How many eggs should you eat per week to lower the risk of dementia?

 Or is your doctor incompetently stuck in the past and still blames cholesterol in your bloodstream from eating eggs?

How many eggs should you eat per week to lower the risk of dementia?

Eggs are one of the most common foods in the world. Some people start their morning with them, others incorporate them into a salad or a quick dinner, and for years they have stood at the center of countless nutritional debates. Once warned against for their cholesterol, later praised for their protein and nutritional value, a new study now places them once again at the center of attention, this time in the context of brain health.

A large–scale study published recently found an intriguing link between egg consumption and a reduced risk of cognitive decline in older age. Researchers tracked tens of thousands of participants over a period of years and discovered that even a relatively moderate consumption of eggs was associated with a significant advantage.

The study was based on data from more than 39 thousand people aged 65 and older who participated in the large Adventist Health Study 2 in the United States. Throughout the years, participants were asked about their dietary habits, including the frequency of eating eggs, and the researchers tracked their health status for an average of about 15 years.

When the researchers compared the eating habits with the medical diagnoses that developed later, they identified a clear trend: People who ate eggs regularly had a lower risk of developing significant cognitive decline.

 According to the data, even eating eggs only once to three times a month was associated with a 17 percent decrease in risk. Among those who ate eggs two to four times a week, a 20 percent decrease was observed, while among those who ate eggs at least five times a week, a 27 percent decrease was observed.

Why eggs specifically?

According to the researchers, eggs contain several nutritional components that are particularly important for brain activity.

One of the central ones among them is choline, a substance that the body uses to produce acetylcholine: A neurotransmitter with a central role in memory, learning, and attention. Previous studies have already shown that people suffering from cognitive decline often have lower levels of acetylcholine and damage to the cells that produce it.

One hard–boiled egg contains about 27 percent of the recommended daily intake of choline, making it one of the richest dietary sources of this component.

Beyond that, eggs also contain antioxidants such as lutein and zeaxanthin. These are natural pigments that are also found in green vegetables and corn, and are considered substances that may assist in reducing inflammation and oxidative stress in neural tissues.

In addition, eggs provide omega–3 and phospholipids: Healthy fats that support cell structure and the capacity for communication between nerve cells.

Not only eggs: What else is important for the brain?

Experts emphasize that there is no single magic food that can guarantee a healthy brain over the years. Numerous studies indicate that a Mediterranean–style diet, based on vegetables, fruits, legumes, fish, olive oil, and whole grains, is associated with better preservation of brain functions. Dietary patterns such as DASH and MIND have also been linked in recent years to a lower risk of cognitive decline and dementia.

But diet is only part of the picture. Regular physical activity, quality sleep, social activity, intellectual stimulation, and stress reduction are all considered important factors in maintaining brain health over the years.

So how many eggs is it really advisable to eat? Nutrition experts explain that for most healthy people, eating eggs in moderation is considered safe and can even be part of a balanced and healthy menu.

In recent years, many health organizations have already moved away from the old approach that warned against eggs sweepingly, especially when they are consumed as part of a balanced diet.

However, people with certain heart diseases, particularly high cholesterol, or other medical conditions still need to consult a doctor or a dietitian regarding the amount that is appropriate for them.

Meanwhile, the new study adds another layer to the scientific debate surrounding one of the simplest and most popular foods in the world: It serves as a reminder that even our small habits in the kitchen may have a long–term impact on health.

A Common Breakfast Food May Support Brain Health As You Age — What The Research Shows by mindbodygreen

 Did you get any eggs at all in the hospital? And are they included in your diet protocol? Oh NO, you incompetently didn't get a diet protocol!

Do you prefer your doctor, hospital and board of director's incompetence NOT KNOWING? OR NOT DOING? Your choice; let them be incompetent or demand action!

A Common Breakfast Food May Support Brain Health As You Age — What The Research Shows

Eggs are a breakfast staple for many (well, they work for any meal really). While they've been vilified in the past for their cholesterol levels (although now we know that dietary cholesterol isn't a key driver of unfavorable cholesterol levels), they are also a quality source of protein, choline, healthy fats, and vitamin D. These are all nutrients crucial for health aging.

Now, a large cohort study¹ following nearly 40,000 adults for over 15 years found that people who ate eggs regularly had a significantly lower risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. Here's what you need to know.

About the study

For this study, researchers wanted to know whether regular egg consumption might be associated with lower dementia risk over time. They analyzed data from the Adventist Health Study-2, tracking the dietary habits and health outcomes of 39,782 adults over an average of 15.6 years. Participants reported how often they ate eggs, and researchers followed up to see who developed Alzheimer's disease.

They thought that consuming eggs would lower risk because of the food's choline content. Choline is a nutrient that plays a critical role in brain function.

It's a precursor to acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter involved in memory and learning, and it supports the structural integrity of cell membranes. Eggs are one of the richest most efficient sources of choline in the diet, and there just aren't a lot of sources. Other sources include organ meats (with only moderate amounts found in more commonly consumed cuts of meat and poultry).

Despite its importance, most Americans don't get enough choline from their diets.

Results showed a lower Alzheimer's risk with regular egg intake

The results showed that the more frequently people ate eggs, the lower their Alzheimer's risk tended to be. Compared to those who rarely or never ate eggs, participants who consumed eggs at least once a week had up to 27% lower liklihood of developing Alzheimer's disease. Even modest intake (1–3 eggs per month) was associated with some degree of reduced risk.

And yes, the researchers point to choline as a likely factor. The study's mediation analysis suggested that choline intake partially explained the association between egg consumption and lower Alzheimer's risk. Eggs also provide other brain-supportive nutrients, like lutein and zeaxanthin (antioxidants that accumulate in brain tissue), vitamin B12 (essential for nerve function), and selenium (which supports antioxidant defenses).

What this study can and can't tell us

This was an observational study, so it cannot prove that eating eggs causes a reduction in Alzheimer's risk. People who eat eggs regularly may also have other healthy habits that contribute to brain health.

The study population was also unique. Participants were all Seventh-day Adventists and tend to follow health-conscious lifestyles, which may limit how broadly these findings apply. And like all dietary research, the study relied on self-reported food intake, which can be imprecise.

hat said, the large sample size, long follow-up period, and dose-response pattern all strengthen the findings.

Eggs as part of a brain-supportive eating pattern

Eggs are a versatile food, and if you like the taste of them (I know some people can't stand their texture), they are worth working into your weekly diet. Here are just a few things to keep in mind.

Aim for consistency, not excess: The benefit appeared at modest intake levels, suggesting you don't need to eat eggs daily to see potential benefits

Pair with other brain-supportive foods: Consider combining eggs with leafy greens, berries, olive oil, and legumes for a more complete cognitive-supporting eating pattern

Consider other lifestyle factors: Getting the right amount of sleep also plays a role in long-term brain health

The takeaway

This 15-year study suggests that moderate egg consumption is associated with lower Alzheimer's risk, potentially due to choline's role in brain function. While this observational research can't prove causation, it adds to growing evidence that dietary patterns rich in brain-supportive nutrients (like choline) can influence cognitive aging.

People with Alzheimer’s disease tend to be deficient in these 5 nutrients that ‘help keep brains in top condition at all ages,’ researchers say

Don't do anything with this until your competent? doctor has the nutritionist create protocol amounts for these, after testing your levels.

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Vitamin E toxicity is rare, but occasionally high doses cause a risk of bleeding, as well as muscle weakness, fatigue, nausea, and diarrhea. The greatest risk from vitamin E toxicity is bleeding. 

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What are the side effects of too much lutein?

Serious eye symptoms such as sudden vision loss, blurred vision, tunnel vision, eye pain or swelling, or seeing halos around lights; Serious heart symptoms include fast, irregular, or pounding heartbeats; fluttering in the chest; shortness of breath; sudden dizziness, lightheartedness, or passing out.

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 Luckily for those taking a zeaxanthin-based eye vitamin, there are no known toxic side effects of taking too much zeaxanthin. People with healthier vision may not need to take higher amounts of this nutrient vs. people with poor eye health

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 Lycopene is considered safe and there are no established upper limits recommended for its consumption. However, some cases of extremely high lycopene intake have led to slight skin discoloration.

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What does overuse of retinol look like?

Incorrect retinol usage can cause drying, flaking, shedding, redness, and irritation of the skin as well as exacerbated acne. Retinol will also increase skin sensitivity to UV rays

People with Alzheimer’s disease tend to be deficient in these 5 nutrients that ‘help keep brains in top condition at all ages,’ researchers say

Levels of five micronutrients are “strikingly lower” in the brains of those who have Alzheimer’s disease than in the brains of those who don’t.

That’s according to new research published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease by Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine professor C. Kathleen Dorey and a team of researchers.

Scientists analyzed the brains of 31 donors, the average age of which was 75 years. Most, but not all, had died with Alzheimer’s disease. Compared to unaffected brains, they found that brains of those with the disease had around half the level of the following micronutrients—vitamins and minerals critical to the body’s function, but needed only in small amounts:

•  Lycopene: An antioxidant that could help protect cells from damage, lycopene gives some fruits and vegetables—like tomatoes, watermelon, red oranges, pink grapefruits, apricots, and guavas—their red hue.

• Retinol: A form of Vitamin A that helps the immune system work properly, retinol helps you see in dim lighting and keeps skin healthy. It’s found in foods like cheese, eggs, oily fish, milk, yogurt, and liver. The body can convert beta-carotene into retinol, so indirect sources include yellow, red, and green leafy vegetables like spinach, carrots, sweet potatoes, and red peppers, as well as yellow fruits like mangos, papaya, and apricots.

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• Lutein: Often referred to as the “eye vitamin,” lutein is thought to protect eye tissue from sun damage. You can find it in foods like egg yolks, spinach, kale, corn, orange peppers, kiwis, grapes, zucchinis, and squash.

• Zeaxanthin: An antioxidant, zeaxanthin is known to protect eye tissues from the sun. It’s found in eggs, oranges, grapes, corn, goji berries, mango, and orange peppers.

• Vitamin E: Also an antioxidant, Vitamin E keeps free radicals in check, improves immune function, and can prevent clots from forming in the arteries of the heart. It can be found in plant-based oils, nuts, seeds, fruits, and vegetables like sunflower oil, soybean oil, almonds, peanuts, spinach, pumpkin, red bell peppers, asparagus, mangoes, and avocados. 

All five micronutrients are antioxidants, substances that may prevent or delay some cell damage. Lycopene, lutein, and zeaxanthin are also carotenoids, nutrient-rich pigments found in fruits and vegetables. Other large studies have found that the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease was “significantly lower” in those who ate diets rich in carotenoids, or who had high levels of lutein and zeaxanthin in their blood or retina, according to Dorey.

“This study, for the first time, demonstrates deficits in important dietary antioxidants in Alzheimer’s brains,” Dorey said in a news release about the study.

“We believe eating carotenoid-rich diets will help keep brains in top condition at all ages,” she added.

The results should come as no surprise. Multiple studies have found that those who follow the MIND (Mediterranean/Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension Diet Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay) diet—which emphasizes the consumption of antioxidant-rich fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, and fish, with very little meat, dairy, and sweets—had a lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease, better cognitive function prior to death, and fewer signs of Alzheimer’s disease in those who did develop the condition.

How antioxidants play a role in Alzheimer's disease

Scientists aren’t fully sure what causes the cell death and tissue loss that occurs in the brains of Alzheimer’s disease patients. But they believe it involves the buildup of amyloid plaques and “tau tangles”—both types of protein clumps—as the brain loses its ability to properly rid itself of such debris.

But multiple factors play into the disease process, Dorey and colleagues write. Other processes that potentially contribute include mitochondrial dysfunction, inflammation, and oxidative damage. Because antioxidants reduce such damage, a deficiency can make the brain more frail and thinking more challenging, and contribute to the development of Alzheimer’s disease, they assert.

Signs of Alzheimer’s disease

Those who are concerned they or a loved one might have Alzheimer’s or another form of dementia should talk to their doctor, who may recommend they see another specialist, like a neuropsychologist or a neurologist.

Warning signs of the condition, according to the AARP, include:

• Difficulty performing daily tasks like keeping track of bills and following a recipe while cooking

• Repetition, such as asking the same question over and over and telling the same story multiple times

• Struggling to find the right word

• Getting lost

• Personality changes, such as becoming more anxious, confused, afraid, or paranoid

• Confusion about time and place, especially if someone can’t remember where they are or how they got there

• Misplacing items in unusual areas

• Trouble with hygiene

• Trouble with handling money

• Sudden loss of things one is usually interested in, including family, friends, work, and social events

• Forgetting old memories

This story was originally featured on Fortune.com

Link between nutrient intake and multimorbidity risk reported in recent study, more research is needed

Ask your competent? doctor what this means and what you should be doing.

Don't do anything on your own.

Does your doctor competently have diet protocols for all the research out there on diet health?  WELL, IS YOUR DOCTOR INCOMPETENT OR NOT?  NO protocol, definitely incompetent! Guidelines or handouts don't count, you need EXACT AMOUNTS!

Readings on your own here: You can quiz your doctor on these.

• zeaxanthin (4 posts to september 2015)

• lutein (7 posts to March 2015)

• Vitamin B12 (17 posts to December 2011)

• vitamin D (64 posts to May 2012)

• vitamin C (8 posts to March 2014)

• calcium (25 posts to December 2011)

• potassium (26 posts to April 2012) 

• protein (15 posts to March 2014)

 

Link between nutrient intake and multimorbidity risk reported in recent study, more research is needed

In a recent study published in BMC Public Health, researchers explored potential associations between nutrient intake and multimorbidities.

Study: Nutrient intake and risk of multimorbidity: a prospective cohort study of 25,389 women. Image Credit: Saowanee K/Shutterstock.com

Background

Multimorbidity, or the presence of many chronic illnesses, is a worldwide health concern, particularly among older individuals. It raises the risk of early mortality, hospitalization, loss of physical function, depression, polypharmacy, and a decline in quality of life, inflicting a considerable cost load on healthcare systems.

Nutritional variables have a vital role in multimorbidity prevention. Unhealthy dietary habits like binge eating and excessive drinking might raise the risk. In the Netherlands, individuals with cardiometabolic multimorbidity eat more meat and snacks. Consuming fruits, vegetables, and whole grains can help reduce the risk. Mediterranean diets and increasing calcium and potassium intake are associated with decreased cardiometabolic multimorbidity. Lutein and zeaxanthin are potentially helpful nutrients. However, further study is needed to discover dietary therapies that reduce the multimorbidity burden.  

About the study

In the present prospective cohort study, researchers investigated the influence of dietary intake on multimorbidity risk.

The researchers analyzed the United Kingdom Women’s Cohort Study (UKWCS) data from 25,389 females aged between 35 and 69 years. The UKWCS dataset included food intake, anthropometric parameters, socioeconomic status, lifestyle habits, and health outcomes. The participants self-reported baseline chronic diseases such as hypertension, angina, coronary artery disease, stroke, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, gallstones, large intestinal polyps, and cancer.

The team excluded non-residents of England with multiple chronic diseases at baseline and missing covariate data. They used food frequency questionnaires (FFQs) from the UK for the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study to estimate daily energy and nutrient intakes. They assessed multimorbidity using Charlson comorbidity index (CCI) scores electronically linked to the Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) database through March 2019, using the International Classification of Diseases, tenth edition, Australian modification (ICD-10-AM) codes. 

The researchers assessed dietary intake using McCance & Widdowson Food Composition (fifth edition) and Food Standards Agency guidelines, adjusting for total calorie intake by nutrient density. They performed Cox proportional hazards modeling to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) for the relationships between regular nutrient intake and multimorbidity risk. They used multinomial logistic regressions to evaluate the association in the sensitivity analysis and performed a stratified assessment, considering 60 years as the threshold for age. Study covariates included age, body mass index (BMI), educational level, marital status, ethnicity, socioeconomic status (SES), and physical activity.

Results

The mean participant age was 51 years, among whom 31% (n=7,799) developed multimorbidities over a 22-year follow-up (median). Individuals with multimorbidity had a higher BMI, lower educational levels, and higher SES status and showed an increased likelihood of being single or widowed compared to their counterparts.

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Compared to the lowermost quintile, the uppermost quintile of regular calorie and protein intakes was related to 8.0% and 12% higher multimorbidity risks, respectively (hazard ratio, 1.1). Compared to the lowermost quintile, higher statistical quintiles of regular vitamin C consumption had a 10% lowered multimorbidity risk, while regular vitamin D consumption had a 10% increased multimorbidity risk. In comparison to the lowermost quintile of vitamin B12 consumption, multimorbidity risk was significantly higher in the topmost quintile (HR, 1.1). Compared with the lowermost quintile, higher quintiles of iron intake had marginally lowered multimorbidity risks.

In the sensitivity analysis, the significantly higher multimorbidity risks linearly related to higher statistical quintiles of B12 and D vitamin intakes were non-significant using multinomial logistic regressions. The team found evidence of age-modifying effects on vitamin B1 and iron intakes associated with multimorbidity risk. For iron intake, the team found an 11% to 13% lower multimorbidity risk among individuals below 60 years compared to those aged above 60 years.

Conclusions

The study findings highlighted a relationship between nutrient consumption and the risk of multimorbidity for developing preventive, diagnostic, treatment, and prognostic methods. The findings indicated that higher intakes of vitamin B12, vitamin D, protein, and energy(What is this?) may raise the risk of multimorbidity, but higher intakes of vitamin C may reduce it. It is important to note that these associations became insignificant in multinomial logistic regression. Iron consumption was adversely linked with multimorbidity risk in women aged <60 years, while there was no such association in women aged >60 years.

The study reveals that specific nutrients, notably vitamin B12, vitamin D, protein, and energy, may influence the likelihood of multimorbidity. Researchers must further investigate the optimal nutritional consumption levels for individuals with multimorbidity, and policymakers and clinical practitioners should address individualized nutrition. Additional clinical studies are necessary to determine whether dietary treatments help improve multimorbidity. More studies are needed to draw definitive conclusions.

Journal reference:

• Song, G., Li, W., Ma, Y., et al., Nutrient intake and risk of multimorbidity: a prospective cohort study of 25,389 women. BMC Public Health 24, 696 (2024). doi: https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-024-18191-9 https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12889-024-18191-9

Article Revisions

• Mar 11 2024 - Further information added to the conclusion to explain the associations found in the study
• Mar 11 2024 - Title changed to better represent the findings of the study in response to public discourse
• Mar 9 2024 - Title changed to reflect the study was only conducted on women