Processed Red Meat Consumption Associated With Higher Dementia Risk and Cognitive Aging
Long-term study results presented at the 2024 meeting of the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference (AAIC) showed that a higher intake of processed red meat (such as bacon, hot dogs, and sausage) was associated with a increased risk of developing dementia and cognitive decline. Researchers also reported that swapping a daily serving of processed meat with nuts or legumes lowered the risk of dementia by 20%. There was no association found between consumption of unprocessed red meat (such as hamburger, steaks, and pork chops) and dementia risk.
Researchers analyzed data from >130,000 participants in the Nurses' Health Study (NHS) and the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study to assess diet intake every 2 to 4 years using food-frequency questionnaires and to determine incident dementia cases through self-report and death records. Over the course of 43 years, 11,173 dementia cases were documented.
- Participants consuming ≥0.25 servings/day of processed red meat had a 14% higher risk of dementia compared to those consuming <0.10 servings/day.
Researchers also assessed cognitive function in a subset of 17,458 NHS participants using the Telephone Interview for Cognitive Status.
- A significant association was found between higher processed red meat intake and accelerated aging in global cognition and verbal memory.
“Study results have been mixed on whether there is a relationship between cognitive decline and meat consumption in general, so we took a closer look at how eating different amounts of both processed and unprocessed meat affects cognitive risk and function,” said Yuhan Li, MHS, research assistant in the Channing Division of Network Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and lead study author. “By studying people over a long period of time, we found that eating processed red meat could be a significant risk factor for dementia. Dietary guidelines could include recommendations limiting it to promote brain health.”