Diet Patterns Featuring Western-Style and Low-Preparation Foods Differentially Relate to Cognitive Function in Early Childhood From the STRONG Kids 2 Birth Cohort Study

Current Developments in Nutrition · 2025-06-19

<h2>Abstract</h2><h3>Background</h3> Dietary intake in early life is implicated in cognitive development. <h3>Objective</h3> The present study investigated how diet patterns derived at 2, 3 and 4 years-old relate to executive functions and early cognitive and academic skills using data from the longitudinal STRONG Kids2 cohort. <h3>Methods</h3> The Behavioral Inventory of Executive Functions Preschool caregiver survey was used to assess executive functions in 2 and 4 years-olds. A sub-sample of children completed a modified Eriksen flanker to measure attentional inhibition, a hearts and flowers switch task to assess cognitive flexibility and the Woodcock Johnson Early Cognitive and Academic Development tests to assess academic abilities during preschool ages (between 4 and 6 years-old). Block Food Frequency Questionnaire items were grouped into 23 food groups, and dietary patterns were derived using principal component and confirmatory factor analyses. Three diet patterns were derived at each age (2, 3, 4 years-old); children were not assigned to a specific diet pattern, but rather had three different diet pattern scores that were used for analyses. Diet pattern scores were used as predictors of executive functions at 2- (n=217) and 4 years-old (n=250-266), as well as attentional inhibition (n=53-56) and cognitive flexibility (n=50-59) tasks and cognitive (n=65-71) and academic (n=55-57) scores in preschooler sub-sample. <h3>Results</h3> Diets with higher intake of processed meats, sweets, and fried foods at 3-years-old was related to lower Woodcock Johnson scores (all β>-.351, FDR-adjusted <i>p</i>-value=0.028), while those with higher intakes of grains, nuts/seeds, and condiments at 2 years was related to greater incongruent Flanker accuracy (β=.380, ΛR²=.132, FDR-adjusted <i>p</i>-value=0.030). Diet patterns from 2 to 4 years-old were related to academic achievement and attentional inhibition; however, these associations were not independent of diet pattern at time of cognitive assessments. <h3>Conclusion</h3> This study emphasizes the potential value of exploring early diet interventions aimed at improving dietary patterns to support cognitive development.

Vascular Roads to a Healthier Brain: Lutein Moderates the Influence of Arterial Stiffness on Cognitive Function

Journal of Nutrition · 2025-09-03 · 3 citations

Effects of Soluble Corn Fiber Consumption on Executive Functions and Gut Microbiota in Middle to Older Age Adults: A Randomized Controlled Crossover Trial

medRxiv · 2025-06-13 · 1 citations

Abstract Background Dietary fiber may support cognition through gastrointestinal-microbiota mechanisms, but clinical evidence is limited. Objectives We aimed to determine whether soluble corn fiber (SCF) improved cognition and altered fecal microbiota and fermentation end products in adults. Methods In a randomized, double-blind, crossover trial, 42 healthy adults (45-75y) consumed SCF (18g/d) or a maltodextrin placebo control (CON: 22g/d) for 4 weeks, separated by a washout. Cognitive outcomes included executive function with event-related potentials, relational memory, neuropsychological performance, and mood. Secondary outcomes included fecal microbiota, metabolomics, and gastrointestinal tolerance. Tertiary analyses related microbial and metabolite changes to cognitive improvements using correlation, mediation, and moderation models, and explored SCF fermentation pathways with 16S-predicted functional profiling, shotgun metagenomics and in vitro culturing. Results SCF improved reaction times (RT) during congruent (β = -9.8 ms, 95% CI: [-18.4, -1.2], FDR P = 0.01) and incongruent (β = -14.2 ms, 95% CI: [-22.8, -5.6], FDR P = 0.003) flanker trials and increased Parabacteroides (∼4-fold, β = 1.44 log, 95% CI [1.01, 1.88], FDR P &lt; 0.001). At the SCF endpoint, congruent RT tended to be inversely associated with fecal acetate (ρ = -0.33) and propionate (ρ = -0.36), while Parabacteroides was marginally positively associated with acetate (ρ = 0.34) (all FDR P &lt; 0.1). Moderation analyses indicated that SCF-RT relation varied by Parabacteroides magnitude change. At endpoint, SCF increased predicted functional potential of carbohydrate-related KOs and pathways (FDR P &lt; 0.05). In vitro culturing confirmed P. distasonis ferments SCF. Conclusion SCF consumption improved attentional inhibition, altered the gut microbiota, and selectively enriched Parabacteroides . Although mediation analyses did not support a direct microbiota-to-cognition pathway, moderation analyses suggested that SCF-related cognitive effects may depend in part on Parabacteroides abundance. Collectively, these findings suggest that certain cognitive benefits of SCF consumption may be partly underpinned by the gut microbiota.

Neuroelectric indices of inhibitory control are related to arterial stiffness

Research Square · 2025-09-18

Neuroelectric Indices Of Inhibitory Control Are Related To Arterial Stiffness In Healthy Adults

Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise · 2025-09-16

The prevalence of obesity has increased over the past decade, with nearly half of U.S. adults predicted to be affected. Alongside excess adiposity, other physiological factors, such as arterial stiffness, may contribute to cognitive impairments but remain poorly understood. PURPOSE: This study examined the relationship between arterial stiffness and inhibitory control in a healthy adult population. METHODS: Arterial stiffness was assessed in a cross-sectional sample of 66 adults (Mage: 39.4 ± 17.0 years) via carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (average cfPWV; 6.41 ± 1.23 m/s) using applanation tonometry. Behavioral and neuroelectric indices of inhibitory control were assessed using the modified Eriksen flanker, Go, and NoGo paradigms. Neuroelectric activity was recorded during all three paradigms, with a specific focus on the P3 and N2 event related potential (ERP) components. The relationship between arterial stiffness and cognitive outcomes of attentional and response inhibition were analyzed with stepwise linear regression modeling, while controlling for age, sex, education level, and body fat percentage. RESULTS: After adjusting for covariates, higher cfPWV was significantly associated with poorer attentional inhibition, as shown by delayed P3 peak latency in the incongruent condition of the modified flanker task (β = 0.04, R2 = 0.25, p = 0.04). Higher cfPWV was also linked to reduced response inhibition, with significant associations observed in N2 amplitude modulations during the Go task, including N2 mean amplitude (β = 0.306, R2 = 0.36, p = 0.04) and N2 peak amplitude (β = 0.330, R2 = 0.16, p = 0.03). Additionally, average cfPWV was significantly associated with N2 mean amplitude modulation for the NoGo task (β = 0.229, R2 = 0.18, p = 0.037). CONCLUSION: These findings underscore the complex relationship between arterial stiffness and cognitive function. Aside from aging and adiposity, the reduction in the elasticity of arterial walls and other pulsatile hemodynamics, for instance peripheral pulse pressure may reduce cerebral blood flow perfusion. Further research is warranted to clarify the mechanisms linking pulse wave velocity to cognitive functioning.

P3 Event-Related Potential Characteristics Reflect Large-Scale Between-Network Functional Connectivity During Cognitive Control

2025-11-14

Objective: The P3 event-related potential (ERP) is a widely-used marker of attentional and cognitive control, yet its relationship to large-scale network dynamics remains unclear. We examined whether P3 amplitude and latency characteristics during flanker task performance are associated with source-space functional connectivity patterns, and whether these relationships are modulated by conflict processing demands. Methods: We analyzed baseline electroencephalography (EEG) data from 255 healthy adults who performed a modified Eriksen flanker task. P3 mean amplitude and peak latency were extracted from centro-parietal electrodes. Source-space functional connectivity was computed to later extract within-network and between-network connectivity measures, derived from amplitude-coupling matrices. Relationships between P3 quartiles and connectivity were tested using an ANCOVA, controlling for age and body mass index, with post-hoc Holm-Bonferroni corrections. Results: P3 characteristics were significantly associated with between-network functional connectivity but not within-network connectivity. Lower P3 amplitude was associated with significantly higher between-network connectivity during both congruent (F=3.88, p=0.010) and incongruent trials (F=5.77, p&lt;0.001), with stronger effects during conflict processing. P3 peak latency showed an inverted-U relationship with between-network connectivity in both conditions (congruent: F=7.13, p&lt;0.001; incongruent: F=6.98, p&lt;0.001), where intermediate latencies corresponded to maximal connectivity. Network-specific analyses revealed that these effects were most prominent in sensory-limbic integration during congruent processing and frontoparietal-limbic coordination during conflict, highlighting the role of distributed control and salience systems. Conclusion: P3 characteristics systematically reflect the degree of functional integration across large-scale brain networks during cognitive control, with specific involvement of sensory, limbic, and frontoparietal systems. These findings suggest that P3 reflects distributed network dynamics rather than isolated neural generators, supporting a task-evoked reconfiguration framework. This network-level perspective of the P3 may inform the development of more mechanistic biomarkers for cognitive control deficits and guide interventions targeting specific network interactions.

Feasibility of a MIND Diet Protocol with Remote Meal Delivery: A Randomized Controlled Pilot Trial

Current Developments in Nutrition · 2025-05-01

Objectives: While the Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay (MIND) may reduce dementia risk in older adults, randomized controlled trials (RCT) assessing the effects of the MIND in middle age are limited. This pilot study assessed the feasibility and acceptability of a remotely delivered MIND intervention and explored its effects on nutrition status, cardiometabolic risk, and cognitive function compared to a control.

Effects of soy foods on urinary sex steroid excretion and metabolic and cognitive health: The plants optimizing development study (PODS) protocol

Contemporary Clinical Trials · 2025-10-24

Middle-school students who consumed school breakfast perform better on tasks assessing cognitive flexibility and executive function

Nutrition Research · 2025-11-20

Skin and Macular Carotenoids in Relation to Brain Structure and Function in School-Aged Children

Journal of Nutrition · 2025-10-13 · 1 citations