Overeating may double risk of MCI in seniors.

ABC World News (2/12, story 2, 0:25, Muir) reported, "A new study out tonight shows that the more calories you eat the higher your risk for memory loss."

        USA Today (2/13, Hellmich) reports, "Older people who consumed more than 2,143 calories a day had more than double the risk of a type of memory loss called mild cognitive impairment (MCI), compared to those who ate fewer than 1,500 calories a day, according to a study...released Sunday by the American Academy of Neurology on its website (aan.com)." The study found that "the more calories older people consumed, the more likely they were to have mild cognitive impairment." USA Today explains, "MCI is the condition between normal forgetfulness due to aging and early Alzheimer's disease."

        "For the study, investigators collected data on more than 1,200 people, aged 70 to 89, living in Olmsted County," MN, HealthDay (2/13, Reinberg) reports. "Among these people, 163 had been diagnosed with the memory deficits known as 'mild cognitive impairment.' Each person told the researchers how much they ate."

        WebMD (2/13, Mann) points out, "One-third ate between 600 and 1,526 calories per day, one-third ate between 1,526 and 2,143, and one-third ate between 2,143 and 6,000 calories per day, the study shows." Notably, "those who took in the highest number of calories per day had double the risk for MCI." According to MedPage Today (2/13, Smith), the National Institutes of Health was one of the study's supporters.