L-shaped association between dietary riboflavin intake and Cognitive impairment in older adults:NHANES 2011-2014

Abstract

Background Research investigating the correlation between dietary riboflavin intake and cognitive function in older adults is scarce and constrained. Our objective was to investigate the relationship between riboflavin intake levels and cognitive performance in individuals aged 60 years and above in the United States.Methods We analyzed data from 2,255 adults aged 60 years and older who participated in the 2011–2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). The Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer's Disease test, Digit Symbol Substitution Test, and Animal Fluency Test were used to evaluate cognitive performance. Dietary intake was assessed using the 24-hour recall method, which reflects recent dietary habits of individuals and groups. Logistic regression was used to examine the association between riboflavin intake and cognitive impairment, and restricted cubic spline analysis was also conducted.Results The study included a total of 2,255 patients, with 47.9% being male. The incidence of low cognitive function was 23.8%. The findings showed that high riboflavin intake was associated with a lower risk of cognitive impairment in adults in the United States. Compared to those with the lowest intake, individuals with the highest riboflavin intake had a 32% reduction in the correlation between AFT, DSST, and Z-test low cognitive function (OR: 0.68, 95% CI: 0.49–0.96, P = 0.028), a 47% reduction in the correlation between DSST low cognitive function (OR: 0.53, 95% CI: 0.37–0.77, P = 0.001), and a 44% reduction in the correlation between Z-test low cognitive function (OR: 0.56, 95% CI: 0.39–0.8, P = 0.002). The study also found an L-shaped association between low cognition and riboflavin intake, with an inflection point at approximately 2.984 mg/d.Conclusions Our cross-sectional study supported the negative associations of dietary riboflavin intake with low cognitive function, also showed a L-shaped dose–response relationship with the point of 2.984mg/day.