Less muscle, more body fat may affect our intelligence

New York: Less muscle and more body fat may affect how flexible our thinking gets as we become older, and changes in parts of the immune system could be responsible, a new study suggests.

These findings from Iowa State University in the US could lead to new treatments that help maintain mental flexibility in aging adults with obesity, sedentary lifestyles, or muscle loss that naturally happens with aging.

The study looked at the data from more than 4,000 middle-aged to older UK Biobank participants, both men, and women.

For the findings, the research team examined direct measurements of lean muscle mass, abdominal fat, and subcutaneous fat, and how they were related to changes in fluid intelligence over six years.

They discovered people mostly in their 40s and 50s who had higher amounts of fat in their midsection had worse fluid intelligence as they got older.

Greater muscle mass, by contrast, appeared to be a protective factor. These relationships stayed the same even after taking into account chronological age, level of education, and socioeconomic status, the study said. (IANS)

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