Sun Changhu, Tan Tingting, Chen Zeping
Chengdu Pidu District Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, Sichuan, China.
Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu, Sichuan, China.
Front Nutr. 2025 Aug 7;12:1618220. doi: 10.3389/fnut.2025.1618220. eCollection 2025.
Significant correlations exist between gut microbiota, dietary habits, and cognitive function; the objective of this research was to evaluate the correlation between the dietary index for gut microbiota (DI-GM) and cognitive performance. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate the strength and direction of the association between Dietary Index for Gut Microbiota (DI-GM) scores and cognitive performance among older adults, and to further explore whether a dose-response relationship exists, thereby informing potential dietary strategies for cognitive risk stratification.
Complete DI-GM and cognitive function evaluation data for older adults were taken from the 2011-2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) database. Cognitive function was assessed by standardized test scales. The weighted linear regression models were used to examine the association between DI-GM and cognitive function. Restricted cubic spline and threshold analysis evaluated the existence of non-linear correlations among variables. Subgroup studies were conducted to evaluate the consistency of the connection across different demographics.
The outcome analysis showed that among the 2,207 participants, there was a positive and statistically significant relationship between higher DI-GM scores and scores of beneficial gut microbiota and total scores of cognitive functions (β = 0.03, 95% CI: 0.01-0.05, = 0.034). Both RCS and threshold analyses confirmed the linear correlation between DI-GM and beneficial gut flora and total scores of cognitive functions ( for non-linear > 0.05). Additionally, our study demonstrated that the correlation between DI-GM and total scores of cognitive functions was maintained in subgroup analyses ( for interaction > 0.05).
The findings of the study indicated that DI-GM profoundly impacts cognitive performance, which suggests that dietary modifications based on DI-GM may help lower the level of cognitive impairment in the elderly, but further high-caliber research is required to elucidate the precise processes and application modalities, and to provide more effective strategies for improving cognitive function in the elderly.
肠道微生物群、饮食习惯和认知功能之间存在显著相关性；本研究的目的是评估肠道微生物群饮食指数（DI-GM）与认知表现之间的相关性。本研究的主要目的是评估老年人肠道微生物群饮食指数（DI-GM）得分与认知表现之间关联的强度和方向，并进一步探讨是否存在剂量反应关系，从而为认知风险分层提供潜在的饮食策略。
老年人完整的DI-GM和认知功能评估数据取自2011 - 2014年国家健康与营养检查调查（NHANES）数据库。认知功能通过标准化测试量表进行评估。加权线性回归模型用于检验DI-GM与认知功能之间的关联。受限立方样条和阈值分析评估变量之间非线性相关性的存在。进行亚组研究以评估不同人口统计学特征下这种关联的一致性。
结果分析表明，在2207名参与者中，较高的DI-GM得分与有益肠道微生物群得分及认知功能总分之间存在正相关且具有统计学意义（β = 0.03，95%CI：0.01 - 0. – 0.05，P = 0.034）。RCS和阈值分析均证实DI-GM与有益肠道菌群及认知功能总分之间存在线性相关性（非线性P>0.05）。此外，我们的研究表明，在亚组分析中DI-GM与认知功能总分之间的相关性得以维持（交互作用P>0.05）。
该研究结果表明DI-GM对认知表现有深远影响，这表明基于DI-GM的饮食调整可能有助于降低老年人的认知障碍水平，但需要进一步的高质量研究来阐明确切的过程和应用方式，并为改善老年人认知功能提供更有效的策略。
