GRAZING on a handful of a popular snack could slash the risk of dementia by 17 per cent, researchers say. A number of factors can influence your risk of developing the brain-robbing disease, such as family history , drinking and having long term conditions like diabetes. But research suggests that what we eat can influence our risk of developing the disease - and this includes our snacks.
A study of more than 50,000 people found that people who eat a handful of nuts every day could be less likely to get dementia. "The daily consumption of nuts may play a protective role in the prevention of dementia," researchers from the University of Castilla-La Mancha and University of Porto wrote . "UK adults who consumed nuts daily had a reduced risk of all-cause dementia compared with non-consumers after seven years of follow-up.
" Read more on dementia Their risk of developing dementia from all causes - such as Alzheimer’s disease, frontotemporal dementia , or vascular dementia - was lower regardless of factors such as lifestyle, hearing problems and chronic diseases. Researchers analysed data from people who enrolled in the UK Biobank study between 2007 and 2012. The 50,386 participants were observed for an average of seven years.
Researchers gleaned information on their nut consumption habits from questionnaires and tracked whether or not they were diagnosed with dementia through self-reported medical diagnosis, hospitalisation or death records. Most read in Health A total of 1,422 .