SNAP Benefits Linked to Better Brain Health in Older Adults

Study finds having access to food may help delay cognitive decline

Rachel Nania,

AARP

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En español

Published July 30, 2025

illustration of a superhero pushing a grocery cart

Kyle Ellingson

New research suggests that food assistance programs do more than help fill plates and bellies; they may also be a boon for the brain.

In a study presented July 30 at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference in Toronto, researchers observed that adults age 50 and older who participated in the USDA’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which helps low-income individuals and families buy food, had a slower rate of cognitive decline over a 10-year period, compared with older adults who qualified for the program but didn’t participate.

The difference in overall cognitive function was the equivalent of two to three additional years of better brain health.

“For someone starting at a healthy cognitive score, this slower decline could delay reaching the threshold for mild cognitive impairment by nearly a decade,” lead study author Linlin Da, with the University of Georgia, Athens, said in a news release.

For the study, researchers analyzed and compared a racially and ethnically representative group of 1,131 adults age 50 and older who were enrolled in SNAP in 2010 to 1,216 who were eligible for SNAP but did not participate. After assessing memory and executive function every two years between 2010 and 2020 by way of telephone and web interviews, they found a 0.10 difference between the groups.

Da says the study results suggest that SNAP participation, or another similar nutrition support program, could delay the onset of cognitive decline or dementia in people who are food insecure, “allowing people to preserve their ability to manage medications, finances and daily tasks longer.”

Roughly 1 in 10 (12.6 million) Americans age 50 and older experienced food insecurity in 2023, meaning they had limited or uncertain access to adequate, nutritious food, according to an AARP analysis. And more than 11 million adults age 50-plus participated in SNAP in 2023. SNAP benefits can be used to buy foods such as fruits and vegetables, meat and fish, breads and cereals, and dairy products.

“Research has shown that food insecurity can negatively impact cognitive function, and this is one of the first long-term studies to show that food assistance programs can positively impact cognition,” said Maria C. Carrillo, Alzheimer’s Association chief science officer and medical affairs lead, in a news release.

Food insecurity has also been linked to higher rates of diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease and other health problems that plague many older Americans.

Nutrition and the brain

Most people know that healthy foods are good for the heart, but scientists are discovering they’re just as beneficial for the brain — especially leafy green vegetables, colorful berries, fatty fish (think salmon and mackerel), and nuts and seeds.

There are chemical compounds in these foods, known as bioactives, “that have strong science to support their role in delaying cognitive decline,” says Elizabeth Johnson, an adjunct associate professor at Tufts University’s Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, who was not involved in the research presented at the conference. Many of these foods are also rich in antioxidants, “which are related to better cognitive function and delaying cognitive decline,” Johnson says.

One well-known study, in particular, found that older adults whose diets were chock-full of these nutrient-dense foods had a significantly slower rate of cognitive decline than people whose diets didn’t include as many of these ingredients.

“So it all makes sense,” Johnson says, that when people have better access to nutrient-dense food, their brains stay healthier, longer.

On the other hand, research has linked high intakes of ultraprocessed foods — packaged snacks, fast-food meals and frozen dinners — to a higher risk for dementia and cognitive decline.

“The things to pay attention to as one gets older, where science supports brain health, are your fruits and vegetables, your nuts, your whole grains. It’s just everything that is helpful for all parts of your body,” Johnson says.

In addition to maintaining a healthy diet, researchers have found that staying physically active, getting enough sleep, socializing with others, managing stress and keeping your mind active can help protect your brain as you age.“Cognitive aging is not only about genetics. It’s also shaped by policies, by environments, by the access to resources,” Da told AARP.

AARP defends SNAP benefits for older adults

AARP has long fought to protect food assistance for older Americans and recently told lawmakers it is “concerned about the deep cuts to SNAP” included in new legislation.

These changes include shifting some of the costs of SNAP to states and expanding existing work requirements to recipients ages 55 to 64, “a provision that is especially harmful to older adults who often face age discrimination, longer unemployment, chronic health conditions, and caregiving responsibilities that limit their ability to stay in the workforce,” AARP’s Chief Advocacy and Engagement Officer Nancy LeaMond wrote in a recent letter to Congress.

Changes to work requirements alone could cut 3.2 million adults off SNAP in a typical month, including 1 million older adults ages 55 through 64, according to the nonpartisan Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

Rising food prices are making matters worse for many Americans. Food prices rose by nearly 24 percent from 2020 to 2024 and were 3 percent higher in June 2025 than in June 2024, according to the Economic Research Service at the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Three-quarters of U.S. adults ages 50 to 80 say the rising cost of groceries has affected them, and nearly one-third say they’re eating less healthily because of increased food costs, a 2022 report from the AARP-supported National Poll on Healthy Aging found.

For those on a budget, Tufts University’s Johnson says frozen fruits and vegetables are a great way to get brain-healthy foods for a fraction of the cost. “And you don’t lose the benefit of what you have in frozen versus fresh,” she says.

Frozen spinach can be added to soups and stews, for example, or incorporated into pizza and pasta dishes. Frozen berries can be mixed into yogurt or oatmeal or tossed into a blender to make a smoothie.

Meanwhile, researchers of this latest study hope their findings encourage doctors and other health workers to discuss food access and nutrition with their patients.

“We hope health care providers will see that potentially delaying cognitive impairment is another reason to help their patients-in-need secure access to food assistance,” Suhang Song, corresponding author of the study and assistant professor in the Department of Health Policy and Management, at the University of Georgia College of Public Health, said in a statement.

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