Research shows that the MIND diet can reduce the risk of memory problems later in life

People whose diets are more similar to the MIND diet may have a lower risk of cognitive impairment, according to a study published in the Sept. 18, 2024, online issue. Neurology. The results were similar for black and white participants. These results do not prove that the MIND diet prevents cognitive impairment, they only show a connection.

The MIND diet is a combination of the Mediterranean and DASH diets. It contains green leafy vegetables such as spinach, kale and collard greens, along with other vegetables. It recommends whole grains, olive oil, poultry, fish, beans and nuts. It prioritizes berries over other fruits and recommends one or more servings of fish per week.

“With the number of people living with dementia increasing as the population ages, it is critical to find changes we can make to slow or delay the development of cognitive problems,” says study author Russell P. Sawyer, MD, of the University of Cincinnati. in Ohio and a member of the American Academy of Neurology.

“We were particularly interested to see whether diet affects the risk of cognitive impairment in both black and white study participants.”

The study involved 14,145 people with an average age of 64 years. Of the participants, 70% were white and 30% black. They were followed for an average of ten years.

Participants completed a questionnaire about their diet over the past year. Researchers looked at the extent to which the food people ate corresponded to the MIND diet.

One point was awarded for each of the following:

• three or more daily servings of whole grains
• six or more weekly servings of green leafy vegetables
• one or more daily portions of other vegetables
• two or more weekly servings of berries
• one or more weekly portions of fish
• two or more weekly servings of poultry
• three weekly servings of beans
• five daily servings of nuts
• four or fewer weekly servings of red meat
• one or fewer weekly servings of fast or fried foods
• one or more weekly servings of olive oil
• one or fewer tablespoons of butter or margarine daily
• five or fewer weekly servings of pastries and sweets
• one glass of wine per day

The total number of possible points was 12.

Researchers then divided the participants into three groups. The low group had an average diet score of five, the middle group an average score of seven and the high group an average score of nine.

Thinking and memory skills were measured at the beginning and end of the study.

During the study, cognitive impairment developed in 532 people, or 12% of the 4,456 people in the low-diet group; in 617 people, or 11% of 5,602 people in the middle group; and in 402 people, or 10% of the 4,086 people in the high group.

After adjusting for factors such as age, high blood pressure and diabetes, researchers found that people in the high group had a 4% lower risk of cognitive impairment compared to people in the low group.

When we looked at male and female participants, researchers found a 6% lower risk of cognitive impairment for female participants who followed the diet the most, but no reduced risk for male participants.

Researchers also looked at how quickly people’s thinking skills deteriorated as they developed problems. They found that people who followed the MIND diet closely deteriorated more slowly than those who did not, and that this association was stronger in black participants than in white participants.

“These findings warrant further research, especially to investigate these different effects among men and women and black and white people, but it is exciting to think that people could make some simple changes to their diet and potentially reduce their risk of cognitive problems.” can reduce or delay,” Sawyer said.

A limitation of the study was that it only included older black and white people, so results may not be the same for other populations.