Adding 50 grams of unprocessed red meat a day can reduce the chance of developing dementia by 19%

With the gradual increase in the level of aging in my country, the incidence of age-related diseases has increased, especially Alzheimer's disease.

According to data, there are about 50 million people with Alzheimer's disease worldwide, and about 10 million new cases are diagnosed every year.

Alzheimer's disease accounts for 50% to 70%, and dementia accounts for about 25%.

Its onset and progression are related to genetic and environmental factors, including diet and lifestyle.

Many studies have shown that diet is a controllable factor, and bad eating habits may increase the risk of Alzheimer's disease.

Recently, scientists from the University of Leeds Nutritional Epidemiology Expert Group confirmed through data of nearly 500,000 people that the risk of dementia is increased by 44% by consuming an extra 25 grams of processed red meat a day.

However, ingestion of some unprocessed red meats, such as beef, pork or veal, can play a protective role.
Adding 50 grams of unprocessed red meats per day, including beef, pork or beef, can cause dementia Chance is reduced by 19%.

In this study, the researchers collected genetic and health information from 493,888 participants in the UK Biobank between the ages of 40 and 69 from 2006 to 2010, and explored the relationship between meat consumption and the occurrence and development of dementia.

When recruiting, the researchers used a short diet questionnaire and repeated 24-hour diets to assess the participants' meat consumption.

Through electronic records in the hospital, the risk of dementia including Alzheimer's disease (AD) and dementia (VD) was determined.

In addition, the Cox model estimates the risk ratio (HR) of each type of meat to dementia, and also explores the interaction between meat consumption and the apolipoprotein E (APOE) ε4 allele.

The results showed that among the included 493888 participants, the average follow-up time was 8 years, and 2896 all-cause dementia events occurred, including 1,006 cases of AD and 490 cases of VD.

People with all-cause dementia events are generally older, poorer financially, less educated, more likely to smoke, less physical activity, more likely to have a history of stroke and family dementia, and more men are diagnosed with dementia For women.

Those who consume more processed meat are more likely to be male, less educated, smoker, overweight or obese, have lower intake of vegetables and fruits, and consume energy, protein, and fat (including saturated fat) The amount is higher.

The study further found that adding 25g of processed meat per day is associated with an increased risk of all-cause dementia events (HR: 1.
44) and AD (HR: 1.
52).

In contrast, adding 50g of unprocessed red meat per day is associated with a reduced risk of all-cause dementia (HR: 0.
81) and AD (HR: 0.
70).

However, the linear trend in the total amount of unprocessed poultry and meat is not significant.

Although genetic factors can increase the risk of dementia by 3 to 6 times, the results of the study show that regardless of whether a person is genetically susceptible or not, the risk of dementia by diet is the same.

In short, the incidence of dementia is increasing worldwide, and diet as an adjustable factor may play a role.

There is increasing evidence linking the consumption of processed meat to the increased risk of a series of non-communicable diseases.

In the future, more research is needed to prove the relationship between diet and health.

Reference Huifeng Zhang et al, Meat consumption and risk of incident dementia: cohort study of 493,888 UK Biobank participants, The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (2021).
DOI: 10.
1093/ajcn/nqab028