Regularly Eating Breakfast Could Shield You Against Age-Related Brain Changes, Study Finds

Breakfast has been hailed as the most important meal of the day for years, but not everyone buys into that. In fact, government data show that about 15% of American adults regularly skip breakfast. However, research consistently shows that eating breakfast can help with weight management and other health factors. And now, there’s one more thing to consider: It may lower the odds of cognitive decline as you get older.

That’s the major takeaway from a study published in the Journal of Neurorestoratology. For the study, researchers analyzed data from 859 older adults, 117 of which were considered regular breakfast skippers. The researchers gave the participants cognitive tests every 18 months, and also tested them for signs of neurodegeneration (the loss of brain and nervous system function). Some participants also had MRI scans at each visit to look at their brain volume.

The researchers discovered that people who regularly skipped breakfast had lower cognitive scores than their breakfast-eating counterparts. They also found that breakfast skippers were more likely to experience cognitive decline and signs of neurodegeneration during the study period,

Related: 18 Quick Breakfast Recipes Ready in 30 Minutes or Less

Ultimately, the researchers concluded that “breakfast skipping was linked to an increased risk of long-term cognitive decline and neurodegeneration among older adults.”

Cognitive decline is complicated, and it’s understandable to wonder whether something as simple as skipping breakfast now could set you up for neurological complications down the road. Here’s what doctors who treat patients with dementia want you to know.

How is skipping breakfast linked with cognitive decline?

The study didn’t find out why skipping breakfast was linked to cognitive decline — it found an association. But doctors have a few theories on what could be behind this.

“There’s a lot of interesting evidence around the importance of breakfast. It makes sense that there could be a link to our brain health,” says Scott Kaiser, MD, a geriatrician and director of geriatric cognitive health for the Pacific Neuroscience Institute at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, California.

A lot of this may come down to properly fueling your body, says Raymond Romano, PhD, MPH, a clinical researcher and nurse practitioner in the Department of Neurology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. “The brain needs fuel to function properly,” he says. “Skipping breakfast disrupts energy consumption in the brain.” When you don’t get the glucose (blood sugar) your brain craves in the morning, you can end up with brain fog and trouble focusing, Romano says.

Related: 8 Ways to Upgrade Breakfast in a Single Bowl

Amit Sachdev, MD, MS, medical director in the Department of Neurology at Michigan State University, agrees. “The brain requires blood sugar. It doesn’t have any other significant source of energy,” he says. Because blood sugar is supported by what you eat, eating regular meals and a balanced diet help give you what your body — and brain — needs, he says. As a result, there may be something about regularly not fueling your brain properly and developing dementia, Kaiser says.

But Romano says it’s a leap to say that skipping breakfast actually causes dementia. “Alzheimer’s disease is a complex brain illness,” he says. “Although the study found these correlations between skipping breakfast and dementia, skipping breakfast might be an indicator of other health habits or life circumstances.”

What you should eat to reduce your risk of cognitive decline

There are a lot of things you can do to lower your risk of cognitive decline, including trying to follow a healthy lifestyle. “Overall health is important for brain health,” Sachdev says. “Support the body with routine, balance, exercise, and good health maintenance.”

On the food front, the Alzheimer’s Association recommends focusing on the DASH diet (which stands for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) and the Mediterranean diet. The DASH diet is heavy on vegetables, fruits, fat-free or low-fat dairy products, whole grains, fish, poultry, beans, seeds, nuts, and vegetable oils, while minimizing sodium, sweets, sugary drinks, and red meats. The Mediterranean diet also recommends limiting red meat and focusing on whole grains, fruits and vegetables, fish, and healthy fats like nuts and olive oil.

If you want to eat better for your brain but need a jumping-off point, Romano recommends making a few dietary tweaks and taking things from there. “You can start by focusing on cutting down on red meats, eating lots of fruits and vegetables, and getting healthy fats from foods like nuts and fish,” he says.

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