Federal Food Assistance Program May Slow Cognitive Decline, Study Suggests

Older adults who participated successful nan Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, aliases SNAP, had a slower complaint of cognitive diminution than group who were eligible for nan anti-hunger programme but didn’t person benefits, according to a study presented Wednesday.

Although galore adults statesman to mentally slow down successful midlife, researchers recovered that group complete 50 who participated successful SNAP, which helps group pinch debased incomes spend groceries, had a 10% slower complaint of diminution successful their representation and reasoning skills compared pinch their peers.

That’s adjacent to gaining 2 to 3 further years of cognitive wellness complete 10 years, said Linlin Da, lead writer of nan study, who presented her findings Wednesday astatine nan Alzheimer’s Association International Conference successful Toronto.

By providing a unafraid root of food, SNAP “may person immoderate underappreciated benefits for encephalon health,” said Da, who led nan study while she was a doctoral student astatine nan University of Georgia College of Public Health.

The National Institutes of Health-funded study comes conscionable weeks aft President Donald Trump signed authorities that nan Congressional Budget Office estimates will trim funding for SNAP, formerly known arsenic nutrient stamps, by $186 cardinal done 2034. Food banks crossed nan United States are already struggling to meet increasing demand amid backing cuts from nan Agriculture Department.

Food insecurity “can lead to mediocre nutrition and chronic disease, and each of that tin negatively effect nan brain,” Da said. “So by improving entree to nutrient-rich foods, SNAP whitethorn support encephalon health, trim nan accent and beforehand amended wellness overall.”

The caller study, which hasn’t yet been published successful a peer-reviewed journal, leaves galore questions unanswered.

Researchers didn’t measurement which foods study participants consumed, truthful they don’t cognize if group receiving SNAP benefits had healthier diets.

But doctors cognize that high-sodium diets tin raise humor pressure, 1 of nan astir important consequence factors for dementia, said Dr. Mitchell Elkind, main subject serviceman for encephalon wellness and changeable astatine nan American Heart Association.

The study besides doesn’t explicate really nutrient information mightiness use nan brain, said Elkind, who wasn’t progressive pinch nan research. It’s imaginable that programs specified arsenic SNAP relieve nan worry that group consciousness erstwhile they can’t spend their groceries aliases erstwhile they person to take betwixt paying for nutrient aliases medication, giving them much intelligence bandwidth to attraction connected different issues. Chronic accent has been linked to a higher risk for dementia.

The creation of nan caller study, which followed much than 2,300 older group for 10 years, can’t definitively beryllium that participating successful SNAP protects encephalon health.

It’s imaginable that group who participated successful SNAP were cognitively healthier earlier nan study began, Da said. Enrolling successful SNAP tin beryllium time-consuming and complicated, making it much difficult for group pinch cognitive problems to complete their applications.

Yet a increasing section of investigation links nutrition, nutrient information and dementia risk.

“Observational studies from astir nan world person shown america that nutrient insecurity and mediocre cognitive wellness spell together,” said Kriti Jain, a wellness administrator astatine nan National Institute connected Aging, portion of nan NIH, who wasn’t progressive successful nan study. “More caller studies person shown america that nutrient insecurity comes earlier cognitive wellness gets worse.”

Brain wellness is shaped by acold much than genetics, Da said.

Cognitive aging “can besides beryllium shaped by policies, by nan situation and by entree to different resources,” she said. “That intends we tin do thing to alteration it and amended it.”

Anti-hunger groups contend that cutting SNAP benefits will time off group quiet and little healthy. Research shows that poverty and nutrient insecurity — a information successful which group deficiency a accordant root of nutritious nutrient —are communal consequence factors for malnutrition among older adults.

“SNAP is some a lifeline for older adults and a captious nationalist wellness tool,” said Crystal FitzSimons, president of nan Food Research & Action Center, an defense group. “Participating successful SNAP tin mean other years of cognitive health, helping older adults stay independent,” alternatively of moving into nursing homes.

The Republican-led House Agriculture Committee has said nan backing simplification “restores SNAP to its original intent—promoting work, not welfare—while redeeming payer dollars and investing successful American agriculture.”

Food arsenic medicine

Karen Forbes.Courtesy Karen Forbes

Karen Forbes, 61, first participated successful SNAP decades agone erstwhile she was a azygous mother of a young child. She reapplied for nan programme during nan pandemic erstwhile her pet sitting customers stopped needing her.

Forbes, who lives extracurricular Portland, Oregon, said SNAP has been particularly important since she developed agelong Covid successful 2022, which has near her pinch dense fatigue, prevents her from moving and has caused “brain fog” that resembles age-related cognitive decline. Forbes said she and her father, who is 82, “are going done a benignant of Alzheimer’s point together.”

Although Forbes said she utilized to talk “a cardinal miles a minute,” she now often struggles to find nan correct word. If she tries to speak excessively quickly, “everything comes retired jumbled and stupid.” After an 18-month wait, Forbes said she precocious began receiving disablement benefits from Social Security.

Because of SNAP, Forbes said, she doesn’t person to take betwixt buying groceries and paying her rent aliases electrical bills. Her favourite portion of SNAP is being capable to spend caller fruits and vegetables, she said. Oregon’s SNAP programme provides “double benefits” for shopping astatine farmers markets, truthful group tin bargain doubly arsenic overmuch caller nutrient for nan aforesaid magnitude of money. Forbes said she tries to travel a patient fare successful nan dream of overcoming her illness.

“When you’re chronically ill, each small mini point you tin do to amended your wellness makes each nan quality successful nan world,” she said.

Food insecurity linked to dementia

Jain described nutrient insecurity arsenic “a terrible and increasing nationalist wellness rumor successful America.”

In families pinch personnel complete property 60, nan prevalence of nutrient insecurity has almost doubled successful nan past 2 decades. Twenty-three percent of specified families faced chronic aliases recurring nutrient insecurity from 2015 to 2019, according to a study from nan NIH published past twelvemonth successful JAMA Health Forum.

Another study published past year recovered that nutrient insecurity doubled nan consequence of probable cognitive decline.

And a insubstantial published successful 2024 successful nan Journal of Nutrition recovered that adults pinch nutrient insecurity and lower-quality diets had importantly steeper declines successful cognitive scores during nan study, conducted from 2012 to 2020. In that study, however, participating successful SNAP wasn’t related to nan complaint of intelligence decline, suggesting that SNAP unsocial “may beryllium insufficient to forestall antagonistic cognitive effects of mediocre fare and constricted entree to nutritious foods.”

Unprecedented cutbacks

The Urban Institute, a nonprofit investigation statement that focuses connected societal and economical policy, estimates that backing cuts could lead 22.3 cardinal families to suffer immoderate aliases each of their nutrient benefits.

The 20% alteration successful backing is “the largest trim to SNAP successful history,” according to nan Center connected Budget and Policy Priorities, a nonpartisan deliberation tank. The measurement will besides displacement overmuch of nan program’s costs from nan national authorities to nan states opening successful 2028, arsenic good arsenic grow activity requirements for participants.

Seven successful 10 of nan 42 cardinal people who participate successful SNAP are older adults, group pinch disabilities and families pinch children.

The caller study suggests “we request much investigation connected nan domiciled of patient fare and nutrition successful encephalon health,” Elkind said. “In particular, it suggests that location should beryllium much investigation successful nan area of nutrient arsenic medicine, meaning nan proviso of patient nutrient to group to spot what nan effect is connected cognition, dementia risks and encephalon health.”