There is a huge surge in the use of processed and canned foods. Canned products are high in sugar and salt with different flavors and additives, the cherry on top heating them in processing generates chemicals that contribute to various diseases to name a few; hypertension, metabolic disorders, obesity, and weight gain. Canned foods jams, jellies, candies, cold drinks, and snacks are ultra-processed food. Products are high calorie with low nutritional status. We are going to find a relationship between ultra-processed food and brain health concerning memory loss and dementia.

Brain Health refers to the functioning of the brain cells encompassing behavioral, and emotional, memory responses irrespective of any disorder. Different factors affect brain health including physical, environmental, social, and physiological. The brain is the most complex organ of the body. It controls all body activities regulating various functions of the body. It performs variable functions including memorizing, thinking, processing, imagining, and creating. A healthy diet can help brain memory and learning processes with good mental health due to the release of Brain-derived neurotrophic factor, produced by the hippocampus; an important brain structure

What is dementia?

Dementia is an umbrella term used for aberrant disorders of the brain including Alzheimer’s disease. This is related to cognitive disability, a loss of thinking capacity, severe enough to interfere with daily activities. Dementia is a disorder that can have an impact on relationships, behaviors, and emotions. There are different symptoms of dementia for various persons but early symptoms are weak enough to be detected. In the early days of dementia, people are self-sufficient requiring minor support for daily activities- Dementia is common

Causes of dementia

Whenever there is damage to brain cells, they lose the ability to communicate with one another. Ultimately brain cells become unavailable to communicate normally, and thoughts, behavior, and feelings might suffer.

The brain has numerous distinct areas, responsible for a separate function (such as memory, judgment, and movement). The brain stops functioning normally when cells in a certain region get injured. Different types of dementia have other types of brain cell loss in various locations of the brain.

Certain proteins are specific to brain regions that increase in quantities and make it difficult for brain cells to stay healthy and communicate with one another. The hippocampus is the center of learning and memory in the brain, and brain cells in this region are frequently the first ones that get damaged. So, memory loss is frequently one of the first indications.

While most alterations in the brain that cause dementia are irreversible and increase with time, the following conditions may improve when treated or addressed:

Common causes of dementia are

Anxiety/Depression

· Medicinal effects

· Alcohol/drug abuse

· Thyroid issues

· Gut vitamin deficiencies

Modifiable risk factors for dementia

It is a high chance that people living with dementia increase exponentially as global life expectancy rises. There is a dire need to identify modifiable risk factors for dementia, owing to the burden that dementia imposes on patients, and their families in addition to the hospital, community, and nations. It is reported that twelve modifiable risk factors of dementia need to be taken care of to prevent dementia. These are dietary habits, sedentary and non-sedentary lifestyles, awareness, alcohol/drug abuse, air/sewerage pollutants, brain injury, low social contact, and management of communicable and non-communicable diseases.

Although aging has a direct functional impairment of the brain due to oxidative stress and inflammation. Furthermore, to this normal aging process, modifiable risk factors contribute to cognitive decline.

Demerits of using ultra-processed foods

Previously literature explains determining the effect of specific nutrients on cognition but research has molded towards finding new therapies and preventive measures in combatting dementia. High adherence to the Mediterranean diet confers better cognitive performance with slower progression of brain damage toward dementia.

Ultra-processed food (UPF) is replacing conventional diets focused on organic and minimally processed foods worldwide.

UPFs are industrial formulations of processed food ingredients (oils, fats, sugars, starch, and protein isolates) that typically include flavorings, colorings, emulsifiers, and other cosmetic additives. This is especially concerning given that UPF consumption has been linked to a deterioration in overall dietary nutritional quality, as well as various chronic non-communicable disorders including metabolic disorders, heart diseases, high blood pressure, insulin resistance, and obesity. The high salt and sugar content is deteriorating the safety profile and glycemic controls. Processed foods undergo different changes during industrial processing, this not only compromises the nutritional availability of the food in the intestine but also impacts cardiac health. Several compounds (acrylamide) produced during the heating process of processing might contribute to cardiovascular diseases.

Biological mechanism reason that UPFs contribute to dementia?

There is a strong link between UPFs and brain health. UPFS are the sole contributors to hippocampus-related cognitive dysfunction which causes systemic metabolic alterations causing low-grade inflammation, disruption of the blood-brain barrier, and neuroinflammation. Furthermore, increased risk for chronic diseases such as diabetes, CVD, and obesity, all of which are risk factors for cognitive impairment creates a strong link between UPF and cognitive decline.

UPF consumption, inflammation of the barrier, insulin resistance, and alteration in the gut microbiome may contribute to Western diet-mediated cognitive dysfunction. A lack of essential nutrients and other bioactive compounds with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties in UPF diets, as well as increased exposure to pro-inflammatory, toxic, and endocrine-disrupting compounds, is the sole reason for cognitive impairment.

The crux of the literature finding the role of UPFs in brain health

An unhealthy diet causes the release of stress hormones leading to inflammation in certain parts of the body that may contribute to the damage to brain cells and result in the loss of cognitive ability.

· The hippocampus regulates memory and the hypothalamus regulates the body’s weight, inflammation in any of the areas would affect normal functioning.

· Added fats, sugars, and Trans fats in UPFs contribute to the risk of obesity and metabolic disorders.

· High salt and sugar diets are a great threat for high blood pressure and strokes thus risk factor for declining brain function.

· Artificial sweeteners are a direct damage causing anxiety and sleep disturbances.

How to overcome cognitive decline? Is that easy?

Omega-3-faty acids are a healthy choice for improving brain function. The most common source of them are walnuts and flax seeds.

· Avoid using soda and drinks, replace them with healthy choices for fresh vegetables and fruity juices.

· Avoid using processed yogurts and replace them with homemade yogurts.

· Prefer using organic and minimally processed canned foods.

· Use fresh meat preferably white meat.

· Add eggs and dairy to your breakfast to replace processed cereals and bread.

Take-home message

One needs to be healthy to make his brain healthy. Organic foods with a balanced choice of carbohydrates, proteins, vegetables, fruits, and dairy will provide you with the right amount of nutrition that will not only regulate body function but also impact the living expectancy of the cells. The change is slow but inevitable.

Discontinung canned food is not abrupt but a slow change can bring a big change.

Canned foods and brain health: Reason for cognitive decline