@article{unincol28589,
          author = {Margherita Grasso and Francesca L?Episcopo and Marco Antonio Olvera-Moreira and Giuseppe Toscano and Stefano Muratore and Maria Angela Tripodi and Sabrina Musso and Veronica Bentivegna and Lucrezia Costanzo and Giusi Fatati and Melannie Toral-Noristz and Raynier Zambrano-Villacres and Lisandra Le{\'o}n Brizuela and Raffaele Ferri and Giuseppe Lanza and Filippo Caraci},
          volume = {13},
            year = {2026},
         journal = {Frontiers in Nutrition},
           month = {Junio},
           title = {Consumption of ultra-processed foods is associated with cognitive status in elderly patients},
             url = {http://repositorio.unincol.edu.co/id/eprint/28589/},
        abstract = {Background: Emerging evidence suggests that there might be an association between excess consumption of ultra-processed foods (UPFs) on cognitive health. UPF intake could promote systemic inflammation, oxidative stress phenomena, and metabolic dysregulation, contributing to neurodegeneration onset and cognitive decline in elderly population.Aim: The aim of this cross-sectional study was to examine the relation between UPF dietary pattern on MCI status in elderly patients taking into account the contribution of inflammatory markers.Design: The dietary intake was assessed using a validated food frequency questionnaire in ninety-two participants. All reported food items were categorized according to the NOVA system, classifying foods on the basis of the extent and purpose of industrial processing. Plasmatic concentrations of TGF-{\ensuremath{\beta}}1 and TNF-? were measured by ELISA assay at the time of baseline neuropsychological evaluation. The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) were administered to evaluate the cognitive function in all participants. Non-parametric tests, correlation analysis, and logistic regression models were performed to assess the relations between variables of interest.Results: No significant associations were observed for unprocessed/minimally processed foods, culinary processed foods, or processed foods across the different regression models. In contrast, higher consumption of UPF was associated with increased odds of MCI (adjusted OR = 4.24, 95\% CI: 1.05?17.13). However, after additional adjustment for inflammatory biomarkers (TGF-{\ensuremath{\beta}} and TNF-{\ensuremath{\alpha}}), the association was attenuated and no longer statistically significant (OR = 4.79, 95\% CI: 0.73?31.24), although the direction of the association remained positive.Conclusion: UPF consumption may be associated with increased likelihood of MCI, and inflammatory status may potentially play a role in this association.},
        keywords = {food processing, inflammation, mild cognitive impairment, neuroinflammation, ultraprocessed foods}
}