.4, -0.7; p=0.04). In co-twin analysis, those with higher anthocyanin (2.0%, p=0.01) and proanthocyanidin (2.0%, p=0.02) intakes at baseline had the largest left hippocampal volumes after 12 years.
Small increases in habitual intake of flavonoid-rich foods (containing anthocyanins, flavanones and proanthocyanidins; equivalent to approximately two servings of oranges and blueberries per day) over long time periods have the potential to attenuate cognitive ageing.
尽管认知能力下降的病理生理学是多因素的，并且可以通过生活方式改变，但饮食对认知功能的作用仍在不断积累证据，尤其是植物性食物成分的潜在预防作用。
我们旨在通过三种互补方法（纵向、横断面和同卵双胞胎分析），确定习惯性摄入膳食类黄酮（植物性饮食的关键成分）是否与改善认知和内侧颞叶体积有关。在 1126 名年龄在 18-89 岁的女性双胞胎（n=224 人进行了为期 10 年的饮食和认知数据随访）中，使用经过验证的食物频率问卷计算了总类黄酮和七种亚类（黄烷酮、花青素、黄烷-3-醇、黄酮醇、黄酮、聚合类黄酮（和原花青素分别）的习惯性摄入量。使用剑桥神经心理学测试自动化电池测试评估认知能力。使用磁共振成像（16 对同卵双胞胎）在亚组中测量海马体体积。统计模型调整了一系列饮食和生活方式因素。
黄烷酮（T3-T1=0.45，95%CI 0.13，0.77；p=0.01）和花青素（T3-T1=0.45，95%CI 0.08，0.81；p=0.02）摄入量较高与 10 年内与年龄相关的认知评分提高有关。在横断面分析中，黄烷酮（T3-T1=0.12，95%CI 0.02，0.21；p=0.02）和原花青素（T3-T1=0.13，95%CI 0.02，0.24；p=0.02）摄入量较高与改善成对联想学习有关。较高的花青素摄入量与改善执行功能（T3-T1=-0.52，95%CI 0.19，0.84；p=0.001）和更快的简单反应时间（T3-T1=-18.1，95%CI-35.4，-0.7；p=0.04）显著相关。在同卵双胞胎分析中，那些基线时花青素（2.0%，p=0.01）和原花青素（2.0%，p=0.02）摄入量较高的人，12 年后左侧海马体体积最大。
习惯性摄入富含类黄酮的食物（含有花青素、黄烷酮和原花青素；相当于每天约两份橙子和蓝莓）的微小增加，可能会减缓认知衰老。
