Research published in Alzheimers and Dementia has suggested that the risk of developing Alzheimer’s is significantly reduced by following the MIND diet.
Between 2004 and 2013, 923 adults between the ages of 58 and 98 years completed surveys about their diets, with their intake of 144 food items being monitored. The research team did not get involved with their diets, allowing them to eat what they wanted.
Alzheimer’s was developed by 144 of the adults during the study, with the team’s results showing that those who stringently followed the MIND diet had a 53 per cent lower risk of developing it. However, even following the diet only moderately well resulted in a 35 per cent lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s.
The MIND diet, which stands for Mediterranean-DASH Intervention for Neurodegenerative Delay, has a strong emphasis on consuming parts of a Mediterranean and DASH 9 Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension), such as fresh vegetables, fish and grains.
The MIND diet also calls for a minimum of three servings of salad and whole grains each day, as well as an additional vegetable, accompanied by a glass of wine.
The diet was developed by Martha Morris, a professor at Rush University in the USA, and her colleagues. It was based on years of research into which foods have good effects on health, and which have bad effects.
The study also revealed a list of the ten healthiest foods for our brains, as well as five unhealthy foods. The ten healthiest included vegetables, nuts, berries, whole grains, fish, poultry and wine. The unhealthy foods were red meats, butter, cheese, sweets, pastries and fast food.