Meal timing impacts cognitive health, with “breakfast skipping” being detrimental, research suggests

19 Sep 2022 --- Maintaining a balanced calorie intake over three main meals is associated with improved cognitive function compared to the other investigated dietary patterns, according to a China-based study.

The researchers note that the findings will strengthen the case for future public health recommendations on balanced temporal distribution of energy intake (TPEI) for first-line prevention of cognitive impairment in the aging population if a correlation is shown.

The results showed that, in particular, skipping breakfast was linked to significantly lower cognitive performance and accelerated cognitive aging. The researchers add that additional research is required to confirm the results in various populations and explain the underlying mechanisms.

The secondary finding that higher energy intakes in the morning were associated with better cognitive function and slower decline supported the primary result that breakfast skipping was associated with faster cognitive decline than other TPEIs.

Overall, the results were generally consistent with prior research. Only snacks ingested after dinner showed a potentially positive effect on cognitive performance. This is likely because people who eat snacks at night are more likely to have higher educational backgrounds and better cognitive performance.

Investigating cognitive health and meal intake
Although a growing body of research has connected TPEI to health outcomes like obesity, hypertension and cardiovascular health, the researchers claim that this study – published in the journal of Life Metabolism – is one of the first population-based studies to investigate the relationship between TPEI and cognitive decline.

Maintaining a balanced calorie intake over three main meals was associated with much improved cognitive function.A total of 3,342 participants from nine Chinese provinces with a baseline age of fewer than 55 years who were middle-aged and older (mean age of 62) were included in the study based on data from the China Nutrition Health Survey (CHNS) public database.

Using linear mixed models, which were adjusted for age, gender, residence, total energy, physical activity, smoking status, alcohol consumption, household income, education level and body mass index, it was determined whether TPEIs are correlated with cognitive function over ten years.

Six patterns of TPEIs, including “evenly-distributed” pattern, “breakfast-dominant” pattern, “lunch-dominant” pattern, “dinner-dominant” pattern, “snack-rich” pattern and “breakfast-skipping” pattern, were identified using a data-driven k-means method.

The results showed that those with uneven TPEIs, particularly those with a “breakfast-skipping” pattern, had significantly worse long-term cognitive function scores than those with an “evenly-distributed” pattern.

Maintaining a healthy balance of TPEIs can potentially improve cognitive health, whereas skipping breakfast can considerably raise the risk of cognitive decline in middle-aged and older people. This study’s conclusion emphasizes the significance of optimal TPEIs for cognitive function.

A prevalent health issue
The research comes at a time when researchers unveil that approximately 55 million individuals worldwide have dementia and the prevalence of the condition has risen gradually.

The researchers unveil that approximately 55 million individuals worldwide have dementia.By 2050, the population is projected to triple, especially in low- and middle-income countries. Not only can dementia negatively impact a person’s quality of life but it also places a heavy financial strain on families and society.

Recent research revealed a connection between meal timing and cognitive function. An experimental study showed that evenly spreading the same amount of energy into four meals can improve short-term cognitive performance than two meals.

Another meta-analysis, including 34 experimental investigations, revealed that healthy adults who miss breakfast perform worse than breakfast consumers regarding their acute cognitive performance.

Previous studies and limitations
The TPEI throughout the day and the risk of developing numerous chronic diseases like diabetes and hypertension have been linked in epidemiological research. However, there is not a lot of data showing how TPEI affects cognitive performance in the general population.

Previous animal research has demonstrated that irregular meal times can alter the hippocampus’ internal clock rhythms, influencing cognitive function.

Compared to eating twice between nine in the morning and three in the afternoon, dividing the same quantity of food into four meals could improve cognitive function, according to a short-term intervention study including 96 young adults. Long-term research on TPEIs and cognitive performance is, however, still limited.

The researchers note that their study findings should be interpreted in the context of China’s rapid changes in eating patterns, where access to various types of snacks may differ significantly across populations.

Edited by Nicole Kerr