Blood vessels feeding your brain can sustain damage without obvious warning. Scientists now linked higher consumption of ultraprocessed foods to signs of that damage.
Study raises questions about how everyday eating habits relate to brain vascular health, changes can show up on brain scans even when no noticeable symptoms present.
Understanding connection to diet could help researchers investigate how food choices relate to processes associated with later stroke and dementia and prevention strategies positively. The Study published in JAMA Network Open examined dietary questionnaires, MRI scans, body fat measurements, cognitive assessments from 8783 adults in Canada participating.
Participants aged 35 to 69 and had no established cardiovascular disease, researchers classified reported foods by degree of processing investigating industrially formulated foods category. Among participants in highest consumption group, approximately one in nine had MRI evidence of vascular brain injury, in lowest consumption group one in 12.
Two Kinds Of Abnormalities On Scans
These findings are important because they are established markers of cerebrovascular disease and associated in previous research with higher risk future stroke, cognitive decline, dementia. Scans captured two kinds of abnormalities, one involved bright areas in brain white matter, tissue carrying signals between brain regions effectively and importantly.
Other involved areas of tissue injured by interrupted blood supply, sometimes without recognizable stroke symptoms, highlighting silent nature of vascular brain injury and importance of early awareness.
Association Persisted After Adjustments
Association persisted in main analysis after accounting for differences including age, smoking, exercise, income, education, hypertension, diabetes, strengthening confidence in observed relationship and findings.
Additional adjustments for body fat and fat surrounding internal organs made little difference, suggesting adiposity alone did not explain relationship between ultraprocessed foods and brain injury.
No Consistent Link To Memory Tests Yet
Despite differences on brain scans, ultraprocessed food intake showed no consistent association with memory and thinking test performance, possibly because MRI detects early changes. One possible explanation is MRI can detect tissue changes before they affect abilities measured by these tests, following participants over time could help establish whether happened here.
Many of biological processes contributing to stroke, cognitive decline, dementia likely begin years or even decades before they become clinically apparent, de Souza said encouragingly.
Dietary Findings Came With Substantial Uncertainty
Dietary findings came with substantial uncertainty, main analysis compared ultraprocessed food servings per 2000 calories consumed, showing association with vascular brain injury and abnormalities. When intake instead calculated as percentage of total calories or total food servings, associations weakened and generally lost statistical significance, indicating sensitivity to measurement method.
Diet, brain scans, cognitive performance also assessed at same visit, study therefore cannot show whether eating patterns preceded brain abnormalities or followed them causally. Questionnaires may misclassify foods, unmeasured differences in people circumstances and habits could contribute to results, requiring cautious interpretation and further research and validation.
However, study does not establish that UPF caused brain changes we observed, de Souza cautioned, highlighting need for longitudinal tracking and interventional trials.
It also cannot separate possible effects of industrial processing from foods nutritional composition or foods they replace, limiting conclusions about specific mechanisms and causation pathways. To determine whether reducing ultraprocessed food consumption can change these outcomes, researchers will need studies tracking participants over time and trials deliberately changing diets.
Q&A
Q: How does ultraprocessed food link to brain blood vessels damage according to JAMA Network Open study of 8783 adults?
A: Study found higher consumption linked to MRI evidence vascular brain injury, bright white matter areas and tissue injured by interrupted blood supply, one in nine highest group versus one in 12 lowest.
Q: What did McMaster researcher Russell de Souza say about importance of MRI markers for future stroke and dementia risk?
A: De Souza said findings important because established markers cerebrovascular disease associated in previous research with higher risk future stroke, cognitive decline, dementia, processes begin years before clinically apparent.
Q: Does study prove ultraprocessed food causes brain changes and does it affect memory thinking test performance immediately?
A: No, study does not establish UPF caused brain changes, assessed same visit cannot show eating preceded abnormalities, showed no consistent association with memory thinking performance, MRI may detect earlier.
FAQ
Q: Who participated in JAMA Network Open study examining ultraprocessed food and vascular brain injury MRI evidence?
A: Study examined 8783 adults in Canada aged 35 to 69 with no established cardiovascular disease, using dietary questionnaires, MRI scans, body fat measurements, cognitive assessments.
Q: Why did association weaken when ultraprocessed intake calculated as percentage of calories or servings versus per 2000 calories?
A: Main analysis compared servings per 2000 calories, when calculated as percentage total calories or total servings associations weakened and generally lost statistical significance, showing substantial uncertainty and measurement sensitivity.
Q: Can body fat or adiposity alone explain relationship between ultraprocessed food and brain vascular injury?
A: Additional adjustments for body fat and fat surrounding internal organs made little difference, suggesting adiposity alone did not explain relationship, though unmeasured differences could still contribute.
Q: What heart and brain healthy habits may help reduce risk besides diet according to researcher?
A: De Souza highlighted physical activity, managing blood pressure, cholesterol and diabetes, avoiding smoking as established approaches that may help reduce risk, heart and brain health closely linked through circulation.
Q: What future research needed to determine whether reducing ultraprocessed food consumption can change brain outcomes?
A: Researchers will need studies tracking participants over time and trials deliberately changing diets to determine whether reducing ultraprocessed consumption can change MRI vascular injury outcomes and cognitive decline.
Disclaimer: This article provides educational information based on study published in JAMA Network Open and does not constitute professional medical, nutritional, or neurological advice, diagnosis, or treatment recommendation.
