The Study
Meat Consumption and Cognitive Health by APOE Genotype
This study looked at a group of older people and noticed that those with a certain gene who ate more meat seemed to have better memories and less dementia. But it didn’t make people change their diets—it just watched what they already ate. So we can’t say meat caused the better brain health, just that the two were linked.
Analysis score
Maximum 72 for a cohort study.
Where the score came from
Some people have a gene (APOE34/44) that makes them more likely to get dementia, but eating more meat might help their brains stay sharp.
Where does this study sit?
Reviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert Opinion
Max 559 / 100
Quality score
Groups of people are followed over time to see who develops an outcome. Strong for identifying risk factors and associations, but cannot prove causation as firmly as RCTs.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1For people with this gene, eating more unprocessed meat may cancel out their higher dementia risk — making their brain health as good as people without the gene.
- 2People with this gene who ate a lot of meat (about 930g/week) had better memory and thinking over 10 years, and 55% less dementia.
- 3Eating processed meat (like bacon) raised dementia risk by 14%.
- 4Unprocessed meat also helped them live longer.
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
JAMA Network Open
Year
2026
Authors
Jakob Norgren, A. Carballo-Casla, G. Grande, Anne Börjesson-Hanson, Hong Xu, M. Eriksdotter, E. Laukka, Sara Garcia-Ptacek
Related Content
Claims (5)
People who eat meat have health outcomes that are neither worse nor better than those who eat less meat, after accounting for differences in income, education, and daily habits.
Older adults with the APOE34/44 genotype who eat about 930 grams of meat per week have a 0.32-unit better cognitive trajectory over 10 years and a 55% lower risk of dementia than those who eat about 215 grams per week.
Older adults who eat a higher proportion of processed meat compared to all meat have a 14% higher risk of developing dementia, no matter their genetic background.
Among older adults with the APOE34/44 genotype, those who eat more unprocessed meat have a 15% lower risk of dying from any cause compared to those who eat less.
People with the APOE34/44 genotype who consume high amounts of meat have the same cognitive function and dementia risk as people without this genotype.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.