Mineral intake and changes in intracranial structure volume in community-dwelling adults

Motivation: This study addresses knowledge gaps by exploring how specific minerals impact changes in regional intracranial volumes. Goal(s): To identify mineral targets that could support brain health and inform dietary recommendations. Approach: We conducted multiple regression analyses to examine associations between changes in regional intracranial volumes and participants' mineral intake levels, specifically whether their intake exceeded the estimated average requirement or adequate intake, using 3D high-resolution brain MRI images from healthy individuals. Results: Significant associations were observed only for zinc, where meeting or not meeting the required intake was significantly related to the rate of change in subcortical white matter volume Impact: This result suggests a potential association between brain volume change and zinc. Furthermore, this study provides motivation to explore whether adequate zinc intake is necessary, even when sufficient levels of zinc are observed in blood data.