The Role of Nutrition and Inflammation on Cognition in High Risk Groups for Alzheimer’s Disease Open Access

Abstract

Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) is a prevalent neurodegenerative disease. Current treatments are being developed to target people at high risk for AD. Ethnicity and sex play essential roles in aggravating AD risk. Lifestyle factors, including nutrition, also contribute to risk for development of AD. Inflammation is crucial to the development of AD pathophysiology. Tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) plays a role in the cytokine cascade during an inflammatory response. Consuming a high-fat diet induces increased tissue expression of TNFα. This study investigates the relationship between nutrition, inflammation, and cognition in African American women (age: M = 59.5, SD = 8.20 [42–73 years]) at risk for developing AD. Participants were split into high-fat and low-fat groups based on total fat consumption self-reported on the Lower Mississippi Delta Nutrition Intervention Research Initiative Food Frequency Questionnaire (Delta NIRI JHS FFQ). A high-fat diet was associated with a significant 2-fold increase in TNFα (OR=2.14; 95% CI: 0.2043-22.4781) and had a significant mean difference associated with increased blood serum TNFα (p = 0.039). In addition, global cognition was higher in those who consumed a higher fat diet (p = 0.024). There was no significant difference across groups for executive function, dual-tasking, and visuospatial performance. However, visual attention and task switching ability was significantly statistically higher in those who consumed a higher fat diet (Normal range: 44.2 seconds). These results indicate that there may be multiple biological pathways involved in AD development, suggesting the need for more holistic approaches to mitigating AD-development risk. 

Table of Contents

Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………………...…1

Materials and Methods………………………………………………………………………….........2

Nutrition Data…………………………...…………………………………………………….............3

Cognitive Data………………………………….………………………………………………...........3

Statistical Analysis……………………………….……………………………………………........…4

Results…………………………………………………….………………………………….…...….......5

Discussion………………………………………………….………………………….……………........6

References………………………………………………………………………..…………………….....9

Table 1. Food Grouping Used in Dietary Pattern Analysis …………………….…………….13

Table 2 Demographic Characteristics. ………………………………………… …………....…..14

Figure 1. Total Individual Fat Score………………………………………………..……………...16

Table 3. Cognitive Performance……………………………………………………………...……..17

Figure 2. Statistically Significant Box Plots……....……………………………..……………...18

Table 4. Inflammatory Variables………………………………………………………...…….......19

About this Master's Thesis

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School	Rollins School of Public Health
Department	Environmental Health
Degree	M.P.H.
Submission	Master's Thesis
Language	English
Research Field	Environmental Sciences Health Sciences, Epidemiology Psychology, Cognitive
Keyword	Cognition Inflammation African American Executive Function Nutrition Alzheimer's Disease Tumor Necrosis Factor-Alpha
Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor	Madeleine E. Hackney, Emory University
Committee Members	William Michael Caudle, Emory University Allison A. Bay, Emory University

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