Diet and Intrinsic Capacity in Middle-aged and Older Adults: A Prospective Analysis of the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging.

Association between dietary patterns and biological aging among Chinese middle-aged and older adults: evidence from a cross-sectional study

Background Previous studies have shown that dietary patterns are associated with health outcomes in Chinese middle-aged and older adults. However, whether dietary patterns are associated with Klemera-Doubal biological age (KDM-BA) and physiological dysregulation (PD) remains unclear. Methods This cross-sectional study included 4,846 adults aged 45 years and older from the 2009 wave of the China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS). Three dietary patterns were derived using principal component analysis based on energy-adjusted food group intakes (g/1,000 kcal): Southern pattern, Western-like pattern, and Plant-rich pattern. KDM-BA acceleration and PD were calculated from routine clinical biomarkers. Linear regression models were used to examine the associations between dietary pattern scores and the two aging measures. Restricted cubic spline regression was applied to evaluate potential non-linear dose-response relationships. Results The Southern and Western-like patterns were inversely associated with KDM-BA acceleration (β = −0.47, 95% CI: −0.70, −0.24; P < 0.001 for the Southern pattern; β = −0.50, 95% CI: −0.74, −0.26; P < 0.001 for the Western-like pattern), whereas the Plant-rich pattern showed a positive association (β = 0.23, 95% CI: 0.01, 0.46; P = 0.043). For PD, only the Southern pattern was positively associated (β = 0.02, 95% CI: 0.01, 0.03; P < 0.001). Restricted cubic spline analysis revealed a non-linear relationship between the Western-like pattern and KDM-BA acceleration (P for non-linearity = 0.027), whereas the other two patterns were approximately linear. Conclusions Dietary patterns were differentially associated with KDM-BA acceleration and PD. These findings suggest that specific dietary patterns are associated with healthy aging in Chinese middle-aged and older adults.

Dietary exposures and age at natural menopause: Evidence from the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging.

OBJECTIVE To examine whether ultra-processed food (UPF) intake and adherence to the Prospective Urban Rural Epidemiological (PURE) Healthy Diet Score are associated with age at natural menopause (ANM) among Canadian participants. METHODS This longitudinal cohort study used data from 1972 biological females aged ≥45 years who were premenopausal at baseline in the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging (CLSA). Dietary intake was assessed using the Short Diet Questionnaire (SDQ). UPF intake was estimated using the Nova framework and expressed as times/day, while diet quality was assessed using the PURE Healthy Diet Score (0-28). Cox proportional hazards models estimated associations between dietary exposures and time to natural menopause, adjusting for sociodemographic, lifestyle, and reproductive covariates. RESULTS Over a mean follow-up of 4.08 ± 1.93 years, 1148 participants experienced natural menopause. In unadjusted analyses, a higher PURE Healthy Diet Score was associated with a shorter time to menopause (hazard ratio [HR] 1.013; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.001, 1.025), whereas UPF intake was not significantly associated with menopause timing. After adjustment for sociodemographic, lifestyle, and reproductive factors, neither UPF intake (HR 1.024; 95% CI 0.977, 1.073) nor the PURE Healthy Diet Score (HR 1.006; 95% CI 0.986, 1.025) was independently associated with time to natural menopause. Results were consistent in sensitivity analyses. CONCLUSIONS In this longitudinal cohort, UPF intake and the PURE Healthy Diet Score were not independently associated with menopause timing. These findings suggest that menopause timing may reflect cumulative life-course influences more strongly than dietary exposures measured in midlife.

Correlating Dietary Patterns and Cognitive Function in Adults: A Study from Iraq

Background and aims: Cognitive function is a multifaceted construct shaped by intrinsic and lifestyle-related factors. Emerging research highlights diet, sleep, and physical activity as critical determinants of cognitive health across the lifespan. However, evidence for physical activity remains mixed, with some studies reporting null associations depending on population and methodology. Acknowledging such null findings is essential for a balanced interpretation of lifestyle-cognition relationships. Limited data exist on young adult populations in Middle Eastern countries. Therefore, this study was designed as an exploratory, hypothesis-generating investigation examining associations between dietary habits, lifestyle factors, and self-reported cognitive function among adults. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 172 adults aged ≥18 years using a structured questionnaire to assess demographics, dietary behaviors, and lifestyle factors. Cognitive performance was evaluated using the Perceived Deficits Questionnaire (PDQ-20), a validated self-reported measure of cognitive difficulties. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 26, with significance set at p <0.05. Results: The majority of participants (94.2%) exhibited good cognitive performance according to PDQ-20. Higher fast-food consumption was significantly associated with elevated PDQ-20 scores (p = 0.017), indicating poorer cognition. More frequent protein intake (p = 0.019) and optimal sleep duration (7-8 hours) (p = 0.022) were associated with better cognitive outcomes. Chronic medical conditions, especially depression and cardiovascular disease, were strongly associated with higher PDQ-20 scores (p = 0.002). No significant associations were observed with physical activity, water intake, smoking status, alcohol consumption, or adherence to specific dietary regimens. Conclusion: While most participants demonstrated good cognitive performance, the observed associations between dietary patterns, sleep duration, and cognitive function underscore the potential influence of modifiable behaviors on brain health. These findings should be considered exploratory, and further studies with larger, more representative samples are warranted to confirm and extend these results.

Longitudinal association between dietary quality trajectories and cognitive frailty in older adults: a 12-year study of the TIGER cohort.

Healthy Eating Index-2020 and post-stroke depression (PSD): cross-sectional analysis of NHANES data.

HEI-2020 was inversely associated with PSD, with nonlinear and race-specific patterns and DI-GM showed a significant but inconsistent indirect association, suggesting a suppressive rather than mediating role.

Prospective associations of diet quality and device-measured physical activity with midlife cognitive function: evidence from the 1970 British cohort study.

BACKGROUND Physical activity (PA) is a widely recognised modifiable risk factor for cognitive health. The role of diet and their combined associations on cognition in midlife remains unclear. We assessed the additive and interactive associations of moderate-to-vigorous PA (MVPA) and diet quality on cognition in midlife. METHODS At age 46, participants from the 1970 British Cohort Study wore activPAL accelerometers for 1 week and completed the Oxford WebQ dietary questionnaire, from which the Pyramid-Based Mediterranean Diet Score (PyrMDS) was derived. Global cognitive z-scores were derived from standardised tests of processing speed, verbal memory and fluency at age 46 and 51. Multivariate linear regression examined independent and mutually adjusted associations between MVPA and PyrMDS at age 46 with cognitive z-scores at both timepoints. Combined MVPA-PyrMDS tertiles and interaction terms were also tested. RESULTS In a sample of n=3028 (55% female), mean MVPA was 52±25 min/day and mean PyrMDS was 6.31±1.65. In mutually adjusted models at age 51, only PyrMDS was associated with global cognitive z-scores after covariate adjustment (per hour MVPA: β=0.228, 95% CI -0.026 to 0.481; per point PyrMDS: β=0.045, 95% CI 0.025 to 0.065). In combined analyses, PyrMDS was associated with better age 51 global cognitive z-scores irrespective of MVPA (high-PyrMDS:low-MVPA vs low-PyrMDS:low-MVPA: β=0.185, 95% CI 0.046 to 0.325). No interactions were observed. CONCLUSION Diet quality demonstrated prospective associations with better cognition independently of MVPA, with associations remaining more consistent than for PA after adjustment of confounders. Diet quality may represent an under-recognised lifestyle target for cognitive health.