Li Huihui, Yin Zhongmin, Cui Fusheng, Wang Weijing, Zhang Dongfeng
Department of Epidemiology and Health Statistics, Public Health College, Qingdao University, Qingdao, China.
Department of Outpatient and Emergency, The Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University, Qingdao, China.
Front Nutr. 2025 Jul 4;12:1461852. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2025.1461852. eCollection 2025.
The association of dietary essential trace elements (ETEs) and their mixture with cognition remains unclear.
Prospective cohort data on the association between dietary ETEs [e.g., iron (Fe), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), manganese (Mn), selenium (Se), and iodine (I)] and general cognition were obtained from the UK Biobank (UKB) database. Linear regression and restricted cubic splines (RCS) were used to examine the association between individual dietary ETEs and general cognition, including the identification of the inflection points. The Bayesian kernel machine regression (BKMR) model was applied to analyze the association between a mixture of six ETEs and general cognition, as well as potential interactions among ETEs. Stratified analysis and sensitivity analysis were also conducted.
Significant non-linear association between individual dietary ETEs and general cognition was observed, with the inflection points for the various elements being as follows: Fe: 15 mg/day, Zn: 10 mg/day, Cu: 1.5 mg/day, I: 250 μg/day, Mn: 5 mg/day, and Se: 45 μg/day. The BKMR analysis showed an inverted "U"-shaped association between dietary ETE mixture and general cognition, with Fe and Zn playing major roles. Dietary Mn was the major contributor in males, while Zn was predominant in females. In the hypertensive population, dietary Zn and Mn play major roles.
There are non-linear associations between dietary Fe, Zn, Cu, I, Mn, Se-as well as their mixture-and general cognition. Among these, Fe and Zn play major roles within this mixture. In addition, there are sex differences in the main contributing ETE, with Mn in males and Zn in females.
膳食必需微量元素（ETEs）及其混合物与认知之间的关联仍不明确。
从英国生物银行（UKB）数据库中获取关于膳食ETEs[如铁（Fe）、铜（Cu）、锌（Zn）、锰（Mn）、硒（Se）和碘（I）]与一般认知之间关联的前瞻性队列数据。使用线性回归和受限立方样条（RCS）来检验个体膳食ETEs与一般认知之间的关联，包括确定拐点。应用贝叶斯核机器回归（BKMR）模型分析六种ETEs混合物与一般认知之间的关联以及ETEs之间的潜在相互作用。还进行了分层分析和敏感性分析。
观察到个体膳食ETEs与一般认知之间存在显著的非线性关联，各元素的拐点如下：铁：15毫克/天，锌：10毫克/天，铜：1.5毫克/天，碘：250微克/天，锰：5毫克/天，硒：45微克/天。BKMR分析显示膳食ETEs混合物与一般认知之间呈倒“U”形关联，铁和锌起主要作用。膳食锰在男性中起主要作用，而锌在女性中占主导地位。在高血压人群中，膳食锌和锰起主要作用。
膳食中的铁、锌、铜、碘、锰、硒及其混合物与一般认知之间存在非线性关联。其中，铁和锌在这种混合物中起主要作用。此外，主要贡献的ETEs存在性别差异，男性为锰，女性为锌。
