NCT05211726

The Effects of Added Sugar Intake on Brain Blood Flow and Hippocampal Function in Midlife Adults

• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 44 (actual)
• Sponsor: University of Delaware · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 50 Years – 64 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

This study will focus on improving brain health through dietary modification of added sugars in middle aged adults (50- 64 years old). Participants will be fed two 10-day diets (one diet containing 5% of total energy from added sugars and one diet containing 25% of total energy from added sugars) and examine blood vessel function, hippocampus structure using a MRI, and memory performance.

Detailed description

Aging is the primary risk factor for Alzheimer's disease (AD) which is the most common form of dementia and among the fastest growing causes of morbidity and mortality in the United States. The risk factors for AD emerge during midlife and are similar to cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. The impact of midlife peripheral vascular changes on cardiovascular risk are worsened by poor lifestyle habits, including eating a diet that contains a lot of added sugars (defined as all caloric sweeteners added to food during processing or preparation). One effect of eating a high added sugar diet is an elevation in blood triglycerides (TGs), which impairs blood vessel function by causing inflammation; however, it is not known whether eating a lot of added sugars affects the blood vessels in the brain. The purpose of this project is to determine if there is a link between added sugar intake and brain health in midlife adults. Our hypothesis is that eating excess added sugar impairs the structure and function of an area of the brain called the hippocampus by increasing plasma TGs and systemic inflammation. To test this, we will have people eat a high and low sugar diet for 10 days each (in a random order) and test how each diet affects their blood vessel function, the structure of their hippocampus, and their memory performance. We expect to show that eating a diet that contains a lot of added sugars worsens brain health compared to a diet that contains few added sugars. The data generated from this project will help us better understand risk factors for dementia and will be used to support a future grant proposal to the National Institutes of Health aimed at lowering added sugar intake in mid-life adults and individuals with mild cognitive impairment.

Conditions

• Aging
• Healthy Diet

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
OTHER	Low Added Sugar Diet	Consumption of 10 days of a diet low in added sugars (5% of total caloric intake)
OTHER	High Added Sugar Diet	Consumption of 10 days of a diet high in added sugars (25% of total caloric intake)

Timeline

• Start date: 2022-01-11
• Primary completion: 2024-05-03
• Completion: 2024-05-03
• First posted: 2022-01-27
• Last updated: 2025-06-12
• Results posted: 2025-06-12

Locations

1 site across 1 country: United States