title: Higher Cognitive Performance Is Prospectively Associated with Healthy Dietary Choices: The Maine Syracuse Longitudinal Study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Few studies have examined whether cognitive function predicts dietary intake. The majority of research has focused on how diet can influence cognitive performance or risk for cognitive impairment in later life. The aim of this study was to examine prospective relationships between cognitive performance and dietary intake in participants of the Maine-Syracuse Longitudinal Study.
  
  
  METHODS
  A prospective study with neuropsychological testing at baseline and nutritional assessments measured a mean of 18 years later.
  
  
  METHODS
  Community-dwelling individuals residing in central New York state.
  
  
  METHODS
  333 participants free of dementia and stroke.
  
  
  METHODS
  The Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (WAIS) was assessed at baseline and dietary intake was measured using the Nutrition and Health Questionnaire.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Higher WAIS Scores at baseline were prospectively associated with higher intakes of vegetables, meats, nuts and legumes, and fish, but inversely associated with consumption of total grains and carbonated soft drinks. After adjustment for sample selection, socioeconomic indicators, lifestyle factors (smoking and physical activity), and cardiovascular risk factors, the relations between higher cognitive performance and greater consumption of vegetables, meat, and fish, and lower consumption of grains remained significant.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These data suggest that cognition early in life may influence dietary choices later in life.
authors.affiliation: Nutritional Physiology Research Centre, University of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia; Centre de Recherche Public Santé, Centre d'Etudes en Santé, Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg.
authors.forename: G E
authors.initials: GE
authors.lastname: Crichton
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Maine, Orono, Maine, USA; Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and Engineering, University of Maine, Orono, Maine, USA.
authors.forename: M F
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Elias
authors.affiliation: Department of Public Health, Temple University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Davey
authors.affiliation: Centre de Recherche Public Santé, Centre d'Etudes en Santé, Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Alkerwi
authors.affiliation: Behavioral Epidemiology Section, Laboratory of Epidemiology and Population Sciences, National Institute on Aging, NIH, Baltimore, USA.
authors.forename: G A
authors.initials: GA
authors.lastname: Dore
keywords: Cognitive function; Maine-Syracuse Longitudinal Study; dietary choice; prospective