Postmenopausal women face a higher risk of depression due to a combination of social and physiological factors. As a beverage rich in a variety of bioactive substances, green tea has significant effects on metabolism, inflammation and endocrine, and may reduce the risk of depression, but few studies have looked at the effects of green tea on postmenopausal women. Therefore, we designed this study to investigate the effects of long-term green tea consumption on inflammation, endocrine and depression levels in postmenopausal women. We investigated a tea-producing village and eventually included 386 postmenopausal women, both in the tea drinking and control groups. The results showed that there were significant differences in the degree of insomnia, degree of depression, BMI, SII and estradiol between the two groups. And, green tea consumption may reduce the risk of depression through the mediating pathway of sleep, SII and estradiol. In summary, long-term green tea consumption can reduce the risk of depression in postmenopausal women by reducing inflammation and increasing estradiol. This kind of living habit deserves further promotion.

Journal of Medical Internet Research - International Scientific Journal for Medical Research, Information and Communication on the Internet #Preprint #PeerReviewMe: Warning: This is a unreviewed preprint. Readers are warned that the document has not been peer-reviewed by expert/patient reviewers or an academic editor, may contain misleading claims, and is likely to undergo changes before final publication, if accepted, or may have been rejected/withdrawn. Readers with interest and expertise are encouraged to sign up as peer-reviewer, if the paper is within an open peer-review period. Please cite this preprint only for review purposes or for grant applications and CVs (if you are the author). Background: The effects of smartphone use on mental health and brain activity in adolescents have received much attention, however, the effects on older adults have received little. As more and more older adults begin to use smartphones, it is imperative to explore the effects of non-addictive smartphone use on mental health, cognitive function, and brain activity in older adults. Objective: This study aimed to examine differences in cognitive performance, emotional symptoms (depression, anxiety, and insomnia), and brain functional activity between older adults who use smartphones and those who do not. Methods: A total of 1014 community-dwelling older adults aged 60 years and above were surveyed in a rural area of China. Participants were categorized into two groups based on smartphone use status. Depression, anxiety, and insomnia symptoms were evaluated using the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale (GAD-7), and Insomnia Severity Index (ISI), respectively. Cognitive function was assessed with the Montreal Cognitive Assessment-Basic (MoCA-B). To explore neural mechanisms, a subsample of 130 participants (89 smartphone users and 41 non-users) was selected using stratified random sampling for resting-state fMRI scanning. Participants with contraindications for MRI (e.g., metal implants, claustrophobia) or who refused participation were excluded. Functional brain activity was analyzed and compared between groups. Results: Among all 1015 older adults, 641 reported using smartphones while 373 reported never using smartphones. Older adults who use smartphones exhibited better cognitive function compared with those who never use smartphones (Z = 3.806, P < .001), especially in the domains of fluency (Z = 3.025, P = .002) and abstraction (Z = 5.311, P < .001). But there were no significant differences in levels of depression (Z = 0.689, P = .49), anxiety (Z = 0.934, P = .35) and insomnia (Z = 0.340, P = .73). In terms of the MRI findings, a total of 130 participants completed fMRI scanning, including 89 who use smartphones and 41 who never use smartphones, and results showed that older adults who were smartphone users exhibited higher degree centrality values in the left parahippocampal gyrus. Conclusions: These findings suggest that smartphone use among older adults is associated with better cognitive performance and fewer emotional symptoms, potentially linked to enhanced brain activity in key cognitive regions. Promoting digital engagement may offer cognitive and emotional benefits for aging populations. Longitudinal studies are warranted to examine causal relationships.