Lower blood sugar levels are linked to slower head aging

Summary: By controlling blood sugar levels, the Green Mediterranean diet may help older people with mental wellbeing. Lower blood sugar levels were associated with a younger brain age, particularly in areas that are vital for memory and visual processing, according to the study.

Scientists discovered that individuals on the Green-Med diet had a slower rate of mental atrophy over the course of 18 months using sophisticated MRI scans. This diet’s parts, which are high in flavonoids from vegetation like mankai and green tea, may help support brain function and construction.

This nutritional approach has the potential to slow down mental decline as people get older. The findings provide important insights into how to manage dietary and lifestyle changes as effective mental health protection.

Important Information:

• Lower blood sugar levels were linked to a younger brains age, which prevented brain atrophy.
• Green-Med dieting, rich in flavonoids from plants, slowed head ageing in study participants.
• MRI scans were used to demonstrate that those with improved glycemic control had less mental muscle loss.

Origin: Ben-Gurion University

Age-related mental atrophy, a progressive decline in brain size and neuronal growth, is a characteristic of aging that can cause mental decline and other neurological problems.

Although aging cannot be stopped, new study from an 18-month eating treatment raises the possibility that lifestyle and diet changes can slow down brain aging.

A brand-new, world-renowned study, which is being conducted by Ben-Gurion University of the Negev as part of the DIRECT PLUS Brain MRI test, has revealed how impaired brain function can be drastically affected by blood sugar levels.

According to MRI scans of the brain and lateral ventricles, mental age can be a person’s chronological age because it is influenced by how old the brain is biologically. The number of years of living is measured by mental age, while brain age indicates the state of the brain.

Generally, as we age, the brain shrinks and the lateral ventricular expand, serving as markers of mental ageing. Some people have brains that are younger or older than their original linear years.

A younger mental age indicates better mental health, whereas an older head age may show accelerated aging and increased risk of cognitive decline.

The study, which was published just in&nbsp, The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition 2024, was conducted by an worldwide group of mental and diet experts, including experts from Ben-Gurion University, Harvard University, Leipzig University, and more.

The study was largely conducted by Ph. D. scholar Dafna Pachter and overseen by Prof. Iris Shai, along with several foreign partners.

A previous study published two years ago, reported that Mediterranean ( MED ) and green-MED diets significantly attenuated age-related brain atrophy by ∼50 % within 18 months.

The researchers ‘ objectives were to learn the process by which brain hypertrophy slows down.

A decline in HbA1c and other important long-term blood sugar levels are related to major positive changes in distinct brain regions that are frequently impacted by age-related atrophy, according to the study.

Mental MRI results showed that lower HbA1c levels corresponded to greater deviations in the brain, caudate cell, and brain – areas critical for mental function, motor control, and visual processing.

Improved blood sugar control, according to the research, might be one of the most crucial elements in slowing down age-related mental changes.

The Green Mediterranean Diet Offers Some Reward

Earlier research has highlighted the benefits of the Green Mediterranean ( Green-Med ) diet, including better blood sugar control. The Green-Med diet is rich in flavonoids from plant-based options like Mankai ( a high-protein underwater grow ) and green tea, while being low in red and processed meats.

The present study adds even more evidence to support this hypothesis by suggesting that the Green-Med dieting perhaps support both physiological health and brain function and function as a protective measure.

One of the Largest Brain MRI Intervention Studies in the World, the DIRECT PLUS Test

One of the longest and largest head Imaging studies conducted to date, the DIRECT PLUS trial, involved nearly 300 members who were split into three eating categories. Before and after the 18-month test, whole-brain MRI was used to monitor changes in brain health.

The researchers used Hippocampal Occupancy ( HOC ) as a factor to estimate the risk of dementia in the future. HOC generally decreases as people get older. Ironically, some participants displayed a mental time that was either younger or older than their historical period.

Using NeuroQuant, an FDA-authorized totally automated resource, the study group quantified and segmented the head MRI-derived information. The study sought to find out whether better metabolic control and precise nutrition ingredients may slow down brain aging.

The results showed that those who managed to raise blood sugar levels and maintain normal glucose levels also experienced a greater head aging absorption.

The most significant changes in both blood sugar levels and mental health were found in those who drank more green tea and Mankai duckweed lifts, not to mention.

Glycemic Control and Polyphenols: The Major to a Younger Brain Age?

The study’s direct scholar, Prof. Iris Shai, from Ben-Gurion University, an adjunct professor at Harvard University, and an Honorary Professor at Leipzig University, explains,” Maintaining low blood sugar levels, even within the normal range, shows promises for preserving a younger mind, especially when combined with a healthy diet and regular physical activity.

” Precisely, polyphenols found in plant-based foods does cross the blood-brain challenge and help reduce mind swelling, which is essential for memory”.

Dafna Pachter, a Ph. By adopting the elements of a green-Mediterranean meal, a PhD student and the first author of the paper concludes,” This demo offers a safe method to potentially slow down our brain aging.”

A Road to Reducing Age-Related Cognitive Decline

One of the first large-scale studies to directly reference improved diabetic control and brain aging to dietary changes, especially those linked to the Green-Med diet.

These findings provide some insight into how to reduce the risk of age-related mental decline through comparatively easy dietary changes, even though more research is required to completely understand the mechanisms at play.

Funding: The DIRECT PLUS trial was funded by grants from the German Research Foundation ( DFG), Israel Ministry of Health, Israel Ministry of Science and Technology, and the California Walnuts Commission.

None of the money companies were involved in any phase of the design, do, or study of the investigation, nor did they have access to the research results before publishing.

The researchers: Dafna&nbsp, Pachter, &nbsp, Alon&nbsp, Kaplan, &nbsp, Gal&nbsp, Tsaban, &nbsp, Hila&nbsp, Zelicha, &nbsp, Anat Yaskolka&nbsp, Meir, &nbsp, Ehud&nbsp, Rinott, &nbsp, Gidon&nbsp, Levakov, &nbsp, Moti&nbsp, Salti, &nbsp, Yoram&nbsp, Yovell, &nbsp, Sebastian&nbsp, Huhn, &nbsp, Frauke&nbsp, Beyer, &nbsp, Veronica&nbsp, Witte, &nbsp, Peter&nbsp, Kovacs, &nbsp, Martin&nbsp, von Bergen, &nbsp, Uta&nbsp, Ceglarek, &nbsp, Matthias&nbsp, Blüher, &nbsp, Michael&nbsp, Stumvoll, &nbsp, Frank B. &nbsp, Hu, &nbsp, Meir J. &nbsp, Stampfer, &nbsp, Alon&nbsp, Friedman, &nbsp, Ilan&nbsp, Shelef, &nbsp, Galia&nbsp, Avidan, &nbsp, and Iris&nbsp, Shai.

About this news about diet and brain aging

Author: Ehud Zion Waldoks
Source: Ben-Gurion University
Contact: Ehud Zion Waldoks – Ben-Gurion University
Image: The image is credited to Neuroscience News

Original Research: Open access.
The DIRECT PLUS brain-magnetic resonance imaging randomized controlled trial by Dafna Pachter et al.,” Glycemic control contributes to the neuroprotective effects of Mediterranean and green-Mediterranean diets on brain age. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition

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Abstract

The DIRECT PLUS brain-magnetic resonance imaging randomized controlled trial focuses on the neuroprotective effects of Mediterranean and green-Mediterranean diets on brain age.

Background

We recently reported that Mediterranean ( MED ) and green-MED diets significantly attenuated age-related brain atrophy by ∼50 % within 18 mo.

Objective

The purpose of this study was to investigate the role that particular diet-induced parameters play in brain volume deviation from chronologic age.

Methods

A post hoc analysis of the 18-mo DIRECT PLUS trial, where participants were randomly assigned to the following groups: &nbsp, 1 ) healthy dietary guidelines, &nbsp, 2 ) MED diet, or&nbsp, 3 ) green-MED diet, high in polyphenols, and low in red meat. Both MED groups consumed 28 g walnuts/d ( + 440 mg/d polyphenols ).

The green-MED group further consumed green tea ( 3–4 cups/d ) and Mankai green shake ( Wolffia globosa aquatic plant ) ( + 800 mg/d polyphenols ). Through the intervention, we collected blood samples and monitored brain structure volumes using magnetic resonance imaging ( MRI ).

We used hippocampal occupancy ( HOC ) score ( hippocampal and inferior lateral-ventricle volumes ratio ) as a neurodegeneration marker and brain-age proxy. We used linear regression models with multiple variables.

Results

Of ²84 participants ]88 % male, age = 51.1 y, body mass index = 31.² kg/m², hemoglobin A1c ( HbA1c ) = 5.48 %, APOE-ε4 genotype = 15.7 %], ²²4 completed the trial with eligible whole-brain MRIs.

Individuals with higher HOC deviations ( i. e., younger brain age ) presented lower body weight ]r&nbsp, = –0.204, 95 % confidence interval ( CI): –0.298, –0.101], waist circumference ( r&nbsp, = –0.207, 95 % CI: –0.310, –0.103 ), diastolic ( r&nbsp, = –0.186, 95 % CI: –0.304, –0.072 ), systolic blood pressure ( r&nbsp, = –0.189, 95 % CI: –0.308, –0.061 ), insulin ( r&nbsp, = –0.099, 95 % CI: –0.194, –0.004 ), and HbA1c ( r&nbsp, = –0.164, 95 % CI: –0.337, –0.006 ) levels.

After 18 mo, greater changes in HOC deviations ( i. e., brain-age decline attenuation ) were independently associated with improved HbA1c ( β&nbsp, = –0.254, 95 % CI: –0.392, –0.117 ), HOMA-IR ( β&nbsp, = –0.200, 95 % CI: –0.346, –0.055 ), fasting glucose ( β&nbsp, = –0.155, 95 % CI: –0.293, –0.016 ), and c-reactive protein ( β&nbsp, = –0.153, 95 % CI: –0.296, –0.010 ). Improvement in diabetes status was associated with greater HOC deviation changes than either no change in diabetes status ( 0.010, 95 % CI: 0.002, 0.019 ) or with an unfavorable change ( 0.012, 95 % CI: 0.002, 0.023 ).

A decline in HbA1c was further associated with greater deviation changes in the thalamus, caudate nucleus, and cerebellum ( P&nbsp, &lt, 0.05 ). Greater Mankai and green tea consumption, as well as other green-MED diet components, were linked to greater HOC deviation variations.

Conclusions

Glycemic control is a factor in the neuroprotective effects of the MED and green-MED diets on brain age. Mankai and green tea, two high-potassium-rich diets, may make people’s brains look younger.

This trial was registered at&nbsp, clinicaltrials. gov&nbsp, at&nbsp, clinicaltrials. gov&nbsp, as NCT03020186.