Blueberry Supplementation in Midlife for Dementia Risk Reduction
Late-life dementia typically develops over a period of many years beginning in midlife. Prevalence of metabolic disturbance also accelerates in middle age and is a prominent risk factor for dementia. Preliminary studies indicate that blueberry supplementation can improve cognitive performance and in...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-04-01
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| Series: | Nutrients |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/14/8/1619 |
| _version_ | 1797444466152308736 |
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| author | Robert Krikorian Matthew R. Skelton Suzanne S. Summer Marcelle D. Shidler Patrick G. Sullivan |
| author_facet | Robert Krikorian Matthew R. Skelton Suzanne S. Summer Marcelle D. Shidler Patrick G. Sullivan |
| author_sort | Robert Krikorian |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Late-life dementia typically develops over a period of many years beginning in midlife. Prevalence of metabolic disturbance also accelerates in middle age and is a prominent risk factor for dementia. Preliminary studies indicate that blueberry supplementation can improve cognitive performance and influence metabolism and brain function and therefore may have a role in early intervention to prevent neurodegeneration. In a randomized controlled trial, we investigated the effects of daily blueberry supplementation in a middle-aged sample of insulin-resistant participants with elevated risk for future dementia. We enrolled overweight men and women, aged 50 to 65 years, with subjective cognitive decline (SCD) and performed pre- and post-intervention assessments of cognition and metabolism and exploratory measures of peripheral mitochondrial function. We observed improved performances for the blueberry group on measures of lexical access, <i>p</i> = 0.003, and memory interference, <i>p</i> = 0.04, and blueberry-treated participants reported reduced memory encoding difficulty in daily life activities, <i>p</i> = 0.03. The blueberry-treated group also exhibited correction of peripheral hyperinsulinemia, <i>p</i> = 0.04, and a modest trend for increased mitochondrial uncoupling, <i>p</i> = 0.11. The cognitive findings indicated improved executive ability in this middle-aged sample. In addition, the changes in metabolic and bioenergetic measures imply potential mechanistic factors associated with anthocyanin and proanthocyanidin actions. The demonstration of these benefits in middle-aged individuals with insulin resistance and SCD suggests that ongoing blueberry supplementation may contribute to protection against cognitive decline when implemented early in at-risk individuals. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T13:12:01Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-dcce4f44197d42c08ea503b6958cf62a |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2072-6643 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T13:12:01Z |
| publishDate | 2022-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nutrients |
| spelling | doaj.art-dcce4f44197d42c08ea503b6958cf62a2023-11-30T21:41:10ZengMDPI AGNutrients2072-66432022-04-01148161910.3390/nu14081619Blueberry Supplementation in Midlife for Dementia Risk ReductionRobert Krikorian0Matthew R. Skelton1Suzanne S. Summer2Marcelle D. Shidler3Patrick G. Sullivan4Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Cincinnati Academic Health Center, Cincinnati, OH 45267, USADivision of Neurology, Cincinnati Children’s Research Foundation, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USABionutrition Core, Clinical Translational Research Center, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH 45229, USADepartment of Psychiatry & Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Cincinnati Academic Health Center, Cincinnati, OH 45267, USASpinal Cord & Brain Injury Research Center, Chandler College of Medicine, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506, USALate-life dementia typically develops over a period of many years beginning in midlife. Prevalence of metabolic disturbance also accelerates in middle age and is a prominent risk factor for dementia. Preliminary studies indicate that blueberry supplementation can improve cognitive performance and influence metabolism and brain function and therefore may have a role in early intervention to prevent neurodegeneration. In a randomized controlled trial, we investigated the effects of daily blueberry supplementation in a middle-aged sample of insulin-resistant participants with elevated risk for future dementia. We enrolled overweight men and women, aged 50 to 65 years, with subjective cognitive decline (SCD) and performed pre- and post-intervention assessments of cognition and metabolism and exploratory measures of peripheral mitochondrial function. We observed improved performances for the blueberry group on measures of lexical access, <i>p</i> = 0.003, and memory interference, <i>p</i> = 0.04, and blueberry-treated participants reported reduced memory encoding difficulty in daily life activities, <i>p</i> = 0.03. The blueberry-treated group also exhibited correction of peripheral hyperinsulinemia, <i>p</i> = 0.04, and a modest trend for increased mitochondrial uncoupling, <i>p</i> = 0.11. The cognitive findings indicated improved executive ability in this middle-aged sample. In addition, the changes in metabolic and bioenergetic measures imply potential mechanistic factors associated with anthocyanin and proanthocyanidin actions. The demonstration of these benefits in middle-aged individuals with insulin resistance and SCD suggests that ongoing blueberry supplementation may contribute to protection against cognitive decline when implemented early in at-risk individuals.https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/14/8/1619BMIinsulin resistancecognition |
| spellingShingle | Robert Krikorian Matthew R. Skelton Suzanne S. Summer Marcelle D. Shidler Patrick G. Sullivan Blueberry Supplementation in Midlife for Dementia Risk Reduction Nutrients BMI insulin resistance cognition |
| title | Blueberry Supplementation in Midlife for Dementia Risk Reduction |
| title_full | Blueberry Supplementation in Midlife for Dementia Risk Reduction |
| title_fullStr | Blueberry Supplementation in Midlife for Dementia Risk Reduction |
| title_full_unstemmed | Blueberry Supplementation in Midlife for Dementia Risk Reduction |
| title_short | Blueberry Supplementation in Midlife for Dementia Risk Reduction |
| title_sort | blueberry supplementation in midlife for dementia risk reduction |
| topic | BMI insulin resistance cognition |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/14/8/1619 |
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