Brain Health

Time-Restricted Eating Shows Early Promise in Huntington’s Disease

A small pilot study found the approach was doable without unwanted weight loss, but larger trials are needed to know whether it actually helps.

Western-Style Diet May Be Linked to Faster Attention Decline in Some Older Adults

The small study found the link only in people with a genetic risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease, and even that result weakened under closer analysis.

Anemia During Pregnancy Was Linked to Differences in Babies’ Brain Growth

Babies born to mothers with anemia had smaller brain volumes by about age 1, but the study does not show that anemia directly caused those differences.

Gut Bacteria May Be Linked to Brain Chemistry in Humans

A small human study found connections between the gut microbiome and chemicals measured in different parts of the brain, offering new clues about the gut-brain connection.

Food Insecurity Later in Life Was Linked to Higher Dementia Risk

A long-running U.S. study found the association was strongest among older adults who experienced food insecurity later in life, but it cannot show whether food insecurity contributed to cognitive decline or was partly a consequence of it.

Fluoride in Pregnancy Linked to Lower Scores on Some Cognitive Tests

Higher fluoride exposure during pregnancy was associated with lower scores on some cognitive tests in children, though the study cannot prove fluoride caused the differences.

Study Offers New Clue to How Folic Acid Protects Early Brain Development

Experiments in frog embryos and cells suggest folic acid may rely on a vitamin A-related process to help the developing brain and spinal cord form properly.

Hunger Neurons May Help GLP-1 Drugs Sustain Weight Loss

A study in female mice found that brain cells known for driving hunger were unexpectedly needed for the full weight-lowering effects of GLP-1 drugs.

Brain Health Habits Can Be Hard to Follow, Even with Early Alzheimer’s

A study of people with mild cognitive impairment or mild Alzheimer’s dementia found that most were falling short on at least some recommended brain health behaviors, even among those pursuing intensive treatment.

Fruit and Honey May Have Helped Fuel Human Brain Growth

A new model argues that carbohydrate-rich foods helped meet rising glucose demands, but it cannot reconstruct exactly what early humans ate.

Early-Life Sugar Rationing Was Linked to Lower Dementia Risk Decades Later

A study of nearly 65,000 people born around the end of British sugar rationing found an association between lower sugar exposure early in life and later brain health, but it cannot show that sugar caused the difference.

Gut Signals Helped Rats Remember Where They Found Food

A new animal study identified a vagus nerve pathway linking nutrients in the digestive system with food-related memory.

Opposite Weight-Loss Drug Strategies May Work Through Different Parts of the Brain

A mouse study offers a possible explanation for why activating or blocking the same appetite-related receptor can both support weight loss, but it does not show which approach will work best in people.

Polyphenols May Support Brain Health

A broad review found promising biological clues, but it did not establish that any food, compound or diet prevents Alzheimer’s disease.

Keto Diet Trial Finds Early Metabolic Gains in Serious Mental Illness

A small randomized trial found metabolic improvements after one month on a ketogenic diet, while longer-term mental health findings remain preliminary.

Mediterranean-Style Eating May Support Well-Being as We Age

A study of adults over 50 found that greater adherence to a Mediterranean-style diet was associated with higher psychological well-being before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Creatine May Help Depression, but the Evidence Is Still Split

A review of five randomized trials found mixed results when creatine was added to standard depression treatment, with possible benefit in some studies and no effect in others.

Longer Breastfeeding Was Tied to Modestly Fewer ADHD Symptoms

A large Norwegian cohort study found that longer exclusive breastfeeding up to six months was associated with fewer ADHD symptoms through age 8.

Diet May Still Play a Role After Alzheimer’s Risk Markers Appear

A long-term study suggests lower-inflammatory eating patterns may be linked to lower dementia risk, even among older adults with biological signs of elevated risk.

Fish Oil Supplements May Not Deliver on Brain Health Promise

A two-year clinical trial found that high-dose DHA supplements raised omega-3 levels in the brain but did not improve memory, cognition or Alzheimer’s-related brain shrinkage.

Vitamin C Levels Were Linked to Differences in the Aging Brain

A study of more than 2,000 older adults found associations involving gray matter volume and brain connectivity, but it does not show that vitamin C prevents cognitive decline.

Early Eating Patterns May Matter for Learning Years Later

A systematic review suggests that nutrition in the first years of life may be linked to cognitive performance in adolescence, while evidence for teen-focused interventions remains mixed.

Alcohol Raises Cancer Risk Even at Low Levels, Analysis Finds

A global analysis found clear links between alcohol and cancer and liver disease, while the evidence for some heart, metabolic and brain conditions was more complicated.

A Nutrition Marker May Offer Clues About Fatigue and Motivation

In a study of healthy Japanese adults, higher homocysteine levels were linked with physical fatigue in men and lower motivation in women, but the findings do not prove that vitamin levels caused those symptoms.

Teen Heart Health Markers May Be Linked to Brain Function

A Finnish study found blood lipid markers tied to slower processing speed in adolescents, suggesting heart and brain health may be connected earlier than many people realize.