A new study brings to light a worrying figure: Even a small addition of ultra-processed food to the daily menu could raise the risk of cognitive decline and dementia, even among those who strictly adhere to a healthy, plant-rich diet.
According to the study, increasing the consumption of ultra-processed foods by just 10% a day, equivalent to a small bag of snacks, was linked to an increase in the risk of dementia and harm to attention capabilities. These are foods that undergo significant industrial processing, contain additives, food colorings, flavorings, and stabilizers, and are often rich in sugar, salt, and fat.
The study, conducted among more than 2,100 participants aged 40 to 70, found that as the consumption of processed food increases, a decrease is recorded in the ability to concentrate and the speed of processing information. These capabilities are considered fundamental to brain functioning and affect learning, problem-solving, and memory.
According to the researchers, every 10% increase in ultra-processed food consumption was accompanied by a measurable decrease in cognitive function and an increase in the index predicting dementia risk over a 20–year period. However, it is important to emphasize that this is a statistical correlation and not proof of cause and effect.
It also emerges that even adherence to a Mediterranean diet did not completely neutralize the negative effect, suggesting that the problem is not only in what is replaced in the menu, but in the actual processing level of the food itself.
Experts explain that ultra-processed foods are poor in essential nutritional components, and could affect various systems in the body. Among other things, they have been linked to changes in the hormonal system, harm to the gut microbiome, and an increase in risk factors such as diabetes, hypertension, obesity, and high cholesterol, all of which are also linked to a decline in brain functioning.
The encouraging news is that the risk can be reduced. Additional studies found that a gradual transition to natural and less processed food over several years may reduce the risk of cognitive decline. A dietary change in middle age was also found to be particularly significant, since this is a critical stage where risk factors can be influenced before brain damage appears.
The bottom line: Not only what one eats is important, but also how much the food has been processed. Even a small addition of industrialized food to the daily menu could affect brain health in the long term, and therefore the recommendation is clear, to prefer natural, whole, and home–cooked food as much as possible.
