Summary and discussion: Methodologies to assess long-term effects of nutrition on brain function

The objective of the workshop titled "Methodologies to assess long-term effects of nutrition and brain function", which took place on November 12-13, 2009, in Brussels, Belgium, was to obtain an overview of the current knowledge of science in the field of cognitive performance assessment and to identify knowledge gaps and opportunities related to nutritional approaches to improving brain function and cognitive performance. It is known that methodologies should be assessed according to biological relevance, sensitivity, and feasibility. An overview of these issues in terms of neurodevelopment and neurodegeneration over the lifespan was discussed at the workshop by Professor David Benton. This was followed by talks on intervention trials conducted with B vitamins and folic acid (C McCracken) and on trial designs used for some long-term intervention studies in large populations (Alan Dangour). Once the scene was set, solutions and an overview of potentially useful outcome measures, including imaging (T Paus), biomarkers (N Coley), genetic markers (M Kussmann), and cognitive testing (K Wesnes), were discussed. To conclude, a case study of iron deficiency (S Osendarp) was presented. Some of the highlights of the talks are briefly summarized here.