Dairy product intake and cognition in free-living older adults

Cognitive decline in the older population is of extreme public health importance. It negatively affects the quality of life and imposes enormous burdens on family caregivers and financial costs to society. It is crucial to identify modifiable lifestyle factors that may help maintain cognition and prevent its decline. A healthy diet including dairy products may be one of them. The main objective of this proposal is to investigate associations between dairy product intake and cognitive function in a large cohort of older adults from the community. Dietary intake has been assessed by a short frequency questionnaire and specific cognitive domains, using multiple standards tests. Associations between dairy intake frequency and cognition will be examined using appropriate statistical analysis, taking into account other factors that might also influence cognition. Findings may contribute to increase awareness of health benefits of nutrient-dense dairy foods in seniors’ diet.