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In the news: Folic Acid + DHA Follow-up, Carotenoids & Migraine Risk, Dark Chocolate & Diabetes

Follow Up: Folic Acid + DHA for Mental Function

The October 2024 issue of Staying Healthy featured a double-blind controlled study examining the effects of folic acid and the omega-3 fatty acid DHA alone or together on cognitive function in older people.

The study reported that each nutrient improved some measures of cognitive function in mildly impaired individuals over a six-month period, while the nutrients together were better than either one alone.

In a new study(1), the same investigators followed the participants for an additional six months after the original study ended. They report that the enhanced cognitive performance seen in the supplemented group was not sustained after the intervention was discontinued.

The researchers also found that the level of two biomarkers in blood (homocysteine and amyloid -B) were significantly decreased at the end of the original study. Homocysteine is a risk factor for Alzheimer’s and the biomarker amyloid -B is also pivotal in Alzheimer’s development.

The levels of these biomarkers were positively correlated with the degree of change in cognitive function during the follow-up period.

These results suggest that dietary intake of the two nutrients tested is likely important to help retain mental function in aging. Many foods are fortified with folic acid, a B-vitamin also found within multi-vitamin supplements. Eating fatty fish such as salmon, tuna, herring and sardines regularly will provide dietary DHA.

Low Carotenoid Levels Linked to Migraine Risk

Neuro-inflammation and oxidative stress play a role in the development of migraine, a condition which affects roughly 1 in 7 people globally.

Not much is known about the role of carotenoids in migraine. However, researchers are interested in knowing whether these plant compounds might have a role in migraine because they have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects.

To gather more information, researchers looked at data from the National Health and Examination Survey (NHANES). NHANES is a nationally representative group. This means that findings based on NHANES can be generalized to all households in the United States.

The investigators found that about 22% of the study population had migraine, with women having double the prevalence than men.

Compared to those with the lowest blood levels, individuals with the highest blood values of alpha-carotene had a 26% lower risk of migraine. For the highest levels of beta-carotene as well as lutein plus zeaxanthin, the risk of migraine was 36% lower(2).

Dark Chocolate Linked to Lower Type 2 Risk

To test whether eating dark, milk or total chocolate intake is associated with type 2 diabetes, researchers analyzed information from three large US studies including more than 300,000 paticipants(3).

After adjusting for personal, lifestyle, and dietary risk factors that could affect the study’s outcome, it was found that people eating five or more servings of dark chocolate weekly had a 21% lower risk of type 2.

No association between milk chocolate and type 2 was seen, though milk chocolate consumption was positively linked to long-term weight gain.

The findings suggest that the plant antioxidants called flavonols, which are abundant in dark chocolate, are likely responsible for its benefits. Milk chocolate contains only trace amounts of the flavonols.

References

1. Bai D, et al. Cognitive function after stopping folic acid and DHA intervention: An extended follow-up resuts from the randomized, double blind, placebo-controlled trial in older adults with mild cognitive impairment. J Alz Dis Reports 8 1285-95, 2024.
2. Zhang W, et al. Association between serum carotenoids and migraine in adults: a cross-sectional study from NHANES data. Eur J Nutr. 64:31, 2024.
3. Liu B, et al. Chocolate intake and risk of type 2 diabetes: prospective cohort studies. BMJ. 4:387:e078386, 2024.