Neurodegenerative

Brain responses to intermittent fasting and the healthy living diet in older adults.

Cell metabolismAugust 6, 2024

View on PubMed DOI: 10.1016/j.cmet.2024.05.017

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This 8-week randomized clinical trial compared 5:2 intermittent fasting with a healthy living diet in 40 cognitively intact older adults with insulin resistance. The study suggests both dietary approaches offer comparable benefits for brain health optimization. Researchers found that while intermittent fasting induced greater weight loss, both diets similarly improved insulin signaling in brain cells, reduced the estimated pace of brain aging on MRI scans, and decreased brain glucose levels. Both interventions also enhanced blood markers of carbohydrate and lipid metabolism. Regarding cognitive function, the study found that both diets improved executive function and memory, though intermittent fasting showed greater benefits for certain cognitive measures. The researchers noted that individual factors including sex, body mass index, and specific genetic variants influenced how participants responded to each diet. The study provides a framework for evaluating how dietary interventions affect brain health and suggests further research is warranted to optimize nutrition protocols for cognitive wellness in older adults.

Key Findings

Both 5:2 intermittent fasting and healthy living diet comparably improved insulin signaling biomarkers in brain cells and reduced brain-age-gap estimates on MRI
Intermittent fasting induced greater weight loss compared to the healthy living diet approach
Both dietary interventions improved executive function and memory, with intermittent fasting showing additional benefits for certain cognitive measures
Individual factors including sex, body mass index, and genetic variants (apolipoprotein E and SLC16A7) influenced how participants responded to each diet

Abstract

Diet may promote brain health in metabolically impaired older individuals. In an 8-week randomized clinical trial involving 40 cognitively intact older adults with insulin resistance, we examined the effects of 5:2 intermittent fasting and the healthy living diet on brain health. Although intermittent fasting induced greater weight loss, the two diets had comparable effects in improving insulin signaling biomarkers in neuron-derived extracellular vesicles, decreasing the brain-age-gap estimate (reflecting the pace of biological aging of the brain) on magnetic resonance imaging, reducing brain glucose on magnetic resonance spectroscopy, and improving blood biomarkers of carbohydrate and lipid metabolism, with minimal changes in cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers for Alzheimer's disease. Intermittent fasting and healthy living improved executive function and memory, with intermittent fasting benefiting more certain cognitive measures. In exploratory analyses, sex, body mass index, and apolipoprotein E and SLC16A7 genotypes modulated diet effects. The study provides a blueprint for assessing brain effects of dietary interventions and motivates further research on intermittent fasting and continuous diets for brain health optimization. For further information, please see ClinicalTrials.gov registration: NCT02460783.

Authors

Dimitrios Kapogiannis, Apostolos Manolopoulos, Roger Mullins, Konstantinos Avgerinos, Francheska Delgado-Peraza, Maja Mustapic, Carlos Nogueras-Ortiz, Pamela J Yao, Krishna A Pucha, Janet Brooks, Qinghua Chen, Shalaila S Haas, Ruiyang Ge, Lisa M Hartnell, Mark R Cookson, Josephine M Egan, Sophia Frangou, Mark P Mattson

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Study Details

Health Domain: Neurodegenerative
Journal: Cell metabolism
Published: August 6, 2024
Authors: 18
Key Findings: 4

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Morning Sunlight Exposure PubMed DOI

Disclaimer: This research summary is for informational purposes only. Always consult the original study and qualified healthcare professionals before making any health decisions based on research findings.

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