(P06-05-26) Diet Quality Is Associated With Cognitive Function in Parkinson’s Disease

Objectives: High diet quality may influence cognition in neurodegenerative disease through mechanisms such as reduced neuroinflammation, improved metabolic health, and better nutrient status. The objective of the study was to investigate the association between diet quality and cognitive function in patients with Parkinson’s disease (PD).

Methods: A total of 65 individuals with PD were enrolled in the study. After excluding participants with implausible energy intake (Females: < 500 and >3500 kcal/day; Males: < 800 and >4000 kcal/day), 62 participants were included in the final analysis. Participant dietary intake was assessed using the Diet History Questionnaire (DHQ-III). Cognitive function was measured using the NIH Toolbox Cognitive Battery to determine total, domain, and individual test scores, standardized using age and education-based norms. Descriptive statistics and linear regression analyses were performed using R (R Foundation, Vienna, Austria) to evaluate the association between diet quality (Healthy Eating Index 2020 [HEI]) and cognition. Because cognition scores are already adjusted for age and education, the adjusted model included only the Unified Parkinson’s Disease Rating Scale (UPDRS) severity score as a covariate.

Results: The mean age of participants was 66.5 ± 7.1 years, with 57.1% male and 42.9% female participation. Mean HEI and total cognition scores were 69.3 ± 9.5 and 56.3 ± 10.3, respectively. In unadjusted models, higher HEI was associated with better total cognition (β=0.27, p=0.05), fluid cognition (β =0.29, p=0.05), and episodic memory (β = 0.32, p = 0.02). After adjusting for UPDRS part 1 and 2 scores, HEI was related to episodic memory (β = 0.35, p = 0.01); however, HEI was no longer significantly related to total cognition (β = 0.23, p = 0.11) nor fluid cognition (β = 0.21, p = 0.13). HEI was not related to any other individual cognitive tests.

Conclusions: Our interim pilot results suggest that higher diet quality may be associated with better cognitive function in patients with PD and may be a clinically important factor to consider in the care of patients with PD.

Funding Sources: Not applicable