Food for thought: The Cognitive Effects of

Transcript:Food for thought: The Cognitive Effects of:
Food for thought: The Cognitive Effects of Mediterranean, High-fat Low-carbohydrate, and Standard American Diets – Study Design and Rationale Smets, A1; Sohail, M1; Romaine, C1; Tyler, R1; Beltran, Y2; Miele, L2; Shellito, J1. 1. Section of Pulmonary/Critical Care Medicine, Allergy and Immunology, Department of Medicine, LSUHSC 2. Department of Genetics, LSUHSC Background Dietary patterns have long been associated with a range of health outcomes, both positive and negative. Evidence from cross-sectional studies suggests that diet may also play a role in cognitive function. Epidemiological studies have shown an association between adherence to a Mediterranean diet and a reduced risk of cognitive decline and dementia (Scarmeas, Stern, Tang, Mayeux, & Luchsinger, 2006; Martínez-Lapiscina et al., 2013; Valls-Pedret et al. 2015). It is speculated that the high content of antioxidants and anti-inflammatories in the Mediterranean diet contributes to improved brain health and cognitive function (Valls-Pedret et al., 2012). High consumption of saturated fats and sugars has been linked to cognitive impairments (Francis & Stevenson, 2013), including worse outcomes in working memory, verbal fluency, and cognitive flexibility (Devore et al., 2009; Khan et al., 2015). Conversely, higher intake of monounsaturated fatty acids has been associated with better cognitive outcomes (Solfrizzi et al., 2006; Okereke et al., 2012). Refined sugar intake has also been correlated with impaired cognitive function in the short term (Nabb & Benton, 2004). Results regarding the cognitive effects of the ketogenic diet are mixed. Some studies report improved cognitive functions, such as memory and processing speed (Krikorian et al. 2012; Mohorko et al., 2019), whereas Holloway et al. (2011) reported that short-term consumption of a ketogenic diet worsened performance in speed of information retrieval from memory, ability to focus attention, and performance of complex higher-order tasks involving working memory and attention. City or Mountain: During this task, city or mountain scenes fade in and out. Participants are asked to press a response key only when they see an image of a city. This task is a type of gradual onset continuous performance task during which participants’ response time and accuracy are measured to assess cognitive systems such as attention, cognitive control, and selective attention. Left or Right: The Left or Right task is a version of the Flanker task, which measures attention and response inhibition. The task begins with a screen showing five arrows—one center arrow between two sets of side arrows. The five arrows change direction during the task,