Nutrition and Dietary Patterns: Effects on Brain Function

Dear Colleagues,

Nutrition is a complex, crucial part of health and development which influences brain function via several networks. Research has shown that a balanced diet that includes all essential nutrients is critical for optimal brain function. In that respect, a balanced diet characterized by eating high-quality foods nourishes the brain in a positive way. Conversely, poor diets defined by nutritional deficiency have been linked to a range of negative health outcomes, including brain damage (even at early ages).

Healthy dietary patterns, defined as healthy eating habits in conjunction with other facets of daily living (such as adequate sleep and physical activity routines), can also promote brain health. Adequate food practices can contribute to decreasing neuroinflammation, oxidative stress, as well as increasing the brain insulin sensitivity and the derived neurotrophic factor.

Related to nutrition and dietary patterns, eating behavior is defined as a broad construct that covers feeding practices, food choice (and motives), and dieting. This multifaceted process involves food decisions and nutrition practices and is determined by several personal and sociocultural factors. Persistent disturbances in eating behavior can lead to the onset and progression of eating disorders (such as anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, or binge eating disorder), which constitute severe mental conditions with significant impact on physical, psychological, and social function (including gastrointestinal, renal, and cardiovascular diseases, mood and anxiety states, social isolation, or lack of autonomy). Current research has explored brain markers among the different eating disorder samples and have observed impaired neurocognitive process, different brain structures, and altered functional connectivity compared with healthy control samples. Specific affectations in executive functions, sensitivity to reward–punishment processes, and neurobiological mechanisms (disturbances in neurotransmitter functions such as dopamine serotonin or endogenous opiates) have been related to the beginning and duration of eating behavior-related problems.

On the other hand, it is well known that multiple factors can contribute to aging-associated cognitive decline, including genetics, lifestyle choices, general health status, and environmental factors. At the global level, growing in average life expectancy, clearly one of society’s salient attainments during the last century has been the identification of early biomarkers of cognitive decline (in brain structures and functions). Proactive management of the extrinsic modifiable risk factors (such as dietary patterns) to prevent early neurodegenerative conditions and enhance healthy aging are also becoming ever more important. Studies have evidenced the role of nutrition, for example the intake of specific macro- and micronutrients presented in balanced diets that can improve cognitive functions and mitigate age-related cognitive decline. Thus, the impact of diet and nutrition on age-associated cognitive decline is becoming a growing field.

This Special Issue aims to provide new evidence about the complex relationship between nutrition and eating behavior and brain function. Special attention will be paid to studies focused on the neurobiological basis of specific molecular systems and the underlying processes that contribute to maintaining cognitive function in association with nutrition and dietary patterns. Manuscript submissions may include original research articles (clinical, translational, or basic research), systematic reviews, and meta-analyses.

These studies can provide the basis for designing accurate measurement tools to identify early cognitive decline related with aging and eating disorders as well as develop effective evidence-based intervention plans to meet the specific needs of older-age individuals and patients with eating behavior-related problems.

Prof. Dr. Roser Granero
Prof. Dr. Gemma Guillazo-Blanch
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Nutrients is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• aging
• brain function
• cognition
• nutrition
• dietary patterns
• eating behavior
• eating disorders
• evidence-based treatment
• neurodegeneration