United States: What you eat could be shaping your brain health in ways you never imagined. New studies show that a diet high in sugar and saturated fat can fuel inflammation in the brain, which can potentially leading to brain cell damage and a higher risk of dementia. But it doesn’t stop there—recent research reveals that regular consumption of red meat, mainly processed varieties, may raise your risk of cognitive decline even more than occasional indulgence. 

“It is rich in saturated fats and well-established earlier clinical research has linked it to the also the type of risk of type 2 diabetes and heart diseases both of which are related to worse brain health, “Study author Dr. Dong Wang of Brigham and Women’s Hospital said. 

As reported by the nypost, “This is us, we examined processed red meat and our study suggested that it can cause an increased risk of getting a dementia disease but at the same time, we said that but by replacing that red processed meat with nuts, fish and poultry, one’s risk is reduced.” 

Unprocessed red meat in the research of the researchers include beef, pork, lamb and hamburger. 

The red meats have been soaked in salt or cured, smoked or even chemically preserved in order to have long durable shelf life. Bacon, hot dogs, sausages, salami, bologna and similar products were emphasised with regard to this research. 

Looking at the results of the three-fold study into the relationship between red meat intake and loss of cognitive function as published Wednesday in the online journal Neurology, official publication of the American Academy of Neurology. 

Dementia 

Dementia is the gradual decline in memory, attention and ability to make rational decisions. A study this week put the dementia prevalence rate after the age of 55 at 42 percent of American population. 

Researchers of the new study identified almost 134,000 adults free from dementia at the start of the research and then followed them for as long as 43 years. A little more than like actually 11,000 participants who assessed as having dementia. 

Consumers of processed red meats who were actually grouped into low consumers, which consumed less than 0.10 servings per day who are moderate consumers, which are totally consumed between 0.10 to 0.24 servings per day and high consumers which consumed 0.25 or more servings per day. 

To preserve portion control when consuming red meat, a serving is 3 ounces, the size of your palm. 

Compared with consuming less than half a serving per day, researchers did not observed the risk of dementia changed when participants consuming unprocessed red meat.