Cutting out bacon and sausages for beans and nuts can reduce dementia risk by a fifth, study finds

SWAPPING bacon for nuts could potentially slash a person’s dementia risk, a new research revealed.

US scientists found that replacing one serving of processed red meat with a serving of nuts, beans or tofu every day may lower the risk of the brain-eating disease by 20 per cent.

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Yuhan Li, a research assistant at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts, said: “By studying people over a long period of time, we found that eating processed red meat could be a significant risk factor for dementia.

“Dietary guidelines could include recommendations limiting it to promote brain health.”

Around 944,000 Brits are currently living with dementia and experts predict the numbers will exceed one million by the end of the decade.

Alzheimer’s is the most common form of the condition and is thought to be caused by build-ups of proteins in the brain, including tau and amyloid.

There is currently no cure for the disease, although three promising drugs to slow down its progress are currently in trials.

In the meantime, experts say focusing on how to improve your lifestyle is the best way to fight the disease. 

Scientists behind the study believe nitrites, the preservatives found in processed red meats and high salt levels may be bad for the brain.

Previous research has linked nitrites in processed meats to cancer-triggering chemicals in the stomach. 

And the World Health Organisation (WHO) has ruled adding nitrites increases bowel cancer risk.

The latest research, presented to the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference in the US, looked at links between processed red meat consumption and a person’s risk of developing dementia.

‘EAT HEALTHIER’

Scientists looked at the health and diet data from 130,000 people in the US – who they tracked for 43 years.

None had dementia at the start of the study and more than 11,000 cases of dementia were identified during the follow-up period.

Heather Snyder vice president of medical and scientific relations at the Alzheimer’s Association, added: “Prevention of Alzheimer’s disease and all other dementia is a major focus, and the Alzheimer’s Association has long encouraged eating a healthier diet.

“This includes foods that are less processed – because they’ve been associated with lower the risk of cognitive decline.

“This large, long-term study provides a specific example of one way to eat healthier.”

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‘UNCLEAR’ RESULTS

Commenting on the study, Dr Hilda Mulrooney, reader in nutrition and health at the London Metropolitan University, said: “This is a large study carried out over a long time period.

“However, the information currently available is limited to an abstract.

“It is unclear what is meant by ‘subjective cognitive decline’, and while follow-up occurred over a long period, diet was assessed only every two to four years, and diets could change a lot during that time period.

“This study focused on only some aspects of diet, and there are others which could potentially play a part in risk of cognitive decline. It is not clear whether any of those were taken into account.

“The full paper will be of interest so that the tools and methods used to assess diet and cognitive decline, the characteristics of the study population and factors controlled for, can be understood.”

Dr Sebastian Walsh, doctoral fellow at the University of Cambridge, added: “Whilst eye-catching, it is difficult to know exactly what to make of these results without seeing the full research paper.

“On the surface, this is a large and long study.

“But it isn’t clear how the analysis was done – specifically what other factors were taken into account when looking at this apparent relationship between red meat and dementia.”