A study using an animal model of obese females found that the group consuming 5% of calories from coconut oil had reductions in cholesterol, blood sugar, fatty liver disease, and belly fat.

Intestinal microbes are thought to be involved in the development of Alzheimer's disease through the gut-brain-microbiota axis. Gut dysbiosis leads to the release of pro-inflammatory mediators.

Long-term exposure to air pollution was linked to dementia, especially in people with heart failure, ischemic heart disease, and stroke, which all enhanced the link between pollution and dementia.

A high-salt diet led to severe bacterial infections in mice and immune deficiencies in humans, at about 6 grams of salt (equivalent to 2 fast-food meals), through increased glucocorticoids.