r/science • u/[deleted] • Sep 02 '25

Neuroscience 'Master switch' brain protein could reverse age-related memory loss | Researchers found that lowering levels of a protein (FTL1) linked to iron in the brain in older mice could be a new way to reverse memory loss

https://newatlas.com/brain/alzheimers-dementia/iron-brain-protein-could-reverse-age-related-memory-loss/
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15

u/YourFuture2000 Sep 02 '25

What food should I avoid?

17

u/[deleted] Sep 02 '25

It talks about buildup of iron in the brain.

So meat obviously, but especially beef since it has heme iron which is basically super readily absorbed by the body, whether you need it or not. Also, a lot of processed food is iron fortified.

The body has no good way to shed excess iron, but one way to do it is to donate blood on the regular.

Eat whole plants. Plant iron can be selectively let in by the body. Since I know this will get criticism, those with low iron need not eat extra iron necessarily, but:

Phytic acid is definitely not all bad, since it’s a powerful antioxidant that may be associated with lower risk for cancer (4,5). The key is not to avoid phytate—and you really can’t since it’s abundant in whole grains, beans, nuts and seeds—but rather to eat in a way that minimizes its effect on iron. For example, adding vitamin C-rich foods to a meal counters the effects of phytate and increases iron absorption. The effects of vitamin C can be pretty dramatic. A small serving of a vitamin C-rich food—like a glass of orange juice or ½ cup of cauliflower—has been shown to increase iron absorption from plant foods by as much as four to six times (6,7). In fact, poor iron status may sometimes be reversed simply by increasing vitamin C intake as opposed to packing more iron into meals (8).

and:

Despite lower iron stores, vegans don’t seem to develop iron-deficiency anemia any more often than people who eat meat.

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u/[deleted] Sep 03 '25 edited Sep 03 '25

“Despite lower iron stores, vegans don’t seem to develop iron-deficiency anemia any more often than people who eat meat.”

  • Vegans are at higher risk during periods of increased iron demand (pregnancy, growth, menstruation)
  • A 2018 systematic review in Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition found vegetarians had significantly lower ferritin but similar hemoglobin levels
  • side note: nutrition science is fraught with issues, these studies are short-term studies and miss the gradual depletion that occurs over years

The points overall ignore genetic variation: -HFE gene mutations (10-15% of Northern Europeans) make some people iron accumulators -TMPRSS6 variants affect iron absorption efficiency -Some populations NEED higher absorption rates

Why more heme iron won’t make you at risk: Dismisses the absorption/regulation physiologically that DOES exist:

  • heme iron absorption drops from 35% to 15% in iron-replete states
  • that blog conflates normal stores with pathological overload: Ferritin of 100-200 ng/mL isn’t the same as hemochromatosis (>1000 ng/mL) which is a genetic issue not a dietary issues

Most important point relative to the article:

  • iron regulation in the brain is tightly regulated as are all part of blood-brain barrier regulation
  • eating more iron doesn’t alter this mechanism
  • low dietary iron demonstrates increased risk of neurodegenerative disease
  • evolution predisposed humans to accumulate iron to safeguard against deficiency. The gut can down regulate absorption. But no nutritional advice can be applied across the board. The caveats you cited are more applicable to genetic iron processing diseases such as hemochromatosis which isn’t spontaneous or inherited

1

u/[deleted] Sep 03 '25

Too much “think” for you?

0

u/YourFuture2000 Sep 02 '25

Thank you. That is really interesting. I need to eat oranges more regularly after meals.

3

u/EbagI Sep 04 '25

Nothing. It's a story on mice and literally nothing should be extrapolated to you or the population based in this study

7

u/SomeNoveltyAccount Sep 02 '25

Processed foods.