Relationship between body mass index and cognitive performance was discussed by a study publishid in Journal Age and Ageing this week. Two-hundred and fifty individuals aged 60 years and above were the subject for the study , they underwent anthropometric measurements, abdominal CT and cognitive testing. adiposity measures included body mass index (BMI), waist circumference and visceral and subcutaneous adiposity by abdominal CT. Poor cognitive performance was defined as Mini-Mental State Examination score being at or below 1 SD of age, sex and education-normative values. The Key Points of the study included : Higher BMI is related to lower cognitive function in older people This study showed a direct association between visceral adiposity on abdominal CT and poor cognitive performance in older people The relation between higher total and visceral adiposity and poor cognitive performance is attenuated by age in older people. Results of the study showed that adults with the highest level of visceral adipose tissue and increased body mass index showed a tendency to be associated with poor cognitive performance compared with those adults with lower visceral adipose tissue or body mass index.
