Importance of Diet, Genetic and Lifestyle on Human Aging, Health and Cognition

Several intrinsic/extrinsic factors can interact in our body, from conception to old age, determining
human health, longevity, and cognitive decline. In the last years, it has become evident that the aging
process is not only a matter of years of life but a consequence of a series of biological phenomena
involving age-related factors of multicausal nature. To a certain extent, the extrinsic factors, such as
diet, environmental conditions, and lifestyle, can be controlled differently from intrinsic factors, such as
inherited genetic traits. The book “Factors on Aging, Memory and Cognitive Decline” is focused on
describing the impact of these different factors, potentially either leading to metabolic disturbances and
metabolic diseases or improving the metabolic balance. The first chapter presents a conceptualization
of how these factors naturally interact, while Chapter 2 describes the mechanisms responsible for cell
and tissue degradation in human diseases and aging. Chapters 3 to 6 describe the interaction of food
components and metabolites from both nutrients and non-nutrients in general metabolism, health,
memory, and cognition, either improving or deteriorating the metabolic balance. Chapters 7 to 10
discuss specific foods and particular dietary patterns that can contribute to preserving metabolic
balance and cognitive function, retarding the normal aging and related processes. Chapters 11 and 12
discuss the main problems prevailing with most dietary profiles and trends showing deficiency in
certain essential nutrients and excess consumption of unhealthy dietary components. In a
multidisciplinary approach, this up-to-date compilation of researches expands the knowledge and
highlights the inter-relationship among several sciences, such as Food, Chemistry, Biochemistry,
Nutritional, Medicinal, and Pharmaceutical Sciences. Some suggestions on researches in these areas
are presented as future perspectives.