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<\/a>Nitrate sources and health implications<\/p>\nNitrates from processed meats and water lack the beneficial compounds found in plants, which may ultimately cause brain damage, the study\u00a0<\/a>cautions.<\/p>\n \u201cMeat contains compounds such as heme iron, which may actually increase the formation of N-nitrosamines. We think this is why nitrate from different sources has opposite effects on brain health, but we need laboratory studies to confirm exactly what\u2019s happening,\u201d says Bondonno.<\/p>\n Participants consuming nitrates from vegetables, about a cup a day of baby spinach, have lower dementia risk, she adds.<\/p>\n Drinking water remains healthy<\/p>\n The team found that participants drinking water with nitrates at levels below the current regulatory limits have a higher dementia rate. This limit in Denmark and the EU is set at 50 mg\/L, but the researchers point out that the risks start at significantly lower levels.<\/p>\n \u201cWater doesn\u2019t contain antioxidants that can block the formation of N-nitrosamines. Without these protective compounds, nitrate in drinking water may form N-nitrosamines in the body,\u201d comments Bondonno.<\/p>\n \u201cImportantly, our results do not mean that people should stop drinking water. The increase in risk at an individual level is very small, and drinking water is much better for your health than sugary drinks like juices and soft drinks. However, our findings do suggest that regulatory agencies should re-examine current limits and better understand how long-term, low-level exposure affects brain health.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n Further studies are required to confirm the nitrate-dementia link, and the team says other factors, such as diet and lifestyle, cannot be ruled out from the association.<\/p>\n \u201cEating more vegetables and less red meat and processed meat<\/a> is a sensible approach based on our findings and decades of other research on diet and health,\u201d concludes Bondonno.\u00a0<\/p>\n Nutrition and dementia connection<\/p>\n Previous research has shown that diet and nutrients can affect dementia risk. For example, higher omega-3 blood levels<\/a> were linked to reduced early-onset dementia risk despite genetics.\u00a0<\/p>\n Meanwhile,\u00a0poor carbohydrate quality<\/a> is correlated with increased dementia and Alzheimer\u2019s disease risk. A separate study established a similar link between obesity and high blood pressure\u00a0<\/a>and higher dementia risk.<\/p>\n Other scientists did not find any evidence that calcium increases\u00a0<\/a>the long-term risk of dementia in older women, debunking theories that the mineral supplements could improve cognition.<\/p>\nNitrates from processed meats and water lack the beneficial compounds found in plants, which may ultimately cause brain damage, the study cautions.\u201cWhen we eat nitrate-rich vegetables, we are also eating vitamins and antioxidants, which are thought to help nitrate form the beneficial compound nitric oxide while blocking it from forming N-nitrosamines, which are carcinogenic and potentially damaging to the brain,\u201d says Dr. Nicola Bondonno, a postdoctoral research fellow at Edith Cowan University, Australia, and the Danish Cancer Research Institute.<\/p>\n