ABSTRACT
The concept that nutrition status can modulate behavior is well established. Severe isolated nutrient deficiencies such as niacin can lead to the dementia associated with pellagra, and thiamine deficiency results in Wernicke’s encephalopathy. The nutrient alcohol can have devastating acute effects on behavior and the central nervous system when ingested in excess. Long-term use of alcohol may result in the memory disturbances and confabulation associated with Korsakoff’s syndrome. Minamata disease occurred in persons ingesting fish that came from a bay in which excess inorganic mercury compounds had been transformed by methanogenetic bacteria into methylmercury. Minamata disease is characterized by delirium, memory problems, irritability, headaches, tremors, dysarthria, and an ataxic diet. The role of nutrients in chronic diseases of the central nervous system is less clear. For example, while high cholesterol levels are associated with atherothrombotic strokes, low cholesterol levels are associated with hemorrhagic strokes. In older persons, nutrition deficits rarely present with clear-cut changes, but rather often occur as borderline deficiency states that may be associated with subtle behavioral alterations. This
chapter briefly reviews some of the recognized effects of altered nutrient status in older persons.
