Researchers found that people who eat between 2,100 and 6,000 calories a day are at a higher risk for memory loss or mild cognitive impairment in the elderly crowd.
The study was recently released and the research will presented at the American Academy of Neurology’s 64th Annual Meeting in New Orleans April 21 to April 28.
The study involved about 1,200 people ages 70- 89 who recorded their daily caloric intake. The chances of getting MCI more than doubled for those who ate the most calories.
“We observed a dose-response pattern which simply means; the higher the amount of calories consumed each day, the higher the risk of MCI,” said study author Yonas E. Geda, MD, MSc, with the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Ariz., and a member of the American Academy of Neurology.
The moral of this story is to watch what you eat now in preparation for a long-living and healthy brain.
However there is another reason to try and keep yourself from becoming obese before you reach the age of living in a nursing home. More research found a link between brain injury and diet-induced obesity.
The study showed that there is a certain part of the brain that is involved in a person’s body weight. Basically, when a person is struggling with losing weight or not regaining weight that was already lost, that part of the brain is more likely to show signs of injury. The research did not prove a cause and effect but it definitely paved the way for further research.
So do your brain a favor and start good eating habits now.
