Department of Neuroscience and Learning, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universidad Católica del Uruguay, Comandante Braga 2715, CP 11600, Montevideo, Uruguay.
Department of Epidemiology and Environmental Health, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA.
Eur J Nutr. 2023 Sep;62(6):2475-2488. doi: 10.1007/s00394-023-03167-z. Epub 2023 May 6.
The benefits of a healthy diet on children´s cognition have been described in several studies. However, many previous studies have analyzed the effect on general cognitive domains (e.g. intelligence), used measures based almost exclusively on local examinations, and rarely consider social context.
The objective of the present study was to examine the relationship between two diet patterns and contextualized cognitive performance measures of children aged 6-8 years from low-average income neighborhoods in Montevideo, Uruguay.
270 first-grade children with complete data participated in the study. Consumption of foods was determined via two averaged 24-h dietary recalls with the mother. Two dietary patterns were identified via principal component analysis: "processed (high calorie) foods" and "nutrient dense". Children´s cognitive performance, including general cognitive abilities, achievement in mathematics and reading, and discrepancy scores between predicted and actual achievement was assessed with the Woodcock-Muñoz Cognitive and Achievement scales. The association of dietary patterns and cognitive endpoints was analyzed in multilevel models, clustered by children´s school. Sociodemographic and biological variables were used as covariates.
The nutrient dense foods pattern, characterized by higher consumption of dark leafy and red-orange vegetables, eggs, beans & peas, potatoes, was associated with better performance in reading, with beta coefficient 3.28 (95% CI 0.02, 6.54). There was also an association between the nutrient dense foods factor and the Discrepancy in reading, 2.52 (0.17, 4.87). Processed (high calorie) foods pattern, characterized by higher consumption of breads, processed meats, fats and oils, sweetened beverages, and sweetened yogurt/dairy products; reduced intake of milk, pastries and pizza dinners was not associated with cognitive performance.
Nutrient dense food pattern was positively associated with children's reading achievement. A nutrient-rich diet may benefit written language acquisition at the beginning of schooling.
多项研究已描述健康饮食对儿童认知能力的益处。然而，许多先前的研究分析了对一般认知领域（例如智力）的影响，使用的方法几乎完全基于局部检查，很少考虑社会背景。
本研究旨在研究乌拉圭蒙得维的亚低收入社区 6-8 岁儿童的两种饮食模式与情境认知表现测量之间的关系。
共有 270 名具有完整数据的一年级儿童参加了这项研究。通过母亲的两次平均 24 小时饮食回忆来确定食物的摄入量。通过主成分分析确定了两种饮食模式：“加工（高热量）食品”和“营养密集型食品”。使用伍德科克-穆尼奥斯认知和成就量表评估儿童的认知表现，包括一般认知能力、数学和阅读成绩以及预测和实际成绩之间的差异得分。在多层次模型中分析了饮食模式与认知终点之间的关联，按儿童的学校进行聚类。社会人口统计学和生物学变量被用作协变量。
以深色叶菜和红橙色蔬菜、鸡蛋、豆类和豌豆、土豆摄入量较高为特征的营养密集型食品模式与阅读成绩更好相关，β系数为 3.28（95%CI 0.02，6.54）。营养密集型食品因子与阅读差异之间也存在关联，为 2.52（0.17，4.87）。以面包、加工肉类、脂肪和油、加糖饮料以及加糖酸奶/乳制品摄入量较高，而牛奶、糕点和比萨晚餐摄入量较低为特征的加工（高热量）食品模式与认知表现无关。
营养密集型食品模式与儿童的阅读成绩呈正相关。富含营养的饮食可能有益于学校教育开始时书面语言的习得。
