The TLDR:

• We know the gut is linked to the brain: but could gut changes really impact function and health?
• There are many health benefits of the Mediterranean Diet with a recent RCT showing promise that it might help with positive gut changes, memory, and LDL.
• Many of the cognitive changes may be related to gut biome changes...check out our video for more details!

If you like what you see here, check out our board-approved continuing education courses. We cover topics like:

- Nutrition interventions for chronic diseases (e.g., obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases)

- Advanced nutritional strategies to support physical therapy for patients with metabolic disorders

- Case studies demonstrating successful integration of nutrition into physical therapy care plans

Each course emphasizes practical, evidence-based learning, ensuring that participants can immediately apply the skills to their clinical practice. Sign up today and save:

Hello everyone, Dr. Wells here wi...

Processed food, Cognitive Decline, and Physical Therapy

By Dr. Sean M. Wells, DPT, PT, OCS, CNPT, ATC/L, CSCS, NSCA-CPT, Cert-DN

Many physical therapists (PTs) work with geriatric clients that have cognitive decline. Our mainstay intervention for these patients typically is aerobic exercise, which promotes perfusion to the brain and can enhance memory and processing. While this intervention is fantastic, what if there could be other means to improve cognition in our older patients, or even prevent cognitive decline in the first place? That's where nutrition comes in!

A new study published shows that ultra-processed foods increase the odds of cognitive decline in middle aged adults. That’s right: middle-aged adults, a major group of patients that doctors of physical therapy (DPTs) work with, are at risk for declining cognition due to food. Ultra processed food has gotten a lot of publication recently. Dr. Kevin Hall has spoken extensively on this topic, as his NIH funded research has...