In Culinarily speaking, red meat refers to any meat that has a reddish or pinkish color. in a raw state But from a nutritional perspective, the term “red meat” refers specifically to that which comes from a mammal.
This food group includes daily consumer products in Spainas is the case with the different parts of the pig or beef, but also includes lamb, goat or ox. The term red meat also includes sausages made from the above-mentioned mammals.
Processed red meat
To eat Red meat increases the risk of dementia in old age. This is the general conclusion of a study published by American researchers who analyzed a huge sample of more than 130,000 people over a period of 43 years to compare their levels of consumption of this type of drug. processed meat and not processed with the occurrence of dementia symptoms associated with pathologies such as Alzheimer’s.
This is the largest study to date linking these foods to cognitive health, but the results add to other previous work that impact of its consumption on metabolic disorders and diseases such as cancer.
The authors, from Brigham and Women’s Hospital, the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health and the Broad Institute, took advantage of the vast amount of data emerging from two large long-term health studies: the Health Study of Nurses, that evaluates risk factors for diseases in women, and the Follow-up research of health professionalswhich analyzes the impact of nutrition on the health of healthcare workers.
With these two sources they have one registration of 133,771 people with an average age of 49 years at the beginning of a follow-up interval of more than four decades. A total of 11,173 people were diagnosed with dementia during this period.
In addition to collecting several other health data, the participants completed a questionnaire every two to four years about their eating habits, which the researchers used to classify the population analyzed. based on your meat consumption in number of portions per day (a portion was defined as a portion of approximately 85 grams, approximately the size of a deck of cards). In the case of processed meats, the authors equate this amount to two slices of bacon, a hot dog or one and a half slices of bologna.
An increase in risk
Once the possible influences of factors other than the relevant ones are taken into account, such as family history of dementia, socio-economic level and others, the results show that those who eat at least a quarter portion per day – or about two portions per day – week – have a 13% higher risk of developing dementia than those who consume less of one-tenth of a daily ration, or three rations per month.
This refers to the dementia diagnosed during the study periodbut also a group of 17,458 participants, consisting exclusively of women with an average age of 74 years, was subjected to various objective tests to assess memory and reasoning skills. In this case, the researchers found that increasing a daily portion of meat is associated with accelerated mental decline for more than 1.6 years.
However, the study published in the magazine Neurology found no noticeable differences in dementia diagnoses or test scores between those who eat little or a lot of unprocessed red meat, including the researchers beef, pork, lamb and burgers. But to go even deeper into the risk analysis and investigate less observable effects, the authors had the participants themselves, a large group of 43,966 people with an average age of 78, report their mental state.
Indicators of a subtle decline
“Subjective cognitive decline refers to what the person self-reports about recent changes in their cognitive skills or memory,” the study’s first author Yuhan Li explained to SINC. “This is often considered an early indicator of possible future cognitive defects or dementia.” So, Li specifies, these reports are from the subjects themselves can reveal a subtle decline this is not yet observable with objective diagnostic methods.
In this case, the researchers did find a restriction associated with eating unprocessed red meat, with a 16% increased risk in those who ate one serving or more per day, compared to those who ate just half a serving or less. In Regarding the consumption of processed meat, self-assessment questionnaires showed that the risk was increased by 14% in the highest intake group.
Red meat and processed foods have been a concern for experts for years because of their relationship with… metabolic disorders such as type 2 diabeteswith cardiovascular disease and cancer. In 2015, the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer placed processed meat in group 1 of the highest risk factors for cancer, while red meat was placed in the immediately lower risk group, 2A. But the link between these foods and brain decline is a mystery; As Li and colleagues write, “previous studies have shown inconsistent associations between red meat intake and cognitive health.”
Biological connection between intestines and brain
However, for a link between risk factors and diseases to be credible, a biological link must be found. And in this case it exists. The relationship between the digestive system and the nervous system has been strengthened in recent times what is known as the gut-brain axisa pathway that could be the cause of several neurological disorders in the digestive tract, to the extent that a possible involvement of intestinal bacteria in Alzheimer’s disease has been suggested.
“Our results may strengthen the idea that the gut-brain axis plays a role in the development of dementia-related diseases,” says Li. The researcher explains that red meat contains carnitine, a substance that… intestinal bacteria convert it into another so-called trimethylamine oxide (TMAO) that could be involved in accelerated cognitive decline, to which is added a possible contribution from saturated fats and the salt content of red meat.
In conclusion, the authors’ message is clear: “Reduce the amount of red meat a person eats and replacing them with other protein sources and plant-based options could be incorporated into dietary guidelines to promote cognitive health,” says research director Dong Wang.
The results also quantified this benefit: replacing a daily serving of processed red meat with another serving of nuts and legumes reduces the risk by 19% and cognitive aging by 1.37 years, while fish reduces the risk by 28% and chicken by 16 % decreases. “We are convinced that our results are a starting point More attention to the link between nutrition and brain health”, concludes Wang.