Mind & Mood

Eating ultra-processed foods tied to cognitive decline

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By , Executive Editor, Harvard Health Letter

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Having a hard time giving up ultra-processed ("junk") foods? Those are items like microwaveable dinners, deli meat, white bread, packaged cookies, cheese puffs, and pastries. Perhaps this will help curb your appetite for them: A study published online Dec. 5, 2022, by JAMA Neurology found a link between eating lots of ultra-processed foods and cognitive decline. The study involved almost 11,000 dementia-free people (ages 35 to 74). Participants filled out food questionnaires and periodically underwent cognitive testing that measured memory, word recognition and recall, and other thinking skills. After eight years, scientists found that middle-aged people who ate the most junk food had a faster rate (up to 28%) of cognitive decline, compared with people who ate the least junk food. This is plausible, because we know that a diet rich in ultra-processed foods is associated with increased risks for many chronic diseases, including heart disease and diabetes (which have risk factors similar to those for dementia). So try to cut back on junk food and fill your plate with healthier goodies, such as fruits, vegetables, legumes, whole grains, nuts, seeds, and lean proteins.

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About the Author

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Heidi Godman, Executive Editor, Harvard Health Letter

Heidi Godman is the executive editor of the Harvard Health Letter. Before coming to the Health Letter, she was an award-winning television news anchor and medical reporter for 25 years. Heidi was named a journalism fellow … See Full Bio
View all posts by Heidi Godman

About the Reviewer

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Anthony L. Komaroff, MD, Editor in Chief, Harvard Health Letter

Dr. Anthony L. Komaroff is the Steven P. Simcox/Patrick A. Clifford/James H. Higby Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, senior physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, and editor in chief of the Harvard … See Full Bio
View all posts by Anthony L. Komaroff, MD

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